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Chapter Text

The end was nigh. 

Raziel stole through the trees near the lake's edge. He thought he'd seen something here, from his vantage point in the crumbling Ancient Citadel. The very instant he turned back to the broken wall after Janos teleported away, he swore he saw a flash of light in the woods across the lake. It wasn't at all difficult to convince himself to turn away from his ill-fated path for a while. His desperate mind was seeking any excuse it could latch onto to do something, anything except what he knew would lead to his imprisonment. Thus, he'd left the Citadel, crossed the lake, and crept into the forest beyond the shore.

He began to feel foolish within a minute of beginning his search for the source of the flash. Who did he think he was kidding? There was nothing here. Nothing that would save him, nothing that would console him or even distract him for a little while. There was nothing but trees and silence, and despair welled up in him once more. He leaned against a tree, knowing that he might as well just go back yet unable to muster up the courage to do so. That was when he saw her.

A young woman had stepped out from behind a large outcropping of rock, looking frightened and bewildered. Her clothes were incredibly strange; he'd never seen fabric so brightly colored. Her shirt had short sleeves and was a light but vibrant green. It was clearly tailored for a woman's form, and hugged her body closely without being skin-tight. In contrast to this were the pants she was wearing, which were a deep shade of blue. Her feet were shod with sturdy shoes made of an unknown material. 

He concluded that she must be an aspiring mage who's spell had gone awry, leaving her alone and empty-handed. Mages weren't exactly known for their wilderness survival skills; she likely wouldn't make it through the night without being taken by a wild animal, particularly if she was a novice. A pity, really; with her relatively rare combination of red hair and green eyes, she was quite fair indeed. There was a time, once, where he would have simply killed her to sate his bloodlust (after seducing her in order to sate that lust as well, no doubt) but those days were long gone. 

She let out a startled yelp when he stepped into her field of view, and they stared one another down for a moment before he silently turned away and kept walking, setting his course for the lake's edge. If it were nothing but a weird-looking human that had turned up, there was no point in investigating any further. He was only tormenting himself by dragging things out like this. 

"Wait," she called, after he'd taken several steps.

Raziel turned, narrowing his eyes at her. He hadn't the time nor the patience to help her get out of the woods. "What do you want?"

She peered at him, apparently unbothered by his horrid appearance. "Why do you look so sad?"

That stopped him short, and he stared at her in stunned silence a moment before recovering. "Have you no sense, woman? Are you not afraid of me?"

"I mean... will cowering stop you from killing me, if that's what you really want to do?"

That was... actually a fair point. But now his curiosity was piqued. "Who are you, and how did you manage to bungle a spell so badly as to end up out here?"

Her brow furrowed as if she were confused. "My name is Amalia. I... don't really know where I am, or where I came from. I can't remember; everything is just a blur. How did you get out here?"

He now had additional questions, but didn't care enough to ask them. "My name is Raziel. My problems are my own; I would not burden you with them." She surprised him by taking a step toward him. 

"Maybe I can help."

Raziel was incredulous. Scoffing, he crossed his arms. "It seems to me like you're the one in need of help. Alone in the woods a few hours before dusk. No wand, no amulets, no weapons, and apparently no memory."

 She looked confused once more, as if she had no idea what he was talking about, and then shook it off and met his eyes. "You first."

Whatever spell she had cast had apparently addled her brain. And yet... he had come out here looking for a distraction, hadn't he? She seemed kind and pleasant even if she was insane. "I... would appreciate some company for a while," he admitted. Her gaze softened, and she took another step closer to him. 

"Stay here with me, then. As long as you want."

"I would stay forever, if I could." Oh, if only he could. Better to spend eternity conversing with a beautiful woman than trapped within a sword, even if she was completely out of her mind.

"Where do you have to go?"

"To my eternal imprisonment. There is no escape, I merely came out here to borrow a little time before I..." He couldn't bear to even finish the sentence.

This seemed to upset her greatly. "Oh, God, I'm sorry," she said, covering her mouth. Such compassion, he thought. Finally a bit of good in the world... and she'd likely be dead before the next dawn. He would protect her for as long as he could, he decided. He'd ultimately have to abandon her to her fate; there was nothing he could do to help get her home, especially if she didn't even know where home was. But at least he could keep her safe a little while. 

"There's no way out? You have to go?"

Raziel turned away from her, squeezing his eyes closed. "My fate will follow me regardless of where I go. I don't know exactly what will happen, but I know what my path leads to. I can sense the end drawing dangerously near." Deep dread washed over him, and he hugged himself, shuddering. "I am... afraid," he said, softly. Was there any shame in admitting it? Did it matter if there was? "Scared to death, in fact."

Amalia stepped around him, back into his field of view. She looked utterly lost. "How long can you stay here?"

Raziel let his legs buckle and dropped to the ground to sit. Might as well, if he was going to hang around. "A while, yet. You truly do not fear me?"

She followed him to the ground, planting herself right next to him, much to his surprise. "No, I don't. And whatever is in store for you, you shouldn't spend your last hours alone. I'll stay with you until the end. How can I help you forget until then?"

The girl wasn't mad. She was a miracle. An angel sent as a mercy to console him during this time of despair. He tried to convince himself that that was the case, that she would simply be caught up in a cloud and whisked away after he left the woods, that she wouldn't have to die alone out here. "I don't know who or what you are, but you are far too pure for this world. There is no forgetting. But I will tell you everything, if you would hear my sorry tale."

"Tell me... I'm here," she breathed.

And so he did. He told her of Nosgoth, of the war between the Ancients and the Hylden, of the parasite. He told her about Kain and his former life as a vampire, though he glossed over the gorier details in regards to being cast into the Abyss. He told her about the Pillars, and he told her about the corruption that had seeped into the world after the Mind Guardian found his love murdered and went insane with grief, releasing a psychic tsunami that had overwhelmed the rest of the guardians, driving them mad as well. And he told her of the prophecy that he and Kain were apparently at the heart of.

"I don't know what role I play in this sordid tragedy. I've tried and tried to figure it out, and I've been used, manipulated, and misled at every turn. I hardly care anymore, to be honest. What does it matter? I won't be around much longer anyway. Soon I will return to the Citadel at the center of the lake, and continue down the path that will lead to my doom. There is nothing left but to do so." Perhaps it was for the best. Perhaps the slide into madness as he lost his sense of self to the Reaver would happen quickly. The sooner he lost awareness, the better. He may be reduced to nothing more than a ravenous spirit, but at least hunger would be the only thing on his mind.

When he glanced over at her, he found her fighting tears. "I'm sorry. I wish there were something I could do. I feel completely powerless."

He snorted. "That makes two of us. Enough talk about me. You truly don't remember how you came to these woods?"

She furrowed her brow, shaking her head. "No, but I'm sure I didn't put myself here. This entire existence feels foreign. I'm not from here, that much I can tell. I'm not supposed to be here, wherever 'here' is. I have some scattered memories, but they're muddled. I don't even know where home is, or if it even really exists. Maybe I'm just insane."

He was still half convinced she was insane, but kept his opinion to himself. "What memories?"

"Strange things... bits of advanced technology that I can't put names to. The air didn't feel so... charged, I guess? There's an energy I can sense here that doesn't exist wherever I came from. Things like you didn't exist there, I don't think. I feel like it was... mundane. Safer than here, maybe, but mundane. But I can remember music... I can remember entire songs. They're the only clear memories I have, even if I can't recall their names or who wrote them. God, I wish you could hear it," she sighed. "I could sing the words, but I can't really convey what the accompanying music sounds like."

Before, when he was still a vampire, he would have been able to listen to her thoughts, and all she'd have to do was recall the music to the best of her ability and he would hear it in his head clear as day. No longer, unfortunately. That ability had been lost and never regained. "Then sing the words. I'd like to hear them, if you're willing."

She was more than willing, and though the music was the only thing she remembered, she remembered a lot. None of the songs were familiar; every single one was unknown to him and most of them were in styles that sounded like nothing he'd ever heard before. Some were obviously love songs, one or two were quite the opposite, sounding as if they were written by jilted ex-lovers, and several of them told stories. He desperately wished he could hear all the parts her voice could not convey.

Music had been one of Raziel's favorite indulgences, once. Live long enough, however, and everything starts to lose its shine. He could still recall the dull ache he felt in his chest the first time he listened to a musician perform and realized it no longer made him happy. But this... this was new. And her voice was beautiful, ringing clearly through the trees. Anything lurking nearby would hear her, of course, but whatever was out there that may have ill intent would sorely regret trying to attack her. He would destroy anything that drew near. She was his, for as long as he could hold on to her.

And thus, the hours passed. She would choose a song to sing, and in between the singing and discussing what the words might mean, he would try to jog her memories of her home world to no avail. It was as if she had been plucked from wherever and put here just for this purpose. Just for him. And, for a time... Raziel did indeed forget his sorrows.

Chapter Text

"You're restless all of a sudden."

Amalia was eyeing Raziel warily, as he had risen and started to pace back and forth during a lull in their hours-long conversation. Her suspicions were correct. The light was fading. It was time. "I fear our time together is at an end. I cannot tarry here any longer."

She looked grieved for a moment, then got to her feet as well and stared at him. Raziel knew what she was going to say, and it pained him.

"I'm coming with you."

He sighed, shaking his head. "No, Amalia. I must make the rest of this journey alone; you cannot accompany me to where I'm going. You must take cover here and wait. Hide and stay out of sight. Kain will come, in time. He'll look after you." At least, Raziel fervently hoped he would. He had sensed that Kain had survived their last encounter, because of course he had. He knew that he was drawing near, carrying the sword that would soon become his prison. Perhaps he would grant his firstborn one last wish. It's the least he could do, he thought darkly.

"No!" she protested, starting to cry. "I told you I'd stay with you until the end. I'm not gonna just abandon you now!" Tears began to stream down her face as she reached for him, as if she were actually welcoming his touch. Was there a single universe imaginable in which he would refuse her? He rested his ruined talons lightly, tentatively on her shoulders, and she immediately covered them with her hands, causing his heart to squeeze painfully.

"This is the end," he insisted. "Please, don't waste your tears on me. I wish that things could have been different, that we could have met under more fortuitous circumstances. As it is, I'm simply grateful for the few scraps of happiness you've given me today. You've brought me great comfort in my final hours."

She surprised him for what felt like the millionth time that day by reaching up to run her fingers through his filthy hair, and, seeming to finally accept that he had to go, leaned forward and rested her head on his emaciated shoulder. What was left of his heart shattered. If he were still capable of crying, he would be wracked with sobs. If making the choice to leave her were capable of sending him straight to oblivion, he would cease to exist in that instant. He pulled back to gaze at her for one last moment, daring to brush a strand of hair out of her face with a claw. "Farewell," he said.

And then he abandoned his physical form, watching helplessly as she dropped to her knees, reaching for him and crying out as he faded away, the landscape twisting and warping as he shifted to the spectral realm. He remained for a moment, overwhelmed with grief, almost able to still feel the ghost of her chin on his shoulder. But it wouldn't do to delay any longer. It was time. Whatever test Janos spoke of was back in the Citadel, awaiting his approach. He had to persevere; he hadn't come this far only to fail now. He had to emerge victorious. And then he had to find Kain and embrace his bitter destiny.

Fortunately, things began to unfold rapidly then; fast enough to push Amalia out of his mind for the time being. The Spirit Forge was found, the parasite encountered and outmaneuvered, the wraith-blade imbued and purified. He had witnessed the destruction of the Pillars, dread filling him as the shockwave hit the forest, desperately hoping Amalia had survived the blast. He had fought valiantly against a possessed Janos Audron, though he could not bring himself to kill him, and suspected that his hesitation had unleashed something truly terrible upon the world. And now, having enjoyed the grim satisfaction of releasing Moebius to the Wheel, he understood his purpose. This was why he was to become the spirit that haunts the Reaver, devouring the souls of all who fell to it. Kain was here; it was time to go to him. He alone could end this.

And so he did.

Kain had lunged at who he thought was Moebius, and was surprisingly distraught to find that he'd actually impaled Raziel. He protested, struggling to pull the blade from his chest even as Raziel healed him, horrified at what he was helpless to stop now that Raziel had made his choice. "No, Raziel, this can't be the way!"

But it was the way, and now that Kain had been healed and purged of his corruption, Raziel began to fade. "The girl in the forest... if she yet lives... look after her for me," he gasped with his final breath. And then he was gone, leaving only his cowl draped across the Reaver's blade. Kain did not have time to question what Raziel could possibly have meant with his last words. His corruption had been purged, his sight purified, and his true enemy was now revealed to him. His grip on the Soul Reaver tightened as he picked up the scrap of fabric that had fallen from the end. None of this would ever have happened if not for this hideous tentacled monster. And now, thanks to Raziel... the world had a chance to be rid of it. Nosgoth had a chance.

Killing the slimy bastard turned out to be more difficult than Kain had hoped, but he had sent it slinking back into the shadows, hurling threats and insults at him all the while. "You cannot destroy me, Kain! I am the Engine of Life itself... The Wheel will turn. The plague of your kind will be purged from this world. And on that inevitable day, your wretched, stagnant soul will finally be mine!"

Kain had simply begun walking away halfway through his empty words, taking only one moment to turn and respond. "In the meantime... You'd best burrow deep."

It would have to do for now. As he gazed out of the ruined window toward the destroyed Pillars, he reflected on what Raziel's final gift to him had meant. It was then that he recalled his final request. Whoever she was, if she had survived out there, he would find her. He would honor his firstborn's last wish, even if he didn't understand it.

He knew that locating her wouldn't be difficult if she were only just out in the woods at the lake's edge. In fact, the wind was blowing in just the right direction for him to catch her scent. A cloud of bats soon descended into the damaged trees, and he took his form before a small, oddly dressed figure huddled underneath the trunk of a long dead tree that had blown sideways against an outcropping of rock when the Pillars had collapsed. Oh, was she ever lucky.

She gazed up at him from the ground, surprised but clearly unafraid. Well, that wasn't too shocking, he supposed. He certainly wasn't the oddest thing she'd seen today if she'd met Raziel and lived to tell the tale. He kneeled down in front of the log. After hesitating a moment, she inched forward. "...Are you Kain?"

He grunted in assent, offering her his cloven hand. "You must be the girl he spoke of, then. Come. His final wish was that I look after you."

She deflated, tears welling in her eyes. "He's really gone, then."

He shook his head. "Raziel isn't truly gone. His soul is trapped within this sword. It was... an unfortunate necessity."

She choked down a sob, finally crawling out from under the log to him. "I don't understand."

He helped her to her feet and began to lead her away. "You don't need to. You need only know that he sacrificed himself not only for my sake, but for the sake of the entire world. Why do you weep for him? Who are you?"

She stared dejectedly at the ground. "Someone who doesn't belong here."

He snorted, eyeing her clothes and noting her strange accent. "That's perhaps the understatement of the century. How did you come to know Raziel?"

She wiped her eyes, trudging behind him as if she were now going to her own death. "I don't know," she shrugged, waving her hand. "I was here, and then he was here. We talked for hours."

Kain gave her a sharp glance. What kind of idiot was she? "Why in the hell would you not run from him? Were you not frightened by his appearance?"

She shrugged again. "For a second, yeah. But he didn't attack me or anything. We stared at one another for a few seconds and then he just walked right past me without even saying anything. He looked like he was just absolutely overwhelmed with despair, and he obviously wasn't going to hurt me. I couldn't just let him go. So I asked him what was wrong, and we got to talking. I just wanted to help."

He shook his head. An idiot indeed. "Driven by compassion to attempt to console a sad monster," he snorted. "You're lucky to have survived an hour in this rotten world."

The girl side-eyed him with distaste. "He kept me safe while I kept him company, and now he's apparently roped you into doing the same. Sometimes compassion pays off," she grumbled, earning her a scowl.

Kain hadn't the slightest idea what to do with her. He had strategizing to do, plans to make, a squid to skewer, and a demon to deal with. He had an entire world to save, and he really didn't have time to have a human who lacked the sense to avoid obvious danger stumbling around like a newborn fawn in his wake. And frankly, if she was already getting sassy then he doubted he had the patience, either. Still... he couldn't bring himself to leave her behind. He himself was mourning Raziel's loss, though he did not show it outwardly. But why had Raziel burdened him with this task? Of what importance could she possibly be to him, after such a short time in her company?

He glanced back at her as he made his way through the trees. "And were you able to bring him comfort, then? What did you spend these hours talking about?" He was having a hard time imagining Raziel strolling through the woods chatting amiably with a human woman. Perhaps as a vampire he would have for a while, though he certainly would have drained her dry once he got bored enough with her to drop the charade. But now?

She glanced briefly up into his golden eyes before dropping her gaze again, and he nearly winced at the pain he saw in them. "I tried to, I did!" she exclaimed, her voice breaking. "I mean... he said I did before he just disappeared into thin air, I guess, so I don't know, I must have." She took a moment to compose herself before continuing. "I just wanted to distract him a while, so I sat and listened while he told me about this world. He told me about you, and that he used to be a vampire. I didn't press for details; I just let him talk. Once he'd tired of that, he asked me about myself and where I'd come from, but I can't remember. Whatever memories of my home I brought here, they're too sparse to tell me anything. The only thing I can remember clear as day is the music I used to listen to. I figured I could at least keep his mind occupied with that. So I sang for him, and then we talked about the songs I was singing. After a while, he just got up and left, telling me to wait here for you. He wouldn't let me go with him, I tried."

Kain didn't reply immediately, too lost in his sorrow over Raziel's fate. He understood now why Raziel had become attached enough to her to want her kept safe. His firstborn had loved music. He'd loved it until he didn't love anything anymore, until the only thing that could satisfy was the taste of blood. And there, in his final hours, this lost little human had somehow managed to bring some of that love back.

"If Raziel told you that his time spent with you did him good, then I am certain it did. Perhaps that knowledge can be some consolation for both of us. Now, keep up. We have quite some ways to go."

Chapter Text

Kain hadn't raised a fledgling in centuries. He could still remember the way Raziel clung to him at first, confused and frightened of the strange new world he'd found himself in. He was clumsy, impulsive, and too smart for his own good. Having risen from the dead with no memories of his life as a human, his curiosity often led him to wander off to discover something new, and Kain learned quickly that if he didn't keep his attention on him at all times, he'd get himself into no end of trouble. The rest had been much the same, until they matured into adult vampires. He was immensely relieved when they had all been raised and become autonomous enough that he could stop looking after them and start putting them to work. No doubt about it, fledglings were a right and royal pain in the ass... but at least a fledgling could be easily fed with blood from his wrist in a pinch.

He grit his teeth as he moved silently through the woods. Amalia was the girl's name, he'd learned. She hadn't complained of her hunger; Kain would give her that much credit. But he knew she needed to eat, and it was more than obvious that she hadn't even the most basic of survival skills and would be unable to obtain food for herself. A nobleman's daughter, no doubt, he thought to himself. Useless. He had grabbed her and hauled her scrawny little frame none too gently up into a tree for safety before he left to go hunt something down for her. Fortunately for him, the blast from the collapse of the Pillars had been strong enough this far into the woods to have left numerous animals dead, even if the trees still stood for the most part. He soon came across a fallen doe, and noticed her spotted fawn lying several feet away. That would do.

He returned to the clearing where he'd left her, carrying the unfortunate baby deer by one of it's hind legs. Amalia had climbed a bit further up the tree to rest along one of the limbs, and Kain made no move to help her down. It turned out he didn't need to; she landed on her feet behind him with a thud as he started gathering firewood from under the damaged trees. "Don't be idle, girl," he said, "Unless you'd like to eat it raw." She wordlessly began to help him, and he soon had the wood arranged. At least she was obedient. Raziel's last wish be damned, he wouldn't abide recalcitrance.

"Holy shit!" she exclaimed, as he muttered a quick incantation that caused flames to leap out from beneath the wood. Kain turned and cocked an eyebrow at her. "I'm not sure what I'm more surprised at, your foul language or your shock upon seeing simple magic performed."

Her eyes moved from the fire to Kain, then back again. "I don't think..." she began. "No, actually, I'm pretty sure of it. I've never seen anything like that before."

"Cease your prattling," he growled. He knelt down by the fire to gut and skin the fawn, eager to get her fed so that he could sit and think a while. It had been centuries since he'd had any reason to do it, of course, but he still remembered the process, having hunted often as a human nobleman. It wasn't long before he noticed her edging closer to him. "What?" he snapped, baring his fangs at her. She stopped her approach and scowled, displaying her characteristic awareness of danger; which is to say, none.

"Why are you so mad at me? I didn't ask for any of this."

He glowered at her. "Do you suppose I did?"

"No, but out of the two of us, you're the only one being a dick about it," she snapped right back at him.

He leveled his gaze at her. That remark alone ought to have done her in. The impertinent little shit at least had the sense to look frightened now, perhaps realizing that she'd gone too far. But rather than stand up and gut her on the spot, he instead found himself weighing what she'd said in his mind. Perhaps it was because his soul had been cleansed of its corruption, perhaps he was simply exhausted by stress and sorrow. Whatever it was, he knew that killing her would make him feel worse, not better, and she was right. He was being a dick. Still, some threatening couldn't hurt. "You really haven't much regard for your own life, have you?" he asked, eyes narrowed.

Seeming to recognize that she wasn't about to die, Amalia slumped sullenly by the fire across from him. "Apparently not." She hugged herself, staring into the flames. "I was going to ask if I could help," she muttered. "I'm not trying to weigh you down."

Kain grit his teeth at the unfamiliar feeling of remorse that stole over him. Was this what he had to deal with now, feeling guilty for damn near every sharp word he spoke? He sighed deeply, dragging his palm down his face. "I can only assume that you've never prepared an animal for cooking?"

She deflated a bit, realizing that she wasn't of any use even if she wanted to be. "If I have, I don't remember how." She made as if to stand and move away, presumably to go and sulk near the treeline, but Kain stopped her. "Then I will teach you. Come here."

She hesitated, and then slowly began to slink to his side, eyeing him all the way. Almost as if she'd finally realized that vampires are dangerous. Though he generally considered himself far above drinking the blood of an animal, Kain decided to drive that point home by slitting the fawn's throat with one claw and turning it upside down over his open mouth in order to drain the blood from it, deliberately letting some run down his chin for added effect.

Her reaction did not disappoint; when he lowered the carcass and wiped the blood from his face she was leaning far away from him, staring at him wide-eyed. Worth it, he thought, feeling immensely pleased with himself. He turned the fawn over so that he was holding it by the neck and offered it to her as if he were giving her a chalice of fine wine to drink from, raising his eyebrows as if expecting a "Yes, please," or a "No, thank you".

"Fuck no," is what he got, as she swatted his hand away. "I'll just take the leftovers, thanks."

"Suit yourself," he replied. Still feeling rather smug, he began to walk her through the process of field dressing, relieved to find that she wasn't too squeamish to involve herself once they'd gotten started. "Poor little thing," she'd murmured, watching him pull its skin from its body. She took the bloodied pelt from him and stared at it in her hands. "Barely even got a start." It wasn't long before what little usable meat he'd scraped off the bones was spitted and roasted, and Amalia was making the best of eating a pile of plain, unseasoned strips of venison.

"You'd best gorge on as much of that as you can," Kain told her. "We'll be moving at a brisk pace tomorrow, and there won't be another meal until mid-afternoon at the earliest."

Amalia choked down a particularly tough bit of meat. "Where are we going?"

"To figure out what to do with you so I can get on with my quest," he began. "And to look into a way to free Raziel's soul from its prison."

She looked up sharply from her meal. "You think you might be able to?"

"I certainly hope so," Kain sighed. "In the meantime, tell me about these memories of yours."

She threw up her hands, swallowing down her last bite. "There isn't much, save for my name and a bunch of music. Everything else is either blurry or unidentifiable."

"Music, hmm? What kind of music?"

She sighed. "Hell if I know what any of it is called. I suppose you'll be wanting me to sing for my supper?"

He snorted derisively. "Hardly. Think of one of the songs you remember, and play through it in its entirety in your head, as clearly as you can. I'll listen in."

Amalia looked gobsmacked. "What the fuck, you can read minds?"

Kain rolled his eyes. He had forgotten just how unsettling an idea that was to most people. "You can rest assured that I have little interest in your idle thoughts. I've better things to worry about than what's going on inside the empty head of an amnesiac. Now play something."

She huffed, affronted. "Fine."

Out of spite, she chose the song that had the most outlandish music of anything she could remember, one that she'd sung to Raziel earlier. She couldn't recall a single musical instrument from her world, but somehow knew that this particular song was was comprised of sounds that weren't made the traditional way. It was ethereal and euphoric, layered and complex, with a pulsing beat and gory lyrics that involved phrases such as "cut open my sternum". With any luck, the sound of it would be so bizarrely foreign that he'd keel over dead or something. She closed her eyes, and upon feeling a strange pressure inside her skull that she assumed was Kain's intrusion, she focused on her memory of the song's introduction.

Kain startled at the sound of the first note. What was this? It was the strangest thing he'd ever heard, and he could only conclude that it had been made using some form of magic, unable to fathom what else could possibly produce the otherworldly sounds he was hearing. He certainly couldn't call it unpleasant, even if the lyrics were a bit macabre. It was hauntingly beautiful, perhaps even meant to be a love song despite the... interesting imagery the words evoked. If only Raziel could hear this, he thought.

Amalia didn't particularly feel like singing along, so she remained silent until she'd thought her way through the song start to finish. Kain hadn't died, but his face had gone on quite the journey over the course of it, from shock to bewilderment to pleasant surprise to... wistful? He sat silent after she was finished, and despite her sentiments only a moment ago she started to feel guilty for upsetting him. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you sad," she said, sidling over to sit next to him.

He didn't let his surprise at her actions show. "Until now, I was convinced you were a madwoman," he murmured. "Now I'm beginning to think that there may be something to your claims of coming here from somewhere else." He looked up when she failed to respond, surprised to find her staring intently at his shoulder, where he had draped Raziel's cowl after leaving the Citadel. Had she only just noticed it was there? "Is that..." she whispered, reaching her hand toward it. Kain took it from his shoulder and let it unfold as he handed it to her. "It belonged to him, yes."

Tears welled in her eyes as she clutched it to her chest, and they slid silently down her face as she fought to avoid breaking down completely. Kain was bewildered.

"Why do you mourn him so deeply?" he asked.

She drew in a ragged breath, shrugging and wiping her eyes. "He was my friend. Now he's gone. I miss him."

Kain rolled his eyes. Humans could be pathetically sentimental. "You were with him but a few hours."

Another shrug. "Amazing, isn't it, how such a short time spent with someone can have so profound an impact," she replied, before glancing over at where the Reaver still lay on the ground by the fire. "Can I see the sword?" Kain eyed her a moment, and then relented, lifting the Reaver off the ground where he'd set it and offering it to her hilt first.

"Mind the edge. This is obviously no ordinary blade."

She took it as carefully as she could and gazed at the soft blue glow emanating from the eyes. "Did it always glow like this?"

"No," he replied. "Only since Raziel's soul settled within it."

"Do you think... Could he maybe hear me if I talk to him?"

Kain raised an eyebrow. "I cannot say. Perhaps." It was unlikely, to be honest, but he was curious as to what she thought she might accomplish by attempting to reach Raziel within his prison.

He watched as she ran her fingers delicately across the hilt. It was a while before she spoke, and when she did it was little more than a whisper. "I'm still here, Raziel," she breathed, once again fighting tears. "I wish I could have saved you. You deserved far better than this."

Kain stared at her the whole time, beginning to piece things together. Her bitter tears, the way she'd reacted to Raziel's cowl, the look in her eyes as she spoke. Oh, good lord... Could it be true? "If I didn't know any better," he said, eyeing her suspiciously, "I'd think you'd fallen in love with him."

She did not deny it. "I didn't ask for that, either," she snapped, confirming his suspicions. "But it doesn't matter now, does it? Nothing does. I just want to get him out of this thing."

He chuckled darkly as he reached for the Reaver to take it back. "I knew you were foolish, girl, but to fall in love with a monster? It must have happened in spite of his looks, because it certainly didn't happen because of them. He's nowhere near as pretty as he used to be." He paused, thoughtfully. "I could just strike you down with it, you know. He would devour your very soul. Wouldn't that be romantic?"

Her gaze did not falter, it only hardened. "Yeah, sure," she replied. "If you want to defy his last wish and spit in the face of the sacrifice he made for you."

Kain rolled his eyes with a huff, annoyed that this time he hadn't gotten the reaction he'd hoped for. He should have gathered by now that she wasn't quite so easily cowed. "Oh, relax, I wasn't serious," he grumbled. "You are right about one thing, however... he does deserve better. He's deserved very little of the suffering he's endured over the centuries, to tell you the truth." He fell silent a moment, stroking his chin. "Get some rest, my lovestruck little nuisance. I've got some thinking to do."

She had wrapped herself in the cowl and was already preparing to bed down for the night, but that last part got her attention."You have an idea on how to free him?"

"No, I'm shelving that momentarily," he replied. Outraged, she opened her mouth to protest, and he snarled at her in warning, having finally grown tired of her attitude. "Be still! I only meant that I have an idea for how to keep him sane while he's in there, until such a time comes when I might be able to rescue him. It may take some time. There are things of greater importance right now than the fate of Raziel's soul."

She refused to back down. "I'm listening."

Kain heaved a sigh of resignation, realizing she probably wasn't going to sleep anytime soon. "I don't know how much Raziel told you of Nosgoth, but there are several problems that need to be solved. The first is an unseen parasitic entity that grows fat and bloated at the expense of the entire world. Raziel's sacrifice has enabled me to see it at last, and I had only just come from battling it when I found you in the woods. Unfortunately, I was only able to beat the horrid thing back for a while; it still slithers among the deep places of the world. I suspect that it cannot be harmed with a Reaver that does not contain Raziel's soul. It must die before we can even think about saving him from his own sacrifice, else his sacrifice will have been in vain," he said. "In the meantime... How would you like to see him alive and well again in another era, during his prime? None of that wraith business."

Amalia's jaw dropped open, and she sat bolt upright. "Can you do that?"

Kain adopted a smugly satisfied expression. "Yes, I can, though his personality won't be nearly as tolerable. His trials have humbled him greatly. I happen to possess a device that will enable us to travel through time," he said.

"As one does," was Amalia's dry response. He was beginning to see why she and Raziel had gotten along so well.

"If I take you to Raziel's past, his memories of your music in that time will bloom in his mind in the present, while he's trapped. They may be just what he needs to stave off the madness until I can bring him back. That song, in particular, ought to get his attention, especially since you'll then be able to convey the music to him the way you could to me, rather than just sing the words. Tomorrow, we'll head for the Pillars, and once we reach them I'll activate the device, putting us at a both a convenient time and place. I will leave you with him while I continue my quest to restore Nosgoth to her former glory, because I'm certainly not about to bring you along."

Amalia considered this a moment. "He won't know me, though, will he? If he hasn't met me yet in that time, how could he?"

"No, he will not," Kain replied, adopting a stern look. "And you must not let on that you're anything more than a curiosity I've gifted him for his amusement, or he'll be too unsettled to trust you even if I order him not to harm you. I warn you, he was a vain, arrogant, egotistical bastard in his vampiric unlife, even though he was far less cruel and brutal than most of his brothers were. I certainly wouldn't adopt any delusions that he might return your feelings, if I were you. You'll be little more than an interesting toy to him. But he will follow my orders to keep you safe and well cared-for, and his curiosity and love of music will soon be his downfall. If I know him well, and I do, the effect that song will have on him will be profound indeed. You put on a good enough performance, and you'll have him wrapped around your little finger by time it ends."

Chapter Text

Kain allowed Amalia but a few hours of sleep before kicking her lightly with his foot to wake her. To her credit, though she swatted at his foot and glared daggers at him as she rose from the ground, she didn't otherwise complain, though she insisted on burying the remains of the fawn before they left. "Why are we walking, anyway?" she asked, once she'd finished. "Can't you just explode into a thousand bats or whatever you did to get across the lake yesterday?"

He rolled his eyes. "Can you 'explode into a thousand bats' in order to accompany me?" he replied. "Don't be simple." 

Amalia narrowed her eyes at him and opened her mouth to retort, but apparently decided that getting the last word in wasn't worth it. She went to relieve herself and was then forced to run to catch up to Kain, who had simply walked off while she was hunkered down behind some nearby bushes. He smirked down at her as she returned to his side, amused at the indignant look on her face. "Keep up, my little lovelorn maiden," he said. He was expecting a scowl and grudging obedience, but she surprised him by stopping dead in her tracks after a few steps.

Kain stopped a few paces ahead of her. "Did you not hear what I just said, or are you simply having trouble parsing it?" 

She wordlessly began to follow him again, looking vaguely disturbed. Adopting an air of mock concern, Kain taunted her. "Did I hurt your feelings, my dear?" She shot him a look, and he continued. "Is it the lovelorn part that you objected to, or the maiden bit? Hardly dire insults." Then it occurred to him what might have rattled her so, and a malicious grin spread across his face. "Or can you simply not remember whether or not you're a maid?" 

"Fuck off," she growled. 

Oh, this was too good. Unable to resist, he gleefully continued to torment her. "You know, there is a widespread belief that a simple examination can be performed to ascertain whether-"

He relished the horror that flashed across her face before she cut him off. "Fuck. Off."

Kain laughed out loud. She was really quite pretty, and if he had to guess her age, he would have judged her to be in her early to mid twenties. He'd be shocked if she were still a virgin. Hell, he'd happily lie with her himself if she'd let him, though by now he'd almost certainly shot himself in the foot in that regard. Although...

"Of course," he began, "There is always the option of eliminating one of the two possibilities, leaving you with only one conclusion." His tone had shifted from mocking to seductive, and there was no doubt as to his meaning. She didn't take the bait. 

"Should I just go ahead and write 'fuck off' right on my forehead, so I can save my breath for the rest of this trip?" 

"Fine," Kain said rather snootily, feeling somewhat put out by her instant rejection even though he'd been certain she'd say no to begin with. He'd have to gag her to stop her running her mouth until he was through with her anyway.

Her mood improved by mid-morning, largely because they'd entered a part of the forest that had berry bushes in abundance. The branches were snapped and broken and a lot of the fruit had been blown off and lay bruised on the ground, but Kain had confirmed to her that they were edible, and she was now stuffing handfuls of them into her mouth with great relish.

"Your eating habits leave much to be desired," he said, side-eying her.

"Says the one who dumped an entire baby animal's worth of blood into his mouth last night," she replied without missing a beat.

Humorless little wench, he thought to himself, knowing that she had him there. Still, he was quite pleased that with food lying right on the ground everywhere, he wouldn't have to go find any for her. Best of all, it would likely keep her mouth occupied for the time being, provided he didn't needle her any further.

For most of the day they made good time, all things considered. Kain was pleasantly surprised with her ability to keep up with him, although he was certainly still slowing his pace in order to give her a chance at it. She did eventually start getting chatty, which annoyed him at first. But he had to admit that her company was entertaining even if it was nothing else, and it had been a very long time indeed since he'd allowed anyone to actually banter with him rather than silence them one way or another at the first show of impertinence. He'd honestly forgotten how enjoyable it was. Eventually she started asking questions about the parasite, which he answered to the best of his ability.

"So this thing has been here for eons and has literally shaped history in order to cause as much mayhem as it could?"

"It would seem that way," he replied. "After all, when death sustains you, orchestrating a little war here and there is to your benefit. He was able to convince the Ancients to worship him, and they believed him to be a benevolent god. If you want a lot of bloodshed, a little religious fanaticism goes a long way to achieving that result."

"So if you can kill it, Nosgoth is safe?"

"Not exactly. I said there were several problems before, remember? Removing the false god from the equation does nothing to reverse the effects of the havoc he's wrought. Those Pillars that were ruined must be restored in order for the land to thrive, and to stop the infiltration of demons from another realm. Before we can do that, I have to figure out how to eliminate the one that has managed to cross over, the Hylden Lord, before he throws the gate wide open for the rest to rush in. And once the Pillars are restored and order returned to the world, they must still be guarded and maintained, which is a task that only vampires can succeed at, which means I need to sire an entire new population of vampires, and I'm not entirely sure I'm still capable of doing it." 

"Right..." she said. "Raziel did tell me about some of that while we talked."

Kain sighed deeply. "So many mountains to climb, and so many ways for it all to come to nought. Even now the parasite is likely moving against me, manipulating whatever he can in order to facilitate his survival, to say nothing of the Hylden Lord, who has also been manipulating everything for centuries from behind the scenes to facilitate his race's escape back into Nosgoth. That bastard is the one responsible for the corruption of the Circle of Nine, myself included up until Raziel's sacrifice. I often feel as if fate is laughing at me regardless of the lengths I go to in order to defy it." 

Amalia fell quiet a moment, and Kain expected they'd continue on in silence. No such luck. The little nuisance snickered, and he raised an eyebrow at her. "I fail to see what could possibly be funny about this conversation." 

She grinned up at him. "Nothing's funny, it just made me think of a song is all." 

Kain narrowed his eyes. "I'd really rather you didn't." But she did.

"When you're rife with devastation
 There's a simple explanation
 You're a toymaker's creation
 Trapped inside a crystal ball,"

"And whichever way he tilts it
 Know that we must be resilient
 We won't let them break our spirit
 As we sing our silly song,"

Kain cut her off with a glare. "That's quite enough of that."

"No, wait, there's a whole 'nother verse!" she cried, immediately launching into the next line of the song, grinning defiantly up at him.

"When you've bungled all your bangles
And your loved ones have been mangled-"

Kain wordlessly reached over and shoved her into the closest bush.

Amalia sulked for nearly two hours after that, though she still kept pace with Kain. Inevitably, by early evening she'd finally begun to tire. She was still trying, tenacious little thing that she was, but they had been going all day with little rest, and her feet were killing her. Eventually, she tripped over the spreading roots of a large tree and fell, and when he turned to look at her, she was struggling to get back to her feet. Kain honestly couldn't be angry with her; she had performed admirably up until now. Perhaps it was time to stop for the night. 

When she heard his footsteps approaching, she began to scramble to get up. "I'm sorry," she whimpered, her voice breaking. "I'm trying to keep up!" 

"Good grief, Amalia, there's no need to cry over it," Kain chided as he bent down to catch her under the arm and haul her to her feet. "Come now, on your feet. We'll settle down for the night." He held her steady for a few seconds, giving her a moment to regain her balance, and then led her to the base of the tree she'd tripped over, where she promptly slumped back to the ground between where two huge roots rose up to meet the trunk. Just as he was contemplating what, if anything, he could scrounge up to feed her, he caught the faint mingled scents of both smoke and an unfamiliar human drifting past on the breeze. A grim smile spread across his face. Perhaps they'd both be fed tonight.

"Not that I expect you to haul yourself back up anytime soon, but just in case, stay right where you are," he said to Amalia. "I'm going hunting." She was lying on the ground like a slug and only grunted in response. Satisfied that she wasn't going to get herself into any trouble, Kain set out to follow the scent to its source. 

It was not difficult at all to find his prey, and even easier to dispatch him. Once he'd drained him, he looked around the camp the man had set up, if you could even call it that. He'd been traveling light, carrying only a rucksack with food and water, but he had gathered quite a lot of wood in addition to what had been burning before Kain kicked dirt over it to douse it. When he returned over an hour later with the pilfered goods, Amalia still hadn't moved a muscle. Kain wasn't overly concerned. If there was anything that would get her moving again, he expected the promise of a decent meal would. "Amalia," he called. "Scrape yourself up off the ground and come eat."

He wasn't wrong. Her head immediately popped up. "What did you catch?"

 "The makings of a sandwich," he replied, and that really got her attention. He tossed the rucksack at her feet and set about building a fire from the stolen firewood. 

"Oh my god, there's bread and cheese in here!" She looked absolutely delighted as she rustled through the rucksack. "Indeed, as well as a pouch of dried fruit and nuts and a canteen full of water," Kain replied as he ignited the wood. Amalia dropped the rucksack down next to the fire and immediately began tearing off pieces of bread and packing them with bites of cheese. 

"What about you?" she asked. "What are you gonna-" She stopped short. He leveled his gaze at her, knowing that she'd worked it out for herself.

"You killed someone for this," she whispered, staring at the crude sandwich she'd made.

Kain wasn't going to lie to her, nor was he going to entertain any moralizing regarding how he went about acquiring her supper. "Yes, I did, and now neither of us will end the day hungry. Don't think too hard on it, Amalia. The bitter reality of life is that everyone wants to eat, but no one wants to be eaten. Be grateful that you aren't the one who had to do the killing in order to survive this time. One day you may have to."

Obviously this did nothing to improve her mood, and Kain was almost afraid that she would refuse to eat entirely, but after staring into the fire with the sandwich still in her hands for several long moments, she finally sighed and took a bite. "I really hope you're wrong about that," she stated once she'd swallowed it. 

"I'm certain you do," he replied. "You may be able to give as good as you get when it comes to bandying insults, but you are indeed compassionate at heart. If you weren't, you would have been the one alone in the woods and taken by a predator."

"Instead I fell in love with someone I can never have, and became a vampire despot's sidekick," she muttered darkly. "Yikes."

"Sidekick is quite a strong word," he teased, thinking he might be able to distract her from her melancholy by drawing her into another round of verbal sparring. Surely she'd be unable to resist calling him out on ignoring 'despot' in favor of 'sidekick' when making that statement, even if she didn't engage over his dismissal of her role in this ridiculous adventure. She didn't take the bait, however, and he watched as she skewered her sandwich on a sharp stick and held it over the fire in sullen silence. Ah, well. At least she wasn't foolish enough to have set her hopes on Raziel ever loving her.

Once her belly was full and Kain had stoked the fire in preparation to keep watch through the night, Amalia once again wrapped herself in Raziel's cowl. She leaned back against the tree, staring out past the fire into the inky darkness. At first, Kain thought she was merely still processing her rude introduction to the reality of his true nature as a vampire. She'd seen him drink the fawn's blood only yesterday and got past that easily enough, but he'd killed one of her own kind and tasted human blood this night. Even if she didn't have to see it, she knew what he'd done, and he wondered if it had affected her perception of him. 

He found it oddly disquieting that she might now withdraw and become distant from him, and was forced to admit (to himself; he sure as hell wouldn't admit it to her) that he might be growing somewhat fond of her. When he actually studied her face, however, he noticed that she wasn't distractedly lost in thought. In fact, she was quite alert, and her eyes darted warily back and forth as she clutched the cowl's edges in front of her. 

"Does it frighten you," he asked, "to be faced with the inescapable fact that there are dangerous things lurking in the dark?"

Amalia tore her eyes away from the trees and met his own. "I mean... the fact had escaped me until now, I guess. I mean, I knew it, I just..." she trailed off.

"I keep telling you that you don't have nearly enough regard for your own life," said Kain as he settled himself down to sit by the fire. "You seem to simply take it for granted that you'll be safe no matter what happens. Perhaps that's an unfortunate residual impression left upon your mind by whatever no doubt incredibly boring world you hail from, but it isn't the case here in Nosgoth. Though you will be heartened to know that in this era, at least, there are no other vampires aside from myself. That's one of the world's biggest problems right now, in fact." 

Silence reigned for a while, until Amalia unwrapped herself and got to her feet. She slunk over to where Kain sat and wordlessly spread Raziel's cowl right next to him on the ground, then lay down and curled up on it. "I won't let you come to harm, child," said Kain. 

Her eyes met his for a moment, and then, after one last fearful glance toward the dark unknown, she nestled her face into the crook of her arm and closed them.

Chapter Text

Kain let Amalia sleep through the night this time, knowing that they'd arrive at the pillars by mid-morning if they got moving just after dawn. She was much slower to get to her feet this time, however. Yesterday's long trek and sleeping on the hard ground had taken their toll, and he found himself encouraging her once they finally got underway. 

"Once we get where we're going, child, I'll set the device to take us to a time where my empire was at its height. Raziel was only a few centuries old then, and his ability to enjoy life hadn't yet been blunted by long years of boredom. It'll land us near the Sanctuary of the Clans, which is a palace I had built around the crumbling Pillars. There you'll be fed well, allowed to soak in a hot bath, and you can rest in a soft bed until it's time to take you to Raziel's stronghold. I'm going to time our arrival to coincide with a long journey my younger self was about to embark on. It wouldn't do for one version of me to leave you in Raziel's care, only for another to walk in not knowing who the hell you are or where you came from."

Amalia wrinkled her nose, munching on what was left in the rucksack as she trailed along behind him. "Time travel is weird." 

"You have no idea," he grumbled. "We'll have your clothes washed as well, and you can put them back on before we go to meet him. He enjoys curious things, and your clothing is curious indeed." 

She was quiet a moment. "Are my clothes and my music really the only things he'll value me for?" She spoke as if she already knew the answer, but was hoping to be told what she wanted to hear instead.

"Yes, Amalia," came Kain's soft response. "The absolute best case scenario that I can imagine is that he becomes fond of you the way a farmer might become fond of his favorite milk cow, and even this is unlikely. As I said before, Raziel isn't brutish; he doesn't torment his prey the way many of our kind are so happy to do. He likes to think himself above such things. But as he is above senseless brutality and needless cruelty, so he is also above deigning to treat a human as an equal, much less take one as a bride."

"Is bride a shinier word for concubine?"

Kain laughed. "No, a concubine is a concubine. A high-born vampire's bride is akin to a nobleman's wife. As a human, you will be neither. Raziel is distinct from his brothers in that he never showed any interest in marrying, whereas the rest of them had multiple spouses or at the very least kept a harem of concubines. If I were you, I'd do whatever I had to in order to hide your feelings from him. He's not going to return them; in fact, he's likely to wound you deeply by mocking them."

His words made Amalia feel sick to her stomach. "That's not the person I fell in love with."

"Then for your sake I hope you are able to compartmentalize," he replied. "It'll be easier if you simply focus on why we're doing this in the first place. If you truly love the person he is now, then you'll be more than able to endure the person he used to be."

"In that case, I'm glad we're rescuing the person he is now. I'd rather have the ugly wraith than the beautiful narcissist."

"My plan, actually, is to return his soul to his former self's body after all is said and done," Kain responded. "I need him as he was in order for him to sire fledglings when the time comes. Besides that, I'm not sure if you noticed, but his wraith form lacks some equipment that you're bound to wish he still had sooner or later."

She flushed red, her eyes widening. "God, I hadn't even thought of that."

Unfortunately, Amalia soon began flagging badly. When Kain turned back to look at her, he realized that not only had she fallen back several full paces, but she was limping. He stopped and waited for her to catch up. "You know, horses that become lame are usually slaughtered, since they're of no further use if they cannot walk or work." he said.

She responded exactly the way he expected her to. "Do it, then," she grumbled as she dropped to the ground and began pulling her shoes and socks off. "You'd be doing me a favor at this point."

Kain leaned down to grab her ankle and lifted it high off the ground, causing her to fall backwards onto her elbows with an angry squeak that he found quite amusing. Upon examination, he could see that while her toes weren't bruised and tender the way they would be if they'd been broken somehow, the sole and heel of her foot were sore and swollen and the back of her ankle was blistered and raw. 

"Are you done?" she growled up at him from her prone position on the ground. He released her ankle, causing her ass to hit the ground with a thump, and leaned against a tree to debate whether or not to carry her the rest of the way. This trek wasn't the last one they'd be making; once it was time to deliver Amalia to Raziel they'd have to walk there too, as Kain never traveled by carriage and it would draw significant attention if he were suddenly seen riding in one with a human. She'd have time to rest beforehand, but not much. His decision made, he wordlessly hauled her off the ground and slung her over his shoulder. She protested vehemently, of course, but it all fell on deaf ears until Kain finally flexed his claws with a low growl, digging the sharp tips into her lower back to incentivize her to shut up.

"Hush," he commanded harshly, as she cried out in pain.

She was quiet a moment, and when she spoke her voice was small and subdued. "That was mean," she said, sulking. Kain only smirked and kept walking, knowing he'd finally gotten the best of her.

They arrived at the destroyed Pillars around half past noon. Kain had not accounted for the fact that all the trees within a mile had been blown to the ground by the shockwave, making the last leg of the journey far more arduous than it ought to have been. He stopped at a spot a short distance away from where the Sanctuary would stand so as not to emerge into the future within anyone's sight. Amalia gaped up at the destroyed Pillars from the ground where Kain had unceremoniously dumped her while he set the controls on the time-streaming device.

 "It's unfortunate indeed that these portable devices can only move us through time, and not space. Otherwise we could have been spared the journey and your feet would be considerably less sore."

"You could have just taught me how to explode into bats," she snarked as she stood up.

He gave her a wry look. "Your lack of comprehension as to how vampires gain their abilities is noted. Now come here," he said, reaching over to wrap his talons around her upper arm.

Kain did not anticipate the effect time travel would have on Amalia. The instant the world became still again, she fell to her knees and retched. He wrinkled his nose. "I suppose I ought to have expected that. Come on, then, on your feet. You're alright." She was dizzy and disoriented, however, so Kain simply scooped her up with a sigh and hauled her over his shoulder again. This time she didn't protest; she simply hung limp and allowed him to convey her straight to the first human servant he came across. "Take this girl, and have her fed well and given a hot bath. Tend to the wounds on her ankles. Send her clothing to be washed, and give her something to wear until they're dry. Deliver her straight to my chambers afterward."

Fortunately, Amalia had quite recovered by time she needed to actually walk on her own two feet. The food afforded to the human servants in the Sanctuary wasn't spectacular by any means, but she was hungry enough by now to take whatever she could get. She was taken down a flight of stairs to the kitchens and given a bowl of thin soup and some dense bread to eat, and once she had spooned it down she was bustled down a hallway and led to a room with several large bathtubs lined up along the wall. There must have been a boiler somewhere in the Sanctuary; the tubs were all full of steaming water, though none were occupied at the moment. This suited Amalia just fine, because she was quickly stripped of all her clothing right there on the spot and handed off to an attendant. 

Amalia had gone into this endeavor expecting to bathe, not to be bathed. Once in the tub, a bucket of water was unceremoniously dumped over her head and the attendant set to work scrubbing her down. The process wasn't exactly comfortable, but the hot water soothed her aching muscles and once she was yanked back out of the tub and dried off, she had to admit that it felt absolutely marvelous to be clean again. The bath attendant applied some sort of salve to both ankles where they were blistered, and then handed her back to the woman who had brought her down. 

This was where things began to go awry. The servant had apparently assumed that Kain was having Amalia cleaned up and delivered to his chambers to warm his bed, and thus had taken it upon herself to return with a thin chemise that was trimmed with lace, entirely too short, and practically see-through. When Amalia balked at this and refused to put it on, the woman first snatched the towel off her and threatened to make her walk through the Sanctuary naked. When she got nothing but an avalanche of foul language in return, she quickly took up a short stick that was lying on the floor nearby, grabbed Amalia by the hair, and delivered several harsh blows to her ribs in an attempt to subdue her into complying.

This was no more effective than her threats had been; in fact it only served to infuriate Amalia even further, and she twisted in her attacker's grip, snapping at her arm and catching it between her teeth hard enough to draw blood. Satisfying as it had been, it did her no good. Backup was immediately called and she was quickly overpowered while the woman she'd bitten angrily tied a strip of cloth around the bite and tugged her sleeve down over it, describing all the while the ways in which Kain was about to violate her and how unlikely it was that Amalia would survive the night.

The temperature now was significantly cooler than what it was before they'd activated the device, and between that, the barely-there chemise, and the residual effects of adrenaline, Amalia was shivering badly by time she'd been paraded through the Sanctuary and dragged through Kain's door, hoping through her angry tears that the wound she'd inflicted on her attacker would fester and kill her. He had changed into a robe and loose breeches and was reclining in an armchair before a roaring fire, and his eyebrows shot up when he saw what she was wearing. "Well, well. You certainly do clean up nicely, don't you?" he couldn't help but tease before noticing how upset she was. He immediately set down the goblet he was drinking from and got up from his chair, his countenance darkening. "Why is she crying?" 

"I thought to dress her for the occasion, my Lord, but she refused, and needed to be brought to heel." 

"Is that so?" Kain asked, eyes narrowed and voice dangerously quiet. "You were able to conquer her, then?"

"Yes indeed," the servant proudly replied, not yet realizing that Amalia wasn't the one in trouble here. She was sobbing on the floor, fighting to cover herself and looking up at him with a mixture of deep hurt and abject terror in her eyes as he approached. He didn't know what she'd been told, but whatever it was had apparently convinced her that Kain had turned on her, and that he had some very unpleasant things in store for her this afternoon.

This wouldn't do at all; he wouldn't have the girl believing that she'd been brought to his rooms only so he could force her into his bed before he handed her off to Raziel. He had his suspicions about what his servant had meant by 'brought to heel', and this was confirmed as he stood before her and saw the blood dried on her lips and the angry red welts on her ribs that were clearly visible even through the chemise. Swallowing down an angry growl, he removed the robe he was wearing and went to drape it over the poor girl's shoulders. "Amalia," he said, "Stand up and relax, I'll not have you cowering before me. For god's sake, I have no intention of raping you."

She sniffled as she got to her feet, frightened and completely humiliated. "Then why did you have her dress me like this and bring me here?"

"You're here with me because here with me is where you are safest, as my servant has just made evident," he replied. "And, if you'll recall," he continued, "I was in no way specific as to what you were to be dressed in when I handed you off to her. It would appear that an incorrect, unwarranted assumption has been made," he growled, turning his attention to his unfortunate servant. Now it was her turn to be terrified, though she did not have much time to reflect on her mistake. Kain was on her in a flash, and Amalia scrambled backwards with a gasp as he grabbed her by the hair, yanked her head to the side hard enough to snap her neck, and sank his fangs into her throat with a loud snarl.

Once he had drained her, he hurriedly tossed the body out into the hallway to be borne away by the next servant to come along. When he turned back toward Amalia she had gotten to her feet and was staring wide-eyed at his door, breathing rapidly. To his relief, she did not shrink from him when he beckoned her to his wardrobe so he could find something else she could wear. He turned away to put his robe back on while she wriggled out of the chemise and into an old shirt of his, which hung off of her slight frame like a gigantic flour sack with sleeves. To Kain's surprise and satisfaction, once she had changed she stalked over to the door and yanked it open, flinging the scrap of lace at the dead woman's body with more contempt than he'd ever thought her capable of before slamming it shut again.

"Your compassion has its limits, I see," he said with approval.

"I bit the absolute shit out of her," she snarled, and he burst into laughter as he realized that the dried blood he'd seen around her mouth wasn't her own. 

"You tempt me, you little savage," he teased, once he had recovered somewhat. "Between your emergent ferocity and the blood on your lips, I'm beginning to think you'd make an excellent vampire." 

"Ugh, how dare you," she grumbled, glowering at him and scrubbing her arm across her mouth, and he only laughed harder.

He soon had her settled in front of the fire on a fur rug to warm herself, and he returned to his chair. She was tense for quite a long time, but the luxurious heat of the fire eventually helped her begin to unwind. "Rug's nice," she mumbled, running her hands through the soft fur.

Kain hummed as he swallowed the mouthful of blood he'd just taken from his cup, refusing to let it go to waste even if he'd already had his fill. "The skin of a monstrous bear who terrorized everyone who ventured into the forest some ways from here," he explained. "It was wounded by humans, but not killed. I found it before the hunting dogs tracked it down, and now he's found his eternal rest in front of my fireplace," he explained. "You were at least fed well before you were assaulted, I hope?" 

Amalia nodded. "Well enough."

"Good. You might as well get some rest, then," he said, nodding to his bedroom door. "I'm certain you need it after the nonsense you've endured today."  

She hesitated, her eyes shifting back and forth between him and the oversized bed that was visible through the doorway, and Kain pinched the bridge of his nose with a heavy sigh. He'd thought he'd made himself clear earlier, but apparently not. "Amalia, I'm not going to lie to you," he said without looking up. "I would fuck you straight into that mattress if you were to give me a clear invitation to do so. Seeing as you haven't, you may climb into that bed to sleep alongside me knowing that you are every bit as safe as before. If I've done anything to make you feel otherwise," he said, spreading his talons, "Then please, enlighten me." 

She cringed at his admonishment, slinking over to sit at his feet. "No, you haven't," she said, surprising him by resting her chin on his knee and wrapping an arm around his legs. "I'm sorry," she mumbled, looking extremely guilty. 

Though Kain could certainly get used to having her sitting in such a submissive position before him, he wasn't about to undermine everything he'd just said to her by telling her as much. Still, he didn't want her to stop, now did he? He remained silent aside from a short, contented purr, instead showing his forgiveness by beginning to idly run his talons through her hair as they continued to relax by the fire. After several long moments, he realized that it might be a good idea to inspect her injuries. He expected little more than bruising, as she'd be in severe pain if one of her ribs had been cracked or broken, but still wanted to be certain. "Sit back, little one," he told her. "I want to look at those ribs."

Her short-lived distrust of him had finally been thoroughly dispelled, and she raised her arm and angled herself so that he could lean forward and pull the shirt up above her ribs with little regard to the fact that she was wearing nothing underneath it. Determined to keep her at ease, he did not allow his eyes to roam and kept them focused on her injuries. Holding her arm up with one hand as she held the shirt bunched underneath her breasts, he peered at the welts. "It does not hurt to breathe?" he asked. 

She took a deep breath, held it a moment, and released it. "Nope." 

He ran the tips of his claws over the marks before pressing the curve of one into the space between two of her ribs to see if she flinched. She didn't, and he concluded that any injury she had sustained was only skin-deep. "Whatever she struck you with, it must not have been very heavy," he observed, tugging his shirt back down to cover her, and she settled her chin back onto his knee as he leaned back into the comfort of his armchair.

"I'm scared to meet him," she whispered after a while. "I wish I could be excited about it. I ought to be able to be excited about it, but..." she trailed off.

"I cannot blame you," was all he said. He didn't know what to say other than that. As resilient as she seemed, Kain was still nearly certain that Raziel would shatter her heart while she was with him, even if he didn't intend to. He'd seen the pain that unrequited love could cause, because he'd once been the one to cause it. Even Amalia seemed to have come to view this outcome as inevitable, and yet it was evident that she'd committed herself to enduring the pain Raziel's inability to love her would bring if it meant she could help him. Brave little thing, he thought to himself. Between this and the fight she'd put up earlier in defense of herself, he had gained a newfound respect for her.

"Man... Love makes you stupid," she grumbled, and Kain chuckled softly. 

"That's the truth of it, isn't it?"

She folded her arms over his legs so she could rest her head on them, eliciting another soft purr, and they sat lost in their own thoughts for a while. Eventually, Kain glanced down and realized she'd relaxed enough to fall asleep. "Go and get into bed," he said, nudging her awake. "I'll be along soon enough; I'm as exhausted as you are by now. It's a bit of a distance to Raziel's territory, and I'm not one to be ferried around in carriages, so you'd better rest up." To his immense satisfaction, after a wide yawn she immediately rose and did as she was told.

Once Kain had emptied his goblet, shed his robe, and settled into bed beside her, his mind began to wander. The corners of his mouth twitched as he imagined her defending herself against his late servant's onslaught, snarling and snapping and drawing blood as if she had her own set of fangs. And ah, wasn't that a pleasant thought? He'd only been trying to get a rise out of her when he'd said she'd make a good vampire, but now he was envisioning her as one of his own, out on her first hunt with him at her side to guide her. He could make her as swift and deadly and powerful as any of them were, a predator through and through.

She was too desperately in love with Raziel to be his queen, which did not bother him. He'd never truly been in love himself and had about as much interest as Raziel did in marrying; which is to say, none. But she could be his first daughter, the first vampire to be born without corruption in centuries, and she along with a restored Raziel could sire a new generation of fledglings to populate Nosgoth and guard the Pillars.

A pleasant thought indeed... if not for the fact that siring his sons had taxed his soul to its limits. It may have been cleansed of corruption, but that didn't necessarily mean it wasn't still diminished, and he would not risk her ending up even worse off than Melchiah had been. He'd come to the conclusion by now that it would have to be Raziel that did any future siring at all, since he was able to do it the conventional way with no cost to himself. Ah, well. A pity, to be sure, but she'd likely never agree to being turned anyhow, and it was no longer something he was willing to force on anyone unless there were no other way.

Kain's mind continued to roam. Though he had taken care not to let his eyes wander, he still couldn't help but catch a small glimpse of her half-nude body silhouetted against the firelight behind her, and that was not something anyone with a healthy libido and an interest in women would soon forget. He couldn't help but dwell on her quick obedience to his command, nor could he shake the image of her sitting subserviently at his feet with her head in his lap. 

Thus, he soon found himself staring at the back of her neck as she slept, struggling to resist the temptation to attempt to seduce her by brushing her hair aside and pressing his lips to her skin. He thought of other times when he'd employed this trick; the soft gasp that it usually elicited, the way the object of his desire would often arch her back as her breath caught in her throat, pressing her rump into his groin, letting him know that she was receptive to his advances. 

He could imagine Amalia doing exactly that, should he give in to his urges. She would be nervous, of course; of that there was no doubt. As large and powerful as he was, the anticipation of finding herself pinned underneath him as he slid inside her would certainly be daunting, especially if she couldn't remember ever having known the touch of a man before. That was okay; Kain was more than capable of being gentle when he needed to be. He would soothe her fears and show her every pleasure imaginable. She would come undone beneath him, pliant and desperate and perfectly submissive, hanging on every word he spoke, every command he gave her. 

And if Kain wanted to have her before his firstborn got the chance to seduce her himself, he certainly had that right, didn't he? It wouldn't be the first time they had shared the same partner, and Kain always had first dibs. He could be her first; at least the first she could remember. Her experience with him would be unforgettable; he would ruin her for any other man, including her beloved Raziel, who would never truly appreciate her anyway even if he bedded her just the same. Perhaps the Raziel in the Reaver might, but the vampire Raziel's arrogance would never allow for it, and both of them knew it.

But for all his attempts at rationalizing to himself exactly why he ought to give in to his desire to pull her close and encourage her to embrace him, the fact remained that Amalia had not invited his touch, and Kain would not debase himself by doing exactly what he'd told her he wouldn't.

He stifled a frustrated growl, wishing he could kill the woman who had pathetically attempted to gain his favor by mistreating her all over again. If that idiot hadn't made Amalia so frightened of him he'd never have made that promise in the first place, and he would have no compunctions about trying his luck once more with her, this time physically rather than verbally. The swift and deadly vengeance he had dealt to the one who had hurt her had apparently warmed her to him, after all; he'd been pleasantly surprised earlier to see her show any sort of affection to him, even if she only did it in apology, and she had allowed him to partially disrobe her even if it was only so that he could make sure her ribs weren't cracked. 

Perhaps her anxiety about how Raziel would treat her had made her more vulnerable than he realized. Things could have been worse, in that case. Amalia could easily have escalated her contact beyond resting her head on his knees; she could have sought comfort from him by snuggling up to him in bed. It would have been impossible for him to hide the effect that his filthy mind was having on his body with her pressed up against him, and she may have seen it as a betrayal of her trust even if he reigned himself in otherwise. 

He swallowed down another growl, trying to shake himself of his desire. It had been far too long, apparently, since he'd satisfied anything but his thirst for blood. Kain would fix that as soon as he left her with Raziel. For now, he'd simply have to lay there gritting his teeth, consumed with lust.

Chapter Text

Rested or no, Amalia did not want to do any more walking when it came time to leave that evening. Kain had simply told her it wasn't a debate before tossing her clean clothes at her along with a cloak to conceal them for the trip, and then they were off. He bared his fangs at anyone who so much as cast a glance at her as he ushered her through the Sanctuary, assuming that at least some small part of her reluctance to leave was not wanting to be leered at by whoever might have seen her in the chemise earlier.

As they made their way up the road, Kain began to instruct her on how to behave as she was being presented to Raziel. "When he enters the room," he said, "Do not make eye contact unless directly bidden to do so. Remain at my side and do not speak unless spoken to. I will tell him not to make a slave out of you, but once I've left you still must maintain the proper amount of deference, or you're likely to get backhanded or worse."

"How can he be so awful?" she asked, looking absolutely gutted.

"He is currently the second most powerful vampire in Nosgoth, Amalia. At this point in time, we had just spent the last three hundred years establishing clans, raising armies, taking the world for our own, and shaping it to our liking. And by our liking, I mean mine, of course. This is the order of things in this era. Your kind are cattle here, nothing more." 

"That is absolutely terrible, and you should all be ashamed of yourselves," she spat. "How long do you plan on abandoning me here to the whims of this wonderful society you've crafted, anyway?"

She sounded resentful, and he very nearly winced. Her sentiment toward him put him uncharacteristically ill at ease; for the first time in his entire life, it bothered him that someone did not approve of his actions. Gritting his teeth at how annoyingly complicated it was to have Nupraptor's corruption replaced with some semblance of a conscience and not able to abide her feeling as if he was abandoning her, he tried to reassure her.

"I'll have to return before my younger self does, so not more than a few months at the most. Raziel will not let you come to harm while you're with him. You may have to rein that sharp tongue of yours in to a nigh unbearable degree, but he will not disobey my orders to keep you safe," he said, realizing that in retrospect, he probably ought to have kept that comment about Raziel potentially raising a hand to her to himself. "And once I've accomplished my goals in the past, this future that horrifies you so will never come to pass. I will return us to the time of the collapse, and we will proceed from there. Things will be different the next time around." 

Kain wasn't about to admit to her that the Empire he'd built now horrified him too. He could scarcely admit it to himself at this point. He hadn't even realized that the 'next time around' that would supposedly be so much better had been lurking at the edges of his mind until now, having not yet taken the time to think about what life would be like after things had been put right, aside from his brief fantasies about turning Amalia. But speaking that intention seemed to make it real, and he knew that from now on, any effort he wasn't putting toward restoring Nosgoth would be put toward planning for the future.

Did he even want another empire? Vampires had their place in this world, that much was obvious; the Pillars needed them to remain standing. His kind were still superior to humans in every way, on that Kain had not been swayed, but perhaps the utter contempt for humanity as a whole could be dispensed with. Perhaps they did not need to be entirely subjugated. He still wanted to rule, to be sure... but perhaps not with an iron fist, as he had in the past.

Amalia knew they were getting close when she started seeing red banners bearing the same symbol that was on Raziel's cowl. "His clan symbol," Kain had explained. "Each patriarch has his own." A messenger had been sent ahead with the news that Kain was paying a visit, and by time they were through the gates of Raziel's stronghold his children could be seen lurking around every corner to catch a glimpse of their Emperor. Only two approached, promptly taking a knee before Kain, fawning over him while ignoring Amalia's very existence. The pair led them through the heart of the complex and into a cozy informal dining room containing an ornate fireplace and a lengthy, elegantly carved table with matching chairs along the far wall. A few smaller armchairs sat atop an elaborate area rug in a corner of the room near the fireplace, and a pitcher full of what Amalia knew had to be human blood sat at one end of the table along with two golden goblets. Much to her relief, Kain made no move toward them, having already had his fill for the day.

Amalia pulled out one of the dining chairs toward the middle of the table to sit in, but despite all the trekking she'd done over the past few days, she found herself unable to sit still and was back on her feet five seconds after her rump hit the polished wood. After a few minutes Kain caught her by the arm and pulled her to his side, unable to tolerate any more of her nervous pacing. 

"Be still and be patient, girl," he admonished. "Raziel won't be donning the armor he'd wear to a Council meeting for an informal visit such as this. Not that he'll leave his quarters looking anything other than fine, vain as he is," he muttered as an aside. "Still, he won't be much longer. He might not have been expecting me to show up, but he knows better than to keep me waiting for long."

Kain was right. A knock soon sounded at the door, and Amalia blanched, knowing the moment was upon them. How would he react to her? Would he truly be as awful to her as Kain had led her to believe? She hadn't long to wait to find out. Kain quickly admonished her to remember everything he'd told her about how to conduct herself before calling out to Raziel to enter, and the door opened.

Amalia was unable to resist stealing a glance at Raziel, though she tried to keep her head bowed. She was knocked completely sideways at the sight of him. Gone was the emaciated, blue skinned wraith she had met. No part of him was recognizable save for his jet black hair, though it was longer, long enough to be pulled back and tied, and immaculately groomed. His eyes were an intensely striking shade of gold, though there was certainly a haughtiness in them that she couldn't deny. Smooth muscle rippled under his clothing, and he moved with catlike grace as he strode into the room and dropped to one knee before his master. He was breathtaking to behold, healthy and strong and absolutely gorgeous. In short, Amalia was fucked. She was careful where she looked after that, frightened of what would happen if she accidentally met his eyes.

"I didn't realize you hadn't gone yet, Sire," Raziel said. His voice was the same as she remembered, though it rang out confident and authoritative rather than sounding despondent and resigned as it had when she'd first met him.

"Not quite yet. I've got a little present for you before I go, my eldest and most favored child," Kain said, his voice smooth as silk. Raziel stiffened. Apparently that tone didn't bode well. His eyes finally settled on her as he rose in one smooth movement, and he cocked an eyebrow, looking nonplussed. 

"A human woman?"

"Not an ordinary one," Kain replied. "This one claims to be from another world. Unfortunately, she seems unable to recall very much about her past life."

Raziel eyed her with distaste. "A human madwoman, then," he sneered. She stared at the ground, trying hard to hide how much that had stung. He was hurting her already, and it hadn't even been a minute since he'd entered the room.

Kain smirked at his firstborn, waving a hand at her. "That is indeed what I thought," he said before pulling the cloak off her with a flourish, revealing her red hair and strange clothing. "Until she told me that the few clear memories she had were of music from this lost world of hers. I told her to think of a song and play through it in her head as clearly as she could manage, while I pressed upon her mind to listen in. It was like nothing I'd ever heard, Raziel."

That certainly got his attention. He took a step forward and reached for her, tilting her chin up so that he could look into her eyes. Kain dragged his palm down his face as he watched her struggle to maintain her composure while the vampire-turned-wraith she'd fallen so deeply in love with met her gaze. She was failing miserably at hiding her feelings despite his admonishment to do exactly that, and very nearly made the mistake of reaching her own hand up to touch his arm. That would have earned her a sharp rebuke if not a cuff upside the head.

"Red hair and green eyes? A pleasant surprise." Raziel tilted his head, humming thoughtfully as he looked her over. "Her manner of dress bolsters her claim, I suppose... I've certainly never seen anything like it." He turned his attention back to his sire. "Very well, I'm willing to entertain the notion a while. I could use some amusement." 

Kain promptly dropped the other shoe. "There are stipulations, I'm afraid. She is not to be harmed in any way. She is to be fed and well cared for. She is not, under any circumstances, to be turned. She is not to be treated as a slave. If anything unfortunate befalls her before I return, I will be most displeased. Your brothers are unaware of her, and it is up to you to ensure that they remain so. And as for you," he continued, shifting his attention to Amalia and adopting an air of stern aloofness, "You will remain in Raziel's care, and though you might not be his slave, nor are you his equal. You are, in fact, no vampire's equal regardless of your unique talents, and you will obey him and respect him or face whatever disciplinary measures he chooses to employ short of permanently maiming you. Is that clear?"

Raziel glowered at his sire as Amalia gulped and nodded. "I might have known. Fine, I'll look after her."

Kain leaned back against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. "Oh, come now Raziel, don't be ungrateful. She's fair enough, isn't she? Bed her if you like, once you've tired of her otherwise," he said, giving her a fiendish sidelong glance. "I suspect she'd be willing enough." Amalia's eyes widened with mortification, her shoulders hiking up to her ears and her face turning as red as her hair. Asshole, she thought, shooting him a look that could have withered an entire field of flowers.

Raziel snickered, lifting her chin again to force her to make eye contact. "Is that what you want?" he asked, his voice dropping low and taking on a hauntingly seductive tone. She had absolutely no hope of responding coherently. She swallowed hard, her knees threatening to give out as arousal rippled down her spine, and then squeezed her eyes shut with a soft, overwhelmed whimper. Her clear desire certainly seemed to stroke his ego, if the smug expression he had on his face when she managed to open them again was any indication.

"Seems a little shy, but I can work with that. And I do have an appreciation for redheads," he added, taking a lock of her hair between his claws. "For now, I think I'd rather have a demonstration of this strange music she carries in her head." Amalia blinked at him, caught off guard and still recovering from the effects of his toying with her. Kain, who was once again finding a great deal of amusement at her expense, nudged her. "Well? You heard him. Do just as you did before. I think he'll be most pleased."

Raziel looked rather skeptical as his eyes settled once again on his new pet. She straightened and fought to steel herself, and there was a beat of silence as she closed her eyes and waited to feel Raziel's mind nudging against hers. She focused as clearly as she could on playing through the song in her head, preparing to sing this time as well. This had to be perfect. Perhaps she could gain enough favor with him that he wouldn't treat her harshly.

Kain could see the exact moment the first note blasted its way into his firstborn's mind. Raziel gasped softly, a look of utter bewilderment crossing his features. He was stunned silent for a moment, then his eyes frantically sought Kain's. "What instruments exist that could possibly make these sounds?" Kain remained silent, merely gesturing at Amalia as she began to sing. Deciding to listen in for himself, he grinned, eager to witness Raziel's undoing at her hands. 

"Get a little closer, let fold
Cut open my sternum, and pull
My little ribs around you
The rungs of me be under, under you,"

Slack-jawed and wide eyed, Raziel's eyebrows had shot up nearly to his hairline as the sound of her voice melded perfectly with the music. Her confidence restored, Amalia took a step forward, and Raziel took two backward.

"I'll cut the soft pockets, let bleed
Over the rocky cliffs that you leave
To peer over and not forget what feet are
Splitting threads of thunder over me,"

She backed him all the way up against the chair she'd left pulled out earlier during the brief interlude that followed, and his knees buckled as he fell backward into it, utterly spellbound by her performance. Oh, this was delightful. Kain could only imagine how appalled his eldest would be at his own behavior once he got ahold of himself again, though he hoped he wouldn't take it out on poor Amalia. He snorted, shaking his head as he struggled to keep his laughter under control. Raziel was nothing if not predictable. 

"Get a little closer, let fold
Cut open my sternum, and pull
My little ribs around you
The lungs of me be crowns over you,"

...Or so he thought. This was where things started getting weird. Kain was expecting Raziel to recover his composure (and what little was left of his pride, no doubt) and stop Amalia from approaching any further, but he made no move to do so. She moved in close, resting casually against the table's edge throughout the song's chorus before growing bold enough to lean over him, seductively planting one hand next to his head on the back of the chair. Kain had to give the little minx credit... she was good. He idly wondered if she'd been some kind of exotic dancer back in whatever world she came from. You're welcome, whelp, he thought darkly, recalling his earlier desire.

"I'll cut the soft pockets, let bleed
Over the rocky cliffs that you leave
To peer over and not forget what feet are
Splitting threads of thunder over me,"

Raziel's unexpected reactions to Amalia's performance were beginning to become unsettling. Caught up in the entertainment or not, the fact that he had allowed her to assume such a dominant position over him was a shock, and that he was allowing her to remain there was unthinkable. His eyes were still wide and jaw agape as he stared up at her, and his claws left furrows in the top of the table to his right as he tensed. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Kain watched the next several events unfold.

"Listen closely, closely to the floor," she sang, bringing the hand she wasn't leaning on to Raziel's face. "Emitting all its graces through the pores..."

His golden eyes slid closed as she stroked his cheek with the back of her fingers, and when he opened them again, he looked at Amalia with a yearning that Kain had not seen in him in centuries.

"You make a fine shrine in me," she sang. He closed his eyes once more, turning his face into the warmth of her hand with a deep purr and raising his own to gently lay the tips of his claws on her forearm. "You build a fine shrine in me..."

Fuck me, she's completely bewitched him, thought Kain, utterly flabbergasted at what he was seeing. At that moment, he felt a surge of energy across his back where the Reaver lay. It was working. The memories were transferring, and Raziel's very soul leapt within the sword as he suddenly remembered his past self falling deeply in love with the human who'd appeared out of nowhere to show him compassion when he was at his lowest.

The music faded and was quickly forgotten. His eldest was caressing her face by now, still gazing lovingly up at her from his position beneath her, and Kain was beginning to feel even more uncomfortable, as if he were intruding on something incredibly intimate. And wasn't he, at this point? He had been wrong, so very wrong. This had gone far beyond what he had thought it would. He knew that Raziel would take delight in the memories of Amalia's music; was counting on it, in fact, to facilitate his plan to funnel that music directly into the mind of his own spirit trapped within the Reaver in the hopes that it would keep him sane. If the best case scenario that he'd proposed came to pass and he did become somewhat fond of her company the same way Kain had, so much the better. At least that way Amalia might be spared the searing pain of his contempt.

But Raziel was not looking at her like she was his favorite milk cow, he was looking at her as if she'd just become the center of his universe. He'd expected that the memories that sustained him would be centered entirely around the music; he never anticipated that he would see his proud firstborn, his strong right hand, looking at a human woman the same way he used to look at Kain himself, back before... Well, before. Back in the beginning, when it was only the two of them, before Kain had raised his brothers and carelessly tossed aside their intimacy in favor of throwing himself into building his empire. This was the love that he had so callously spurned. Raziel had suffered deeply because of his withdrawal, and Kain had only continued to hurt him over the centuries in one way or another, with it all culminating in the day he tore his wings from his back and cast him into the Abyss.

This was a good thing, he was forced to conclude. Raziel had served him loyally regardless of his heartbreak, and he deserved far better than the grief Kain had brought him over the years. Nothing he did could ever make up for the pain he'd inflicted on his firstborn, but at least he'd managed to give him this in the end, and he would do whatever he had to do to tear his eldest's soul back out of the prison he had so willingly surrendered it to. He turned to look back at them as he made to leave. Amalia's worst fears had fled and her wildest dreams were coming true. Raziel had pulled her astride his lap by now, and as their lips met, Kain felt another strong pulse at his back. He would no doubt have her in his bed soon, if he didn't simply throw everything off the table and take her right there on top of it.

He drew the Reaver with a grimace, holding it away from him between the tips of his claws as he walked out the door. He'd been planning to go and seek out one of his favorite bedmates (or perhaps all of them, in rapid succession) before he left on his quest, but perhaps it would be better to return to his chambers at the Sanctuary first and shove the sword under the bed while he went to release his pent up sexual frustration. He doubted he'd get any peace otherwise... and he didn't relish the idea of a play-by-play as they surrendered to their desires while he tried to satisfy his own.

Chapter Text

Raziel and Amalia had indeed surrendered completely by time Kain even made it through the door. He'd been forgotten along with the music; neither of them even noticed him leaving. "What is your name?" Raziel breathed into the side of her neck. 

"Amalia," she barely managed to gasp, as he pressed his lips to her skin. 

"Come to bed with me," he implored, and she nodded as he got to his feet with her in his arms. He carried her up a flight of stairs and down a long corridor straight to the ornate double doors of his private residence. One glance was enough to tell you who resided there. The floors were made of marble, and were immaculately clean. Opposite the front doors, tapestries bearing his clan symbol hung above small fountains on either side of the entryway, and through it a lavishly decorated parlor could be seen. Shades of deep blood red and gold pervaded the space from floor to ceiling, and a crystal chandelier cast light throughout the room, Illuminating a couch flanked by two armchairs which sat in front of an elaborate hearth. Most telling was the giant portrait of Raziel himself which hung above the mantel and drew Amalia's eyes the instant it came into her field of vision. She turned her face into his chest to stifle the laugh that bubbled forth at the display of blatant egotism, wondering how much snark she'd be able to get away with in regards to it later.

"Out," he barked at the two human servants who were cleaning his fireplace out, and they quickly dropped their task and gave him a wide berth as they scrambled to leave. Amalia clung to him as he bore her effortlessly toward a flight of stairs near the far side of the room, moving with all the grace of a wildcat on the hunt. The wraith she'd met had truly been a shadow of what he used to be. The vampire Raziel was thrilling to behold, dark and dangerous and commanding, and Amalia was practically vibrating with anticipation for what lay ahead.

Raziel's bedchamber was every bit an extension of his personality as the rest of his home. Though the floor there was made of flagstone, it was largely obscured by what was possibly the biggest area rug that had ever been made. His bed was of the elaborate four-poster canopy type (she'd have been shocked at this point if that hadn't been the case, honestly) and boasted curtains and bedding of the same red and gold color scheme that dominated the parlor. There was a fireplace here as well, smaller than the one downstairs but no less ornate; and one word from him as he carried her past it brought it roaring to life. Once he reached the bed, he laid her on the embroidered coverlet and crawled over her, causing the mattress to dip underneath her back. "Marry me," he urged, his eyes meeting hers.

She blinked, feeling like a bucket of water had just been thrown over her. "What?"

Her blunt response seemed to send him into a near panic. "I'm asking you to be my bride," he said, desperation etched into his face as if he were terrified that she'd refuse him. "The only one I'll ever take."

Amalia merely stared at him, still too shocked to respond. She almost didn't want to believe it; was too afraid to believe it.

"Please, Amalia. I won't force you... I don't want an unwilling-" 

"Kain told me you'd see me as nothing but a pet," she blurted. "He was really quite adamant about that, in fact."

"Kain had no reason to believe otherwise! And neither did I... not until a few moments ago," he breathed.

She stared up at him, still incredulous. "I'm a human," she said, softly.

"I don't care!" he insisted. "I'll find a way to make it work... so long as you're willing. Only if you're-"

She silenced him with a kiss as it finally sank in that this was happening. "I think you'll find me more than willing," she replied as she scooted up to the top of the bed, watching the relief wash over him. Suck it, Kain, was the last coherent thought she had before she was lost in the moment.

Raziel was not usually a gentle lover, but he fought to rein himself in. He knew he would have to mind his claws throughout the act and resist sinking his fangs into her throat during his climax. He had taken humans of both sexes to bed before, but it had been a long time since he'd had to pay mind to their... fragility. He could not afford to lose control and forget that her flesh would not instantly heal if he accidentally cleaved it.

He resolved to proceed slowly and carefully. For all he knew, she could be yet a maid, and it wouldn't do to frighten her or hurt her. She'd be unlikely to embrace him willingly again if her first bedding were at all unpleasant, and as little regard as he generally held for human life, Raziel was not and never had been a rapist. It was well known, in fact, that he would slaughter any of his fledges he caught engaging in such behavior right there on the spot. That sort of degeneracy was beneath them, and though every one of his brothers save for Rahab mocked him openly about it, their taunts meant little to him. He refused to allow his children to stoop so low. Besides, brute force required absolutely no skill whatsoever. The true challenge lay in encouraging the object of your desire to desire you in return, and ensuring through your performance that they would yield to your advances again and again. This required effort; it required finesse and attention to detail. That the lesser vampires couldn't appreciate that was their own loss.

He knew it was probably best that he ascertain her level of experience right away, so that he could modify his approach to suit it. He pulled back a little, holding himself up with one arm as he trailed a claw down from the bottom of her throat and over her shirt between her breasts. Such strange clothing! He would ask her about them later; for now they were nothing more than obstacles that he wanted out of his way. He toyed with the edge of the fabric. "Have you done this before?" he asked. She blinked up at him, then huffed a small, embarrassed laugh. 

"Okay, so this is ridiculous, but... I don't actually know. I really don't remember anything from before. I mean, I know how it works, and all, I just..." she stammered, trailing off.

Ah. Right. Her memory problems were another thing he would discuss with her later, once their passions were spent. Whatever the truth was regarding her virginity, if she had no memory of prior sexual experiences then she might as well be completely untouched, and he would treat her as such. "It's alright. You needn't fear me regardless, I won't hurt you." She sat halfway up, leaning in to kiss him again. 

"I know," she whispered. "I know you won't."

What made her so sure of that he was certain he'd never know. If she really was from somewhere else, wherever it was apparently had no vampires. If she knew anything about his kind, he couldn't imagine why she wouldn't be expecting him to kill her once he finished with her, regardless of his apparent feelings and silver-tongued reassurance. Everything about her subverted his expectations. He hadn't felt like this since his love for Kain had faded and died. He'd guarded his heart so very closely since then, determined to never find himself in such circumstances again. Now here he was, newly married on a whim to a human he'd met not even half an hour ago. What had she done to him?

In truth, none of it mattered; all Raziel wanted was to see her come undone beneath him. Since he was already halfway up, he opted to sit back on his heels and pull his shirt off, watching with satisfaction as her eyes widened at the sight of his bare chest and arms. Yes, he was impressive, wasn't he? Far more worthy of her attention than any human man she'd ever laid eyes on, no doubt. He preened under her gaze as he tossed the shirt off to the side, and then bade her sit up so that her own could be removed. The article binding her breasts wasn't entirely foreign to him, as there were plenty of tailors among the artisans of his clan, and vampire women had the same need for breast support as human women. She allowed him a moment to trace the tips of his claws over the fabric and straps, and then she reached behind her and undid the clasp holding it in place. Straight to the floor it went; and oh, was she stunning. His eyes began to roam hungrily over her exposed skin, and he immediately noticed the bruising that had taken the place of the welts on her ribs. "Has someone mistreated you?" he asked, instantly taken out of the moment.

"One of Kain's servants," she replied. "She assumed he planned on having me himself and thought she would gift-wrap me in some skimpy lingerie for him after I'd been bathed." She met his eyes. "I was... less than cooperative, and she didn't much care for it." A deep growl escaped his throat, thrilling her to her core. 

"She's signed her own death warrant, then," he said, his tone just as dangerously quiet as Kain's had been earlier that day. 

"She's already dead," Amalia informed him matter-of-factly. "Kain saw to that." This seemed to placate him, and his attention finally settled on the fastenings at the front of the intensely blue pants she wore. 

His talons deftly slipped the button from its hole, but he was stymied a moment by the strange looking metal strip that held them shut, until he noticed the tab hanging from the top. He gave it a tug, and her pants loosened, enabling him to pull them from her legs and toss them into the pile with the rest. He made a mental note to study them later, as he found them intriguing, but his attention was quickly drawn back to where it belonged. He needed only to slide the last remaining garment over her hips and down her legs, and then the real work would begin.

Her confidence seemed to falter and she began to tremble once she was laid bare before him. Whether it was baseless insecurity about the way her body looked or simple nervousness at what came next, Raziel wasn't sure, but as long as she did not resist his touch, he would continue. He hooked his forearm under her lower back, lifted her from the bed, and settled the both of them down, moving one arm to rest under her shoulders. This allowed him to cradle her to his chest while his other hand could roam free. Amalia clung to him, shuddering as his talons skimmed lightly over her skin. The instant they settled on the inside of her thigh, she gasped softly and tensed, apparently not quite ready to allow him access to where he intended to touch her. That was alright, of course. He had enough experience to tell the difference between a partner who was genuinely unwilling and one who was simply daunted by what lay ahead. She was clearly the latter, and would yield to him after a bit of careful reassurance.

He was getting ahead of himself anyway, neglecting to pay attention to what ought to have come first. He brought his hand back up and rested it on her breast as he kissed her, allowing the tip of his thumb to graze lightly over her nipple. This she allowed without hesitation, inhaling sharply through her nose and whimpering into his mouth. Her tongue probed curiously at one of his upper fangs, and he broke away to allow her to admire them. She rested her fingers lightly against his lower lip as she peered at them. "Do they frighten you?" he asked, and she shook her head. "I like them," she responded, though she looked apprehensive even as she said it. "You won't bite my throat, though, will you? I feel like I could survive it somewhere else even if it hurts, but..." 

Raziel blinked in surprise, and then he shook his head with a small laugh. "Silly girl, I'll not bite you at all. You are not for biting," he said, even as he felt her pulse under his lips as he kissed her neck. Truth be told, he'd love to taste her blood. It was almost expected that vampires would drink from one another during intimacy, but she was no vampire, and it was far too great a risk to her life to indulge his desires carelessly. Perhaps later, when she had grown accustomed to their bedroom activity and he knew her limits better, he would take a few drops from her wrist and heal the wound with magic, but not until then. Her body was warm under his hands, and he could feel her start to relax into his touch. She laid her own hand gently against his arm, and he could feel her grip tightening as her arousal continued to build. He bided his time, kissing her neck and face and continuing to let his talons wander until he judged that it was time to try again to get her to spread her legs for him. 

The next time he slid his hand down her belly, he didn't bring it back up again. She tensed once more when she realized what he was trying to do, but he did his best to reassure her. "Shh... hush, now... it's alright. Just relax for me," he spoke softly into her ear as he gently nudged her knee, bidding her to allow him to push it to the side. She finally yielded, and with great care, he let his talons settle against her folds. Amalia gasped and jolted, looking downward at his dangerous claws with a combination of desire and fear in her eyes. It shouldn't have been a surprise that she was reluctant; an Elder vampire's talons appeared to be far better suited for acts of brutality than those of tenderness. She probably expected him to tear her to shreds with them whether he meant to or not. It was time to put those fears to rest.

"Good girl," he whispered, pressing her back into the mattress and relishing the way her hips canted upwards as she reacted to his praise. He flexed his digits to straighten them enough that the sharp tips of his claws wouldn't catch against anything sensitive, and then began to slowly move them. Fuck, she was wet, and it was then that he finally noticed how uncomfortably tight his pants had gotten. He opted to keep them on for now out of concern that she might become frightened upon seeing the size of his cock, although to tell the truth, though he was certainly above average he really wasn't that big. He'd seen far larger. His brother Turel, for instance, was absolutely monstrous at full mast, and since he had an annoying habit of taking whoever he pleased whenever and wherever he pleased regardless of common decency, they'd all seen it plenty of times (though not lately, as Raziel had threatened to dump a bucket of water over him the next time he caught him at it in public, and Raziel did not make idle threats.) 

Still, he had taken virgins before, and to one who was completely inexperienced with adult male anatomy even his somewhat above average length and thickness often made them fear they would be skewered straight through on it. She would no doubt marvel at it later, but if he could help it, he'd keep it out of sight until after he'd taken her once. That way there could be no doubt on her part that it would fit within her, that it would bring her pleasure rather than pain. As wet as she already was, he doubted she'd have any trouble taking him. Still... an orgasm couldn't hurt.

He whispered all kinds of filth into her ear as he touched her; encouraging her toward her release. Normally he'd be using his tongue for this job, but as skittish as she was about his claws, he was certain she'd balk at letting him get his fangs anywhere near her nethers, even if he had promised not to bite her. Raziel was skillful no matter what approach he took to this particular task, and he could soon tell that she was getting close. "That's it, my darling, that's it..." he urged as her breathing quickened. "Come on..." 

"Oh fuck," she gasped as it took her. She turned her face into his shoulder, shuddering against him, crying out repeatedly as he continued to stroke her, drawing her pleasure out as long as he could and only stopping when she became too sensitive to remain still while he touched her. 

"That's my girl," he crooned, slowly pulling his arm from underneath her so that he could move over top of her. Now would be a good time to lose his pants, while she was still blissed out and recovering from her orgasm. He shed them quickly and immediately settled down over her, swiftly positioning himself at her entrance. Her eyes flew open as she felt him nudging against her, and he immediately reassured her. "It's alright... I'll go as gently as I can. If you need me to stop, then tell me, and I promise I will stop." She nodded, and so he began his slow press forward. He whispered encouragement to her as he began to penetrate her, taking his time. His efforts to prepare her were now paying off; she was taking him without a single wince, and she gasped as he filled her completely, clutching at his arms as her back arched. He stifled a growl, not wanting to frighten her, and watched her a moment to make sure she had adjusted. Once he was certain she was feeling no pain, he slowly began to move. 

"Oh, god," she moaned, her eyes sliding shut as a deep purr erupted from his throat at the feel of her. The sound only seemed to encourage her, and so he allowed himself to relax, confident that she wouldn't be afraid if he gave in to his urges to vocalize. She gazed softly up at him a moment before reaching up to caress his face, and he leaned down to kiss her, overcome with emotion. He could never have expected this, would never have anticipated that he would fall so hard, so fast. It was exhilarating to feel this way again after so long, and it was clear that he wasn't the only one affected. Amalia seemed to have fallen just as deeply in love with him as he had with her, her disbelief after his proposal notwithstanding. It was odd, really, the way she had looked at him from the moment he had first met her gaze earlier. When she sang to him, it almost seemed as if he saw recognition in her eyes as she brought her hand to his face, as if she already knew him, already adored him.

If only he knew how true that actually was.

She soon had her hands tangled in the long, thick hair tied at the back of his head, loosening it and begging him to go harder. Raziel was thrilled to indulge her. He felt himself once again slipping into old habits as he surrendered to his lust, and had to mentally slap himself a few times to avoid getting too rough with her. There would be time for that later, when she was more experienced. He could not resist his dominant tendencies entirely, however, and soon found himself giving her orders as his pace increased, growling and baring his fangs in the heat of his passion. 

"Touch yourself," he commanded, and it pleased him greatly when she obeyed without question. "Good girl," he growled, angling his thrusts so that the head of his cock dragged across that sweet spot inside her with every stroke. He soon felt her tensing and getting tighter with every move he made, and knew she was approaching the edge once more. "Surrender," he demanded, and she delivered within seconds, digging her nails into his back, gripping him hard in tight pulses as she came and obliterating his resolve to outlast her. Don't bite her, don't bite her, don't bite her, he thought in the instant before his own climax hit, and though he could not resist leaning down to her throat as he emptied himself within her, he managed to keep his fangs well away from her skin. 

Raziel soon withdrew, completely spent, and collapsed next to her. Silence reigned for a time, as they caught their breaths. Before long, Amalia had recovered enough to turn toward him and snuggle into his chest, and another deep purr erupted from his throat. "Are you alright?" he asked, and she mumbled something incoherent that he could only interpret as a "yes". His pride swelled at the satisfied, boneless state he'd left her in. That was how you earn a repeat performance. 

He expected she'd soon fall asleep, and though she seemed fine, he wanted to make sure he hadn't harmed her during their coupling. He'd long since come to the conclusion that blood after a virgin's first bedding was more likely to be the result of carelessness and rough handling than it was an intrinsic part of the experience, but he wanted to be certain. It wouldn't do to have her bleeding onto his sheets; his spend would wash out easily enough, but blood was far more difficult to remove, and he didn't want them stained.

"Heeeeeey," she protested as he hauled himself upright. "Hush," he said, as gently as he could. "I'll lie back down in a moment. Here, move onto your back for me," he told her. This time she was reluctant to obey him and in fact actually grumbled at him, and so he wordlessly pressed the palm of his hand against her hip to roll her over. Though he'd likely let her get away with murder otherwise, he still would not abide outright disobedience, not even from her. She would learn soon enough, hopefully through gentle correction rather than heavy-handedness. He hated the very thought of having to be harsh with her. He slid his hand between her knees and gently pulled her legs apart so that he could examine her for injury, and thankfully she didn't fight him, although she did tense up and whimper when he gently pressed his talon against one side of her folds to part them. "It's alright, I'm being careful. Does anything hurt?"

"Not yet. Bet I'll feel like a truck hit me later though," she replied. He wasn't sure what she meant by that, but didn't press her on it since she was obviously still out of it. "Well, you're not bleeding. Not that I really expected you to be, since I obviously know what I'm doing," he said, and she couldn't help but snort at the return of his haughtiness. "Come, let's lie down." 

"Am layin' down," she mumbled, and Raziel had to laugh as he settled in beside her. He liked her strange, oddly flat accent, and her manner of speech amused him. He was eager to get to know her, to find out what her sense of humor was like, to learn her likes and dislikes. Despite her claims of lost memory and other worlds, she didn't seem as if she wasn't of sound mind, and he fervently hoped that was the case. Perhaps she had simply been knocked upside the head a little too hard at some point, and would soon recover. He was glad to have some time to spend idle now that the empire was established; it would have been most frustrating to have to immediately leave her to wage war, or even to have to spend hours overseeing construction projects or streamlining logistics as he had been on and off for the last century.

Contrary to his expectations, Raziel found that she was wide awake in the aftermath of their coupling, once she had recovered a bit. She drew in one last deep, satisfied breath before her eyes fluttered open. He had remained propped up on his elbow, wanting to take in the sight of her naked body a while, and was pleased to find her alert. "Hello, my darling," he murmured. He was surprised to see a sort of wistfulness in her eyes as they roamed over him. She recovered quickly, however, and gave him a half smile. "Hi," was her simple reply. 

They fell silent for a few moments, but Raziel's mind wasn't idle for long. He had so many questions, so much to learn about her. "Amalia," he said, trailing the back of a claw up her arm, loving the way her name rolled off his tongue. "Can you read and write?"

She blinked at him, laughing."What? Yeah, of course I can." He wasn't entirely sure why she'd be surprised to be asked this question, but was good that she'd been taught. Though he would have been happy to teach her himself, he knew from experience that it could be a tedious process. He'd still enjoy reading aloud to her, but it was best for her to have the ability herself so that she could keep herself entertained when he wasn't around.

He hummed, letting his mind drift to a second question. "What is a 'truck'? You mentioned being struck by one a moment ago." 

She opened her mouth to respond but stopped short, huffing a small laugh. "It's... oh man, how do I even explain this?" He blinked at her as she started over. "You still use horses to pull your carts, I assume?"

What did she mean, 'still'?  "...Yes?," he confirmed, eyebrow raised.

"A truck is like a cart, or in some cases more like a carriage. It's one of several types of what we call automobiles, used for transportation of both goods and people. No horses required, not anymore. Not for a long time, actually." 

Raziel's brow furrowed. You could only do so much with magic, and making a cart full of goods or passengers move more than a few yards was beyond even the most powerful sorcerers he knew, including himself. "Then how do they go anywhere?"

She laughed out loud. "Okay, that I definitely don't know how to put into terms you'll understand."

He bristled. "What, do you think me dull? Don't assume I can't comprehend abstract concepts," he snapped. Her eyes widened with shock as she shrunk back from him, and his regret was instant and profound.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "That... that isn't what I meant at all." 

Kicking himself for being so reactive, he reached over to gently stroke her hair in apology. "Forgive me," he said. "I didn't mean to respond so harshly." 

Amalia remained subdued for a moment, but then tried to explain. "It's just that if there's nothing like it in this world... it's going to be really difficult to relate to. I'm sure you could comprehend the concept if I could fully explain it all, but I don't know what words to use to convey the meaning."

Raziel was convinced that it couldn't possibly be all that complicated if it was something a human could grasp. "I'm quite certain that it's something relatively simple," he laughed, "Even if it isn't magic. I know you're just a human, but I'm sure you can come up with a crude explanation."

Now it was her turn to bristle. "Really? 'Just a human'? You just snapped at me because you assumed, wrongly, that I was insulting your intelligence, but now you're gonna insult mine?"

He looked at her with a combination of pity and surprise. "Come now, Amalia," he laughed, feeling a slight pang of anxiety as she scoffed, offended. Hardly five minutes after their first coupling, and he'd already upset her twice. He hadn't meant to anger her any more than he'd meant to snap at her, but she had to realize that relative to a vampire, she had... limitations.

"Wow, alright," she said as she dropped her head back onto the pillow. She then turned and propped herself up on her elbow, leveling him with a defiant stare. "They're powered by an internal combustion engine which burns gasoline and converts the energy produced into force that's directed through a gearbox to a propellor shaft which turns the wheels when you step on the gas pedal," she said as Raziel's jaw dropped. "And that's a simplified explanation. There are a thousand different moving parts that make up an automobile. A motor, a battery, electronics, a fuel injection system, brakes, a transmission, a suspension, an exhaust system," she counted each one on her fingers as she thought of them. "And I don't even know exactly how they all work together to make it move, because you need schooling and a lot of experience to become familiar with them. I do know how to drive one, though; in fact I own one. Anything like that been invented by your kind?"

Raziel blinked at her, lost for words and shocked at her... unexpectedly forceful personality. 

She continued to side-eye him as she rolled back onto her back. "I didn't think so. Look, either I'm your bride or I'm livestock. I can't be both. If you want to make this work like you said right before you fucked me, you're going to have to stop viewing me as completely inferior. Otherwise I'm going to begin to question your sincerity and assume you're just down with fucking cattle and willing to lie to get what you want."

"I..." he began, absolutely reeling. He didn't have time to recover, however, because she suddenly sat bolt upright in bed with a gasp.

"Holy shit," she said. "I know what a truck is."

Chapter Text

Raziel's unease only grew upon witnessing her sudden, strange outburst. Perhaps it had been wishful thinking; perhaps she was insane after all. "I... beg your pardon?" he asked, fearing that her response would further confirm his suspicions.

She was nearly hyperventilating, she was so excited. "I can remember what a truck is! Things are starting to come back."

Intrigued, Raziel sat up next to her, reaching out to press against her mind. "Show me," he said. 

Bizarre images suddenly flooded his mind's eye. Vaguely carriage-shaped objects in an abundance of shiny, metallic colors on four small wheels, smooth roads made of material he could not identify, lights on tall poles, signs with words and symbols that made little sense. The images suddenly shifted to an aerial view of the widest roadway he'd ever seen, divided into lanes, able to accommodate more carriages than he'd ever witnessed in one place in his life and stretching on for miles. Huge spires towered over everything off in the distance, and in the foreground were hundreds of buildings. Those are buildings too, he heard her say to him in her head, referencing the spires. He withdrew, unable to process any more. 

"That... was that a city?!"

"Yeah," she breathed, "although I still can't recall the name." 

"A human city?" Raziel's mind boggled at the sheer immensity of it.

"Yeah, human," she responded, still shaken. "There's no one but us where I'm from."

He was incredulous. "How many of you are there in this place?"

"In the city? Millions. In the whole world? Billions," she replied. "The planet is overrun with us."

By now, Raziel was out of bed and pacing back and forth. When he glanced down to find his foot caught on her discarded pants, a chill went down his spine. The images she'd shown him were far too complex, too complete, too real to be a delusion, and these clothes were obviously made using materials and methods unknown to anyone in Nosgoth. She wasn't insane and she wasn't lying; she really was from another world. And if she had somehow ended up here in Nosgoth from somewhere else, what was to say more wouldn't come?

"Billions," he whispered to himself. Humanity had been thoroughly subdued and domesticated here in Nosgoth. They lived in the shadow of their vampiric masters, bent entirely to their will. But those numbers were almost incomprehensible, and Kain's empire would fall if even a small fraction of them crossed over the way Amalia had, especially considering how advanced they appeared to be. No wonder she'd been so affronted by his insinuation that she was simple compared to him; their average intelligence must be far greater than Nosgoth's humans, on par with his own kind's. It was the only explanation that made sense. He found his own pants and distractedly pulled them back on. "Has anything else come back? Anything at all?"

Amalia was still sitting naked on the bed, her eyes distant. "I'm trying..." He tried not to let his impatience show, though he could not stop pacing. She met his eyes for a second. "The city's name is Chicago. I'm not sure if that's where I lived, but I'm sure it isn't the only city like that in the country I'm from. I can't remember if it's the biggest one or not."

Cold fear gripped him at the thought of the power that must be wielded by a nation with multiple cities that size. He strode over and dropped onto the edge of the bed next to her. "Amalia, please... Is there anything you can remember regarding how you got here? Did anyone else come with you?"

She shook her head. "No, no one was with me. I just..." she paused, knowing she had to tread carefully here. "There was a flash of light and I woke up in the woods, I'm not sure how long after. Kain eventually came across me. Everything I tried to recall was foggy, except the music." She hoped he wouldn't press for details on what took place in between waking and meeting Kain. She was a horrible liar, and he seemed to be rather astute. Fortunately, he wasn't interested in what happened after she woke. 

"Your mages," he urged. "Can you recall what they were doing immediately before you saw the flash?" He studied her face, watching as bewilderment overcame her.

"I don't think... What do you mean, mages?"

He resisted the urge to throw up his hands in exasperation. "Mages, my love, mages. Those who practice magic. Can you recall someone chanting, or giving you a potion to drink?"

She shook her head. "Raziel, you don't understand. There aren't any mages where I'm from outside of stories. Magic isn't a thing there the way it apparently is here. I'm certain of it."

He paused, daring to breathe a sigh of relief as he digested her words. If she was correct, if no one had magical capabilities in her world, then the likelihood of this being nothing more than an isolated anomaly was reassuringly high. Amalia, however, had grown concerned. "Why are you so rattled all of a sudden?"

Raziel took her hand in his own, and she wrapped her slender fingers around his talons. "It's alright. I merely worried for a moment that there might be some sort of portal open somewhere that could put us at risk of invasion."

Her eyes widened. "Oh man, yeah... you guys would be absolutely fucked if that were the case. But I really don't think that's how this happened, and if it is, it's not coming from my side, it's coming from yours."

He blinked at her, surprised at her nonchalance. "That possibility doesn't frighten you?"

Amalia snorted. "Not really. The weapons we have at our disposal are devastating, no magic required. Oh," she said, her brow furrowing. "Huh, just remembered that too." She shook her head. "Trust me, if you vampires are as smart as you seem to think you are, you'd do an about face and march right back home once you saw what we can do to defend ourselves."

He chose not to take offense at her flippant comment and was quiet a moment, idly stroking her hand as he stared at the floor. When he spoke, his voice was apprehensive. "I'm sorry about my... assumptions earlier. They were clearly unwarranted. I meant what I said about wanting to make this work, and I hope you're not still angry with me."

Amalia leaned into him and rested her head on his shoulder, inviting him to wrap his arms around her. Her mind went back to the last time she had found herself in this position, right before he'd faded away. She had already had to fight off the thought of what was in store for him in the future twice, once when he'd taken his shirt off and again directly after he'd bedded her. Looking upon his form and seeing it beautiful and whole had been a gut punch, considering what she remembered of him from before. He didn't seem to notice then, but he'd have all sorts of questions if she started to cry now, so it was best not to dwell on it. She felt his talons carding through her hair, and she shivered in delight as the sharp tips of his claws traced gently along her scalp. 

"I'm not angry with you," she said. "I'm well aware of your society's dumb opinions on the human race; Kain saw to that. I meant what I said, too, though. I don't think asking not to be condescended to is a huge burden to put on you."

He was beginning to suspect that he'd be ignoring a lot of irreverence when it came to her. "It isn't... It's more than obvious at this point that you're quite intelligent," he replied, before another thought occurred to him. "But don't you want to go home? Why would you choose this existence over a life of freedom among your own kind in such an advanced society?"

"It's hard to be homesick for a home you can hardly remember," she replied. "And I'm not going to leave you, even if I do eventually remember it all. Even if there's a way for me to get back."

"Unless the anomaly occurs again, and you simply disappear," he said unhappily.

She hugged him tighter. "There's no sense making ourselves miserable worrying about that. I'm just glad to have you-" She caught herself before finishing the sentence with 'back', hoping he wouldn't notice the awkward stop. Fortunately he didn't seem to catch it.

Raziel drew in a deep breath, nuzzling into the side of her neck. Her scent had already become intimately familiar to him; he'd be able to identify it out of an entire room full of humans and vampires alike. She was right, of course. Fretting over the idea of her being stolen away from him in an instant was pointless. There were other dangers to worry about, after all, real dangers. Chief among them were his brothers.

Raziel was no fool; he held no illusions about his relationships with his siblings. He was the strongest of the entire brood, and clearly held the Master's favor over them all as his firstborn. They worked well together when it came to serving Kain, but that was about it. The only one with whom he had any semblance of camaraderie with was Rahab, who, while he could be rather sullen at times and was every bit a sharp-tongued as Raziel himself, was still considerably more even-tempered and amiable than the rest. Rahab was perhaps the only one of them whose devotion to Kain rivaled his own, and it pained him greatly that the Master paid him little attention. His sensitivity and introversion made him a target for bullying, and Raziel generally took it upon himself to protect him from the rest of his brothers. This wasn't entirely out of kindness; having Rahab's back meant that he resented his eldest brother far less than the others did, which made him incredibly useful at times. All of them, of course, were envious and resentful to some degree, two of them bitterly so. Turel would gleefully tear Amalia apart out of pure spite if he became aware that she meant anything to him, particularly if he knew that killing her would get him into trouble. 

Turel was all brawn and little brain, however, so keeping his affection a secret from him would be easy. It was Zephon who was the real danger. He was cunning and manipulative, and what's worse, he had a knack for espionage. If his spies reported that Raziel had a pretty new pet that he seemed to genuinely care for rather than view as nothing more than an amusing ornament, Zephon would take great pleasure in attempting to seduce her right out from under him, whispering lies and planting falsehoods in her head, trying to turn her against him and take her for himself. And if she wouldn't play his games, which he suspected she wouldn't, then he'd tear her apart. 

As far as Dumah and Melchiah went, he knew that while they might not care enough to bother with her, neither would they feel obligated to keep her secret from the others. Even Rahab couldn't be trusted; though he would not betray his brother for his own personal gain, Raziel doubted very much that he wouldn't give her up if not doing so would actively harm him (which was perfectly fair; Raziel wouldn't extend him that courtesy either if it really came down to it.)

Certainly none of them could ever find out that she wasn't a pet at all, that he'd married her. The scandal would be devastating, and Kain would be furious at having to deal with the mess the internal strife would cause. She'd likely be publicly executed, and while he didn't think Kain would be cruel enough to force him to kill her himself, he'd still probably force him to watch her die, and then afterward he'd still have the political fallout to deal with in addition to mourning her loss. He couldn't bear the thought of it.

"Amalia, listen to me," he said. "There are going to be rules in place in regards to your activities here. Vampires rule these lands and the only two who don't have a vested interest in your demise are myself and Kain, and frankly, Kain's not even a guarantee if you don't behave yourself around him." 

She huffed, remembering the way he had embarrassed her earlier. "Kain's a pain in the ass."

He pulled back from her, taking her chin in his hand and giving her a stern look. "Case in point," he said. "Hmmph. You know, my first impression of you was that you were a meek, delicate little thing who'd never show any attitude. Clearly I was mistaken about more than just your intelligence."

She wrinkled her nose, eyeing him. "Is that what you want?"

He sighed. "No, I don't suppose it is," he had to admit. It was absolutely true; if she didn't have at least some fire in her she'd bore him to tears. "But I don't fancy seeing you impaled on the end of that sword he carries, so please, mind your tongue."

Amalia huffed. She knew Kain wouldn't kill her, but for the sake of the charade, she relented. "Fine. I'll be good."

Raziel nodded. "Good. Now listen," he said. "You may be my bride in private, but if we are outside these rooms or if anyone you don't know is present within them, then you're nothing more than a distraction, an amusement, a pet. No one can know you're not from Nosgoth, nor can they know about your music, and they certainly cannot find out that I've taken a human as a bride. Had I been allowed to turn you I could weather the scandal of marrying a newborn fledgling easily enough, but marrying a human would call not only my judgement but my sanity into question and give my brothers cause to attempt to oust me from my position as second in line. Kain would be furious to return to find his lieutenants at each other's throats, and it wouldn't end well for either of us. Humans obviously hold no great status among us anywhere, and we want as little attention on you as possible, so you must play the part, even if it wounds your pride."

Amalia looked apprehensive. "I think maybe I'll just stay in here unless I'm with you."

"Yes," he replied, "You absolutely will. I'll take you out on occasion to get some fresh air, but if you're found anywhere outside my quarters unaccompanied then the best case scenario is that one of my own servants finds you and drags you back here expecting that I'll give you a hiding for straying. Which I will," he warned. "My word is law here and I expect to be obeyed."

She eyed him warily. "What's the worst case scenario, then?"

"Worst case scenario is you could fall into the hands of one of my brothers. We are six altogether, and none but one are particularly fond of me. If it comes to their attention that I have any affection for you at all, even as a pet, you'll become a target in that instant and no matter how closely I guard you, you'll never be safe again. Remember that I've been commanded to look after you. Killing you won't just bring Kain's wrath upon their own heads, it will bring it on mine as well, and I suspect that at least two of them would decide that a vicious beating would be well worth it as long as they could take me down with them."

Amalia blanched. Kain had said that Raziel would keep her safe, but she never put any thought into what she'd need to be kept safe from. She'd been far too overwhelmed with relief and joy that Kain had been wrong about how Raziel would treat her for her mind to stray very far down that path. Relieving his future self's suffering within the Reaver was worth every risk, however, and she was no coward. "I won't go anywhere alone."

He nodded, satisfied. "We'll have some new clothes made for you to wear. The ones you showed up with will draw far too much attention."

She gave him a sly look. "You're not gonna just make me go naked in here at all times?"

He smirked back at her. "Don't give me ideas. Come, let's lie back down. Don't think I haven't noticed you yawning." It was true; her exhaustion was starting to catch up with her again. Raziel shed his pants once more before climbing in beside her and letting her settle in his arms. 

"Would you really 'give me a hiding'?" she asked.

"You would have to do something quite egregious in order to earn anything beyond a stern talking to, but sneaking out on your own or straying from my custody while out together would both fall under that category. I'm not particularly concerned; despite your sharp tongue you don't seem like the type who needs a heavy hand to be kept in line."

She snorted. "You thought I was meek with no attitude until you spent a further five minutes in my company."

He had to laugh. "Are you suggesting I might need to keep a cane within reach at all times? I do have one, you know, and it is currently close at hand," he threatened, nodding toward the space between his bed and the bedside table. She opened her mouth to retort, but thought better of it. "That's what I thought,"  he said, smugly poking her nose with the tip of a claw and earning himself a scowl. "All joking aside, Amalia, I do not want to have to discipline you that way, so please don't force my hand. I have no intention of making unreasonable demands upon you."

"Just what I always wanted, a benevolent master."

He was learning to take her in stride, and ignored her sarcasm. "Were you not subject to anyone before?" he asked.

"Hell if I know. Probably not. I feel like taking orders might not be a strength of mine," she smirked.

 Raziel narrowed his eyes at her. "You'll learn. Trust me. I'll put you right over my knee if I have to."

"Don't threaten me with a good time."

He smacked her lightly on the back of the head, and she laughed into his chest, snuggling further down against him with another wide yawn. "Go to sleep, you little fiend," he mumbled affectionately into her hair. "Perhaps more of your memory will return by tomorrow."

 "Maybe," she replied as she closed her eyes. Raziel would need to slip away soon in order to make arrangements to have her needs taken care of, but for now, he was content to simply lie beside her and listen to her breathing as she slept. Cyar'ika, he thought, recalling a word from an ancient, long-dead language that he'd studied ages ago. 

Beloved. 

Chapter Text

Once Raziel was certain Amalia had slipped into a deep enough sleep not to be disturbed by his departure, he gently untangled himself from her arms and slid out of bed. After studying her a moment to ensure he hadn't woken her, he put on clean clothes, ran a comb through his hair and tied it back again, and silently slipped out to look for Lorrelin. 

A human woman of 40 years or so, Lorrelin was an absolute force of nature. Raziel had recognized her talents straight away, and by her 25th year he had promoted her to the top of the proverbial food chain within the stronghold, as far as the human servants went. As his chamberlain, she oversaw everything, from procuring basic household supplies to prioritizing and delegating tasks to punishing anyone under her who shirked their duties or performed shoddy work. She had rotations working around the clock to perform the tasks needed to keep the fortress maintained and her vampiric overlords content. Everything ran like a well-oiled machine under her watchful eye. Most important of all, she was unflinchingly loyal and trustworthy. Lorrelin would be one of two people besides himself and Kain who would know what Amalia truly was to him; his eldest child Tantallon being the other. With the two of them helping him look after her, Amalia would have everything she needed to be happy by his side.

The only issue with Lorrelin was that she was about as impertinent as she could get away with without Raziel chucking her out the nearest window. He suspected she and Amalia would get along swimmingly, in fact; perhaps even a little too well. She was storming up the corridor looking for him when he rounded a corner, and her eyes narrowed once they settled on him. Oh, here we go, he thought, knowing what was coming since word had obviously gotten back to her about his forceful ejection of the servants cleaning his fireplace. She didn't even say anything to him when she reached him; just crossed her arms and glared up into his face. 

"Alright, so perhaps I could have simply asked them to leave," he began, throwing up his hands. Lorrelin only rolled her eyes and strode past him, leaving him to chase after her. "Lorrelin, wait! I have an urgent matter to discuss with you." 

She did not break stride. "Is it as urgent as your apparent need to fornicate?" 

Raziel reached around her to grab her by the throat, pulling her back against his body and holding her there as he tightened his grip. "Not as urgent as your apparent need to breathe," he growled menacingly into her ear. This was a routine occurrence; Lorrelin would get a bit too mouthy, Raziel would put her in her place, Lorrelin would behave until the next time he did something to draw her ire or earn her scorn. He let her go after a few seconds, and she roughly shoved his arm away before spinning around to face him, knowing that he'd rather tolerate her bullshit than find a new head of staff. "Fine. What is it?"

"We'll discuss it back in my chambers. Come."

Once they'd made it back through his doors, Raziel took a look around to ensure no one save for the two of them had returned to his quarters before beginning to explain his earlier actions. "I need your help."

Lorrelin crossed her arms, looking nonplussed. "What else is new?"

"Shut your mouth and listen to me," he snapped. He told her what Kain had wanted when he'd made his unexpected visit, and how he'd brought him this lost little human with a head full of otherworldly music, leaving her in his care. Lorrelin followed him to his bedchamber where Amalia still lay asleep, and he gently closed the door behind them.

"What happened earlier wasn't just fornication, Lorrelin. This is..." he trailed off, not sure how to continue. He had wanted to let Amalia sleep, but now was as good a time as ever for her to get acquainted with his chamberlain. Gesturing for her to keep her voice down so as not to startle her, he went to sit on the bed, reaching for Amalia and gently trailing the side of his talon down her cheek. She didn't wake, however, and he quickly abandoned the notion of disturbing her from her rest. The way he gazed at her said it all. 

"Oh my god, you've fallen in love with a human," Lorrelin breathed. 

"Yes... it would seem that I have," Raziel replied, softly.

She threw up her hands. "How?" she demanded.

"When I said the music she knows is otherworldly, Lorrelin... I wasn't exaggerating," he whispered. "We had her think of a song and listened into her mind as she went through it. She sang along, and I just... If I hadn't fallen backward into a chair I'd have fallen to my knees instead. If only you could hear it..."

Choosing for the moment to ignore how spectacularly on brand for him it was for music to have played some role in this, she threw up her hands once more. "Well what, do you intend to marry her?" Lorrelin asked, still fighting to keep her voice down despite her surprise.

"She's already mine, Lorrelin," he said, returning to the door and beckoning her to follow him back down to the parlor. "We... discussed it."

Lorrelin snorted. "You mean you fell into bed together and proposed on the way down."

"Oh, hush," Raziel growled, irritated at how closely she'd called it. His annoyance only grew as they reached the bottom of the stairs and she suddenly cackled, startling him. He narrowed his eyes, a soft growl escaping his throat. "I expect you'll be irritatingly forthcoming regarding what you find so amusing, once you've recovered."

Suppressing her laughter a moment, Lorrelin looked him square in the eye, jabbing a finger at him. "It serves you right, that's what!"

"There it is," he nodded, arms crossed.

"All this time arrogantly swaggering around, looking down your nose at us. And now," she gestured up the stairs, triumphant, and again began to laugh, leaning against the wall for support. Raziel fought down the urge to strangle the life out of her, but she only laughed harder at the barely-concealed fury written on his face.

"Are you quite finished?" he asked, his voice deadly quiet.

Lorrelin had been starting to recover, but then another thought occurred to her that sent her right back into hysterics. "You fell backwards into a chair!" she cried, slapping the wall and practically gasping for air. She knew that she was just shy of breaching the thin line of his patience, and she began to edge away from him before he got any angrier and threw her into the nearest wall.

Too late. The chair remark had been the last straw, and Raziel moved far more swiftly than she did. Rather than shove her up against the wall, however, Raziel threw her roughly down onto the couch that sat in front of his fireplace and pinned her there with a snarl, his talons once again wrapped around her throat. This time, though, he allowed the sharp tips of his claws to bite painfully into her skin. Caught off guard by the sheer force behind his correction of her behavior and knowing she had miscalculated the limits of his patience this time, she squeezed her eyes shut and fell still.

"You forget yourself, Lorrelin," he growled. "As my head of staff, you know better than anyone that order must be maintained, through physical chastisement if necessary. And you are this close to receiving a humiliatingly painful reminder that as you are in charge of the rest of my servants, I am in charge of you. Now, shall I strip you naked, tie you to a bench and retrieve my cane from where it rests, or are you going to remember your place?"

She answered the instant he loosened the grip on her throat. "That will be most unnecessary, my Lord."

"Prove it," he challenged, "Or regret it. The choice is yours."

Lorrelin's ability to recover from these encounters was remarkable. The moment Raziel took his weight off her and stepped away, she stood and straightened herself. With a huff, she flounced off to nurse her injured pride. He still intended to introduce her to Amalia, but thought it best to allow her a moment to collect herself. With a sigh, he turned toward his fireplace, eyeing the ash scattered across the stones in front. Whether she was angry with him or not, she would still no doubt have the servants he unceremoniously tossed out on their backsides return shortly to finish their job. 

Now that he was no longer in the grip of his anger, he felt a small twinge of guilt at having treated them all so harshly. Raziel was keenly aware that inspiring love was a far more powerful approach to control than instilling fear. Though he certainly maintained a reputation for sharp and immediate consequences for stepping out of line, due to his generally kind treatment of both fledgling and servant they were all loyal to a fault. And no one was more loyal than Lorrelin, even if she was a royal pain in his arse most of the time.

Truth be told, while manhandling and intimidating her into submission was a regular occurrence, Raziel had never before threatened to humiliate her the way he just had. She'd seen him nude on many occasions simply because she was around a lot and he was absolutely shameless when it came to such things, but not once had he ever looked upon her in any state of undress. He'd made her aware shortly after promoting her all those years ago that she was welcome in his bed if she were ever to become so inclined, but she'd never taken him up on the offer. A tight grip on her throat was one thing, but forcing her to strip before him would likely have a profound and permanent affect on their relationship, and not for the better. Worse than that, though, was that he'd flippantly threatened to use the cane on her with absolutely no regard for the fact that he only ever brought it out for sexual encounters. Seeing as he was shameless about that particular proclivity, too, Lorrelin was well aware of this. Combine all of these things with the fact that he'd been straddling her on a horizontal surface while he said it... His eyes widened as he realized exactly what message he may have unintentionally sent.

"Shit," he swore as he headed straight for the hallway to the right of the parlor. He'd let her get under his skin regarding Amalia like the reactive fool that he was, and had likely made her feel unsafe in a way she'd never had cause to when it came to him. Now he found himself unable to find her. The hallway here wrapped around two large rooms with a wide corridor straight ahead, but the rooms were vacant and the corridor was a dead end; it contained only a large basin where a fountain trickled down from a hole in the far wall. He'd wanted to turn the fountain area into a small reading nook with floating magical fairy lights and a comfortable chaise lounge, but he'd never gotten around to it. It was shameful, really, how barren this area of his home was, but he'd mostly shifted his design for the space to the balcony outside his bedchamber and had lost the inspiration to do anything with it now.

He forced his focus back to the task at hand and quickly realized that he'd been mistaken about where his sulking chamberlain had taken off to. If she wasn't in this part of his residence, that left only the library and his private alchemy lab, since the staircases on either side of the parlor both emerged into a single hallway that led to his bedchamber, which was the only room upstairs. He couldn't fathom how she could have gone up either staircase without him noticing, so that was right out. He suspected that perhaps she'd gone to sulk in his lab, figuring that it would be the last place he'd look, but she wasn't there, nor was she in the library, which sat behind the parlor with doors on either side next to the stairs.

It was possible that she'd simply left his quarters entirely, though he fervently hoped that wasn't the case. She'd be able to avoid him for quite some time out there if she chose to; he had no doubt that she was skilled enough to do her job effectively and hide from him at the same time. The double doors that separated his private abode from the rest of the complex were heavy, however, and crafty as she was, it was unlikely that she'd be able to open either one without him hearing it. Bewildered, he headed up the stairs and turned the corner to approach the door to his bedchamber... only to find her there reaching for the doorknob.

Huffing a sigh of both annoyance and relief, he called out to her. "Lorrelin, wait," he began, studying her face for any hint of fear or anger as he approached. She certainly looked unamused, but otherwise seemed to be her usual self. "I hope you didn't... I didn't mean to..." Lorrelin arched a brow at him, and he started over. "I realized after you'd left that during my... corrective actions, I may have sent a drastically different message than the one I meant to. I was angry and it was poorly worded. I hope I haven't given you cause to believe that I would ever-"

"Ever what?" she interjected. "Actually follow through with any of that nonsense? No, my Lord, I am well aware that that may well have been the only threat you've ever made that you have absolutely no intention of acting on. It's an honor, really," she said with a casual shrug.

Raziel dragged his palm down his face, sighing through his nose as his relief over the return to their usual dynamic warred with his exasperated dismay that it was now back to business as usual. "How in the hell did you get up here without me seeing you?"

She leaned forward with a profoundly smug little hum, smiling up at him as if she were more pleased with herself than she ever had been. "I ducked into the library, came out through the door on the other side, and darted up the other staircase while you stared in regret at the state of disarray your fancy-pants fireplace is in due to your own behavior."

He stood staring her down with arms crossed. "You are boundlessly insufferable," he stated, his expression flat.

"And yet you suffer me all the same," she replied, once again reaching for the door. "I must be useful or something."

"Suffering is certainly the proper term for it,"  he muttered as he followed her into the room.

Raziel knew that he was going to have to wake his new bride this time, whether he wanted to or not. This time he gave her shoulder a gentle nudge, and her eyes fluttered open. Thankfully, despite being woken from a rather deep sleep she still looked upon him with adoration rather than annoyance.

"Amalia, I'm sorry to wake you so soon, but I have my chamberlain here and I want to get you two introduced. This is Lorrelin," he said, gesturing.

"Oh," Amalia said, groggily rubbing her eyes and pulling the sheet up to cover herself as she sat up. "Hi."

Lorrelin took to her immediately. "Oh, just look at you, sweet little thing," she smiled at Amalia. "Why, it would seem you've managed to charm my Lord Raziel right out of his senses," she said, the last part directed at him. 

Raziel sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Indeed she has. I don't think I need to tell you how much this complicates things."

"No, you do not." Lorrelin was all business now, and she began to pace, biting her nails as she thought. "Well, if you've taken her as a bride, then it's only fitting that she be treated as a bride. That's going to be a bit of a hard sell, my Lord, seeing as she's, you know... human."

"We're not going to try to sell it, Lorrelin," said Raziel, waving his hand as if it should have been obvious. "As far as everyone aside from us can know, she's nothing more than an ordinary human pet that I keep on a leash."

"Oh, rubbish," said Lorrelin. "Give me a moment to think." 

Raziel decided he'd much better enjoy this conversation in bed with his arms around his newly beloved, so he shed his clothing once again even as Lorrelin continued to pace throughout his bedchamber and slipped back under the covers to allow Amalia to curl into his side.

"You said she carries music in her head, strange music that she alone knows," said Lorrelin. "That makes her special, unique. Only fitting that one so rare and valuable be elevated beyond the status of a mere curiosity. Who would question you, my Lord? You reign supreme, after all, aside from Lord Kain, and if he's the one who gave her to you he already understands."

Raziel shook his head. "You're not thinking, Lorrelin. What do you suppose will happen when word gets out that Lord Raziel has a new human pet with special abilities, gifted by Kain himself? A pet that he dotes on and prizes above all else? Who do you think might take an unhealthy interest in this development?"

Lorrelin stopped short, a sour expression stealing over her countenance. "I really hate your brothers," she gritted.

"Don't we all." was Raziel's flat response.

"Alright," she said. "It would seem that we need to keep any and all attention off her, then, lest one of Zephon's little cockroaches deems her worth scuttling back to his master to report on." 

Raziel shrugged. "As I said. I see no other way to keep her safe."

Lorrelin scoffed and faced him, hands on hips. "Well what, do you mean to keep her captive within these rooms, then?" she asked, waving a hand at Amalia. "Dressed in rags and eating nothing but scraps?"

"No, you ill-tempered, fractious little shrew, I don't," Raziel snapped back. "That is why I'm letting you in on this. Work your magic, Lorrelin, and work it in secret. She'll need clothing, food, regular bathing-"

"I know what she'll need, thank you very much," Lorrelin interrupted. "And I'll not have the poor dear living as if she's nothing more than a caged animal, even if we have to put on a good show in order to convince everyone else that's all she is." She paused a moment, still thinking. "I think your over-the-top vanity may play to our advantage here. Everyone knows you enjoy beautiful things. People would find it odd, I think, if you didn't keep her in perfect health and looking presentable. I think it's the way that you interact with her in front of others that's really important."

 Raziel ignored the jab about his vanity. "That is a good point. Perhaps we can get away with more than I had originally imagined, as far as her care and keeping goes." Lorrelin strode over to Amalia and lifted her chin with the tip of her finger. "You just leave it to me, love. I'll get it sorted."

"Thank you," Amalia said. Raziel stopped Lorrelin before she could run out the door. "One last thing, Lorrelin. If you see Tantallon, tell him to come see me right away. He's the only other person who can know about this."

Once Lorrelin was gone, Amalia looked up at Raziel from her position in the crook of his arm. "I really don't need much, you know." 

Raziel reached up to stroke her hair. "Lorrelin is right, cyar'ika. You will have the best we have to offer. Fortunately for you, unlike my brethren, the humans under my care aren't treated particularly harshly. We have farms within the territory where suitable food is grown. Anything we don't grow ourselves to feed our human population can be traded for, as my clan is known for its artisans. You'll be measured and fitted for proper clothing, and we'll keep water here for you to drink. Lorrelin will tell my servants that I have a new human pet and that they are not to disturb you under any circumstances."

"You said something about someone else who can know. Who is he?"

"Yes, Tantallon. He is my eldest fledgling, my firstborn. As such, we are very close, and I can trust him to help me keep you safe. You must listen to what he tells you, Amalia. He won't burden you with unnecessary orders any more than I will, but he does understand the societal intrigue quite well, since he's watched it become established over the years. He was sired at the dawn of the empire, not all that long after I was. He's quite the singer himself, actually, so once he's over his shock I suspect the two of you will get on well."

"But everyone else will leave me alone?" she asked.

"Indeed they will. If anyone dares to trouble you, you need only tell Lorrelin, Tantallon, or myself. It will be dealt with, and swiftly." Raziel responded, his eyes narrowed. 

Amalia smirked up at him. "I wonder who's the scariest, out of the three of you?"

Raziel scowled at her. "I am." His look and tone of voice would have been enough to intimidate just about anyone (except for maybe Lorrelin) into silence. Not Amalia. "I dunno... Lorrelin seemed pretty no-nonsense to me." He groaned in response, dropping his head back onto the pillow. 

"Lorrelin," he growled, "is in the unfortunate position of knowing exactly how valuable she is. Unfortunate for me, I mean. She gets away with far too much." He made no mention of what had transpired earlier, since she'd clearly come out of it unscathed and undaunted, just like she always did.

"Am I valuable?" she asked, her voice sweet as honey. Raziel refused to answer that question, since it was obvious she already knew. He only stared her down until she finally giggled and settled her head back down against his shoulder. "Little fiend," he muttered. "You're far more valuable than any human has the right to be around here."

Amalia shifted onto her side and threw her arm across his chest, snuggling as close as she could. "What does..." she began, struggling to remember the word and finally giving up. "That thing you called me a minute ago. 'Shar' something. What does that mean?" 

Raziel laughed softly, gently trailing the tip of a claw across her cheek. "Cyar'ika. A term of endearment from an ancient language." 

"Oh," she responded, smiling slightly. "I like it, then. But what does it mean?" Raziel shifted onto his own side. "Beloved," he responded, leaning in to kiss her. Amalia could not help but think again of what would happen to him in time. The ragged, destroyed body, the deep sadness and resignation in his glowing eyes, the way his voice often trembled with fear as he spoke. As she leaned in to kiss him back, she could only hope that whatever happiness she could bring his past self would reach his future soul. She planned to do her absolute damndest to see that it would.

Chapter Text

It was obvious what direction their activity was headed in, but Raziel was feeling playful. He pulled away just enough to press his lips to the hinge of Amalia's jaw, daring to give her a gentle nip with his incisors. She immediately seized with a yip, giggling as she shoved at his chest. "Cut that out, it tickles!"

"Is that supposed to be a disincentive?" he grinned, leaning forward in an attempt to catch her skin between his teeth once more.

She shoved at him again, laughing and rolling away across the bed once it was clear that trying to actually push him away was futile. "Yes! Quit it!"

His arm shot out and caught her around the middle in much the same fashion as a cat would slap his paw down on a mouse that tried to run, though he kept his grip loose so as not to cause his claws to dig into her belly. "If you're trying to get me to stop, you are really going about it the wrong way," he laughed, pulling her back against his chest.

"Are you trying to convince me there's a 'right way' to deter this sort of behavior from you?"

"That would be a wasted effort, I suppose," Raziel mused as he swept her hair off the back of her neck so that he could apply his teeth there instead. This time, he opened his mouth just wide enough to allow the sharp points of all four fangs to prick at her skin, and she instantly stilled.

"Don't you fucking dare," she growled, completely unafraid. 

He snickered. "Relax, I've no intention of paralyzing you. That wouldn't be any fun at all."

Amalia turned her head to glare at him and he immediately captured her lips with his own again, but she broke the kiss after a moment. "Those things are sharp," she grumbled, rubbing at the back of her neck. "How much pressure does it even take to break the skin?"

Raziel lit up with an fiendishly eager grin. "Want to find out?"

She rolled her eyes as she turned away again, trying to hide her own smile. "I thought you said I wasn't for biting."

"I lied," he teased, pressing his lips to a sensitive spot between her shoulder and neck and catching her wrist when she swatted at his head. 

"You are the absolute worst," she growled, dismayed that his lightning quick reflexes had thwarted her attempt at the small amount of petty revenge she'd sought. 

Raziel had been achingly hard since the moment he'd put his fangs to the back of her neck and abruptly decided he was tired of games. He reached down and hooked his talons around her knee, hiking it up and pressing himself against her entrance from behind, applying only gentle pressure and then pausing to give her a chance to refuse his advance in the event that she felt too sore or tender for another round. To his delight, she immediately arched into his touch, and he wasted no time getting started. Either she'd orgasm during the act itself, or he'd see to it that it happened after he was finished with her; all he wanted at the time was to let primal instinct take over. A deep growl erupted from his throat as he entered her for the second time.

"Hold still," he gritted as he began to move, setting a brutal pace that left Amalia breathless and grasping at the bedding. He quickly grew frustrated with the position he had her in, so he withdrew and grabbed her by the hips to haul her up onto her hands and knees. All her snark and playful defiance had fled the moment she felt his length nudging against her; she was so very obedient now, so delightfully submissive, immediately allowing him to guide her to where he wanted her and enter her once more. She took his rough treatment spectacularly, reveling in the way he commanded every bit of their coupling. "Good girl," he breathed. "Now touch yourself so you can come for me," he commanded, and was rewarded with her immediate compliance.

Amalia gasped, shaking her head to get her long red hair out of her face where it had fallen, and Raziel immediately leaned forward to pull it back for her. Unbeknownst to her, she'd just given him the perfect opportunity to see if she enjoyed having her hair pulled. Indeed she did; she moaned as he pulled hard enough to tilt her head backward, going as far as to raise herself up to lean back into him, reaching backward to grab his hips. "What did I tell you to do?" he growled into her ear, and she immediately slid one hand back down between her legs. 

Raziel shifted his angle a bit to hit the right spot once again as soon as he felt her begin to tense, and the results were almost immediate. This time, her orgasm didn't instantly trigger his own, and he fucked her relentlessly the whole way through it, finding his own release several moments later after he'd forced her back down onto the bed. He stared at the tiny red marks on her nape that had appeared where he had tested his fangs against her skin moments ago, and the sight of it was too much. Unable to resist the urge to bite something as he came, he redirected his aggression to his own forearm and sank his fangs deep. The sharp pain only enhanced his pleasure, and he snarled the entire way through his climax.

He knew he needed to move carefully if he wanted to keep his blood off his sheets, so he gingerly withdrew and moved to lay on his back at Amalia's side, holding his arm above his body in case any of it dripped. When her eyes fluttered open, they immediately settled on the deep puncture wounds and widened. "It's alright, my love," he soothed, still fighting to catch his breath. "Better my arm than your pretty little neck. Look, it's nearly healed already," he said, scraping the blood off his arm where it had flowed from the wounds. 

Amalia peered intensely at the still bloody patch of skin where his fangs had pierced, watching as his immortal flesh closed and healed, leaving only two faint red marks. Those would fade and disappear within a few hours. He expected that this time she'd need longer to recover, but she surprised him by wriggling up off her belly to face him, grimacing slightly at what was no doubt the sensation of his spend leaving her body as she moved. Once settled, she reached for his bloodied talons, and Raziel was too mystified to stop her. "It's so much darker than human blood," she observed, peering at his blood on her own fingers. "Does it taste any different?"

He raised an eyebrow at her, surprised at this line of questioning, then nodded. "Thicker... richer. I would guess the difference in viscosity to be somewhat akin to the difference between drinking skimmed cow's milk and drinking the cream that rises to the top. As to the taste, it's like cheap wine versus the finest vintage."

Amalia rolled to her back and sat up in bed. "Why drink human blood at all, if that's the case?" she asked, rubbing her thumb and forefinger together as she studied the blood coating them.

"Because human blood is what truly sustains us," he answered, hauling himself upright as well. "Vampiric blood will sate our hunger for a short time, but it will never last long. A sire or dam will often feed a fledgling from his or her wrist if proper sustenance can't be provided soon enough, and lovers often take blood directly from one another's throats during the act. But we could drink one another's blood all night, every night, and eventually it would simply stop satisfying our hunger."

Amalia hummed softly, continuing to stare skeptically at Raziel's blood on her fingertips, but didn't otherwise respond. He smirked at her. "You want to taste it, don't you?"

"No, I don't," she replied, sounding just offended enough to confirm his suspicions. "I'm not a vampire."

Raziel's smirk broke into a wolfish grin. "Oh, I think you do. Go on, then," he urged. "Taste it."

"Why, is it going to turn me into a vampire?" she asked, eyes narrowed.

"Is that your concern?" he laughed. "No, it won't. Not without a lengthy incantation beforehand, anyway."

She wrinkled her nose. "Forget it, It's all gross and coagulated now."

With a sigh, he licked his arm to clean the remaining blood from his skin, then brought Amalia's fingers to his lips to do the same. She thought that would be the end of it until he brought his wrist to his mouth and used one of his upper fangs to slash it open.

Amalia's curiosity got the best of her as she watched his thick, dark blood slowly bubble up from the wound. He held his wrist out, offering it to her, and at first she only took it in her hands and stared at it. But when he moved it in closer to her lips, she couldn't help but stick the tip of her tongue out just enough for him to press the wound against it.

The instant the blood hit her tongue she gasped and pulled back. The taste was indescribable; somewhere in it she could pick up the metallic tang that human blood had, but the overall flavor was far more complex. What was most prominent, however, was the energy it held; it was almost like a combination of licking a battery, taking a drink of soda, and swallowing a mouthful of whiskey all at once. It caught her completely off guard, and she shook her head in confusion as her vision blurred and then cleared.

Once the sensation died on her tongue, however, she immediately found herself missing it, wanting more. It should have repulsed her, perhaps should have even made her want to throw up. But it wasn't repulsive, far from it. It was good... incredibly good. She still had her slender fingers wrapped around Raziel's forearm, and she knew the wound was already healing. Without even thinking, she pulled his wrist to her mouth to take what she could before it could close, and a satisfied purr erupted from Raziel's throat at her eager response.

The sound startled her back to reality, and she immediately let go of his arm and pulled back, thrown off by her bizarre reaction. Severely disturbed, she stared at her hands, turning them over, before bringing the tips of her thumbs to her eyeteeth.

Raziel chuckled at her concern. "You're still human, my love. It isn't fangs and talons that herald the Change anyway, it's confusion and loss of motor control. Fangs and the first set of claws are gained after several days and talons usually take more than a century to develop. If you'd just become a vampire, whatever few words you could string together into a coherent sentence you'd be slurring. You'd hardly be able to remain upright, in fact."

She continued to prod at her canines. "Then why did I like it? What is wrong with me?"

"Nothing, darling, you needn't worry," he reassured her. "Most humans that taste a vampire's blood find themselves wanting more. You could sense the power in it, could you not?"

She nodded. "It felt like my whole head was buzzing, and it burned. There wasn't even enough to swallow but somehow it still burned my throat the whole way down. I still feel warm, like I'm glowing or something. It's... actually kind of nice, to be honest... as gross as that is to admit."

He wiped a stray smudge of blood from the side of her mouth and offered it to her, but this time she refused, too unsettled to want any more. "That's what most of your kind find alluring about it," he said, licking the blood from the side of his claw with a shrug. "There is powerful magic in our veins, and only Kain's blood has more than mine does," he said with a note of pride in his voice. "It's really quite helpful when it comes to creating a fledgling. Obviously, those who aren't in the habit of drinking blood tend to resist being made to do so. They stop resisting almost instantly once they taste ours."

"I feel like that must create some sort of demand for it among the human population," she said, disturbed even further at the implications of that realization.

"Oh, it used to, before they were brought to heel. Many of the fools believed they could gain our power by drinking it straight, and in fact it does lend strength to alchemical potions and draughts. A few rich men with more money than brains simply enjoyed the mild high it provide them, short-lived as it was. I'm sure you can imagine the drama that played out over the years between those who were in favor of consuming it and those who considered the practice to be an abomination."

Amalia didn't much care about the drama. "It doesn't hurt us, though?"

"No, cyar'ika, I promise," he replied, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "I would not have encouraged you to taste it if it were capable of doing you any harm. Besides, as I'm sure you remember, the Master has forbidden me to turn you, even if you wanted me to."

"Which I do not," she replied. "This was unsettling enough; I do not want to find myself lusting for my own kind's blood. Especially if it meant I could never have human food again."

"We actually can readjust to eating human food if we so choose," he informed her. "Aside from liquor or wine, however, we generally just don't bother since it does not satisfy our hunger and usually just results in feeling uncomfortably full and sluggish, and that's if we don't end up becoming violently ill within an hour of eating it, which is what happens if you don't reintroduce it gradually. Learned that one the hard way," he muttered.

"Ooh, story time?" she asked with a grin. "Sounds like a good one."

"If I must," he sighed, not particularly wanting to own up to it but wanting even less to disappoint her by refusing to tell the tale. "I don't remember my life as a human, so I began this existence with no prior attachments to whatever food I ate. Tantallon, however, does remember. On the eve of one of the harvest festivals celebrated by the humans each year, we started talking about the lavish feasting that was to be done the following day, and Tantallon started to get nostalgic. Having already shared an entire bottle of wine that night, we promptly got it in our foolish heads that it wasn't right that humans should have these delights all to themselves. So he and I went and raided a rich family's larder and made off with whatever we could carry."

"Wait, so you two just waltzed in and stole their entire feast?"

"Not the entire thing; I said it was a rich family, didn't I? There was an abundance, believe me, and they'd have gotten along just fine without any of it, frankly. And we didn't just waltz in; Tantallon had to pick a few locks."

"Good grief," Amalia laughed.

"When all was said and done, we ended up sharing a roast fowl stuffed with carrots and onions, a small loaf of bread spread with butter, and some sort of fruit concoction that was loaded with sugar along with a small jug of cow's milk. Both of us spent the entire night thereafter either hugging a chamber pot or sitting on one."

Amalia burst into laughter. "Was it worth it?"

"Absolutely not. We should have listened to Kain when he told us what a terrible idea the whole thing was," he replied, and Amalia only laughed harder. "I did manage to salvage the affair to an extent," he stated with a prideful smirk. "I immediately went to my brothers and raved about how wonderful human food tasted while neglecting to mention the ill effects of gorging on it. I played on the same sense of injustice that had been our own downfall; really did my best to sell it. This all happened quite early in our lives, before the Empire came to be. Kain had only sired four of us at that point; Rahab was at that time the youngest, but he's always been intuitive and suspected there would be a catch, so he didn't take the bait. Turel and Dumah, on the other hand..."

"Good lord, you manipulative little gremlin, no wonder they hate you," Amalia laughed, shaking her head.

"Oh, they deserved it," he replied with a dismissive wave of his hand. "And Tantallon's hardly innocent in this. He suggested I tell them that the best dishes were heavily spiced, knowing that the two of them would turn it into a competition over who could endure the spiciest dishes, and that it would burn just as badly on the way out as it did on the way in. I didn't tell them it was his suggestion for his own safety, of course, because I knew there would be a savage fight once they'd recovered and realized that I'd done it on purpose. I expected that Kain would be angry about it, but he only smirked and told them it served them right, so I escaped relatively unscathed. That bit was worth it," he laughed as he settled back into bed. "Although Rahab was a bit upset with me, since they often turn their anger on him when they can't take it out on me. That led to several more fights, since I won't allow them to bully him."

Amalia turned so that she was facing away from him and then shuffled backwards into his arms, still laughing and shaking her head. He had only just pulled the covers up over her when a knock sounded at the door. "Speak of the devil... Come in, Tantallon," he called. 

Raziel's firstborn was tall, slim and lanky; a striking contrast to his sire, who was well-built, muscular, and a good two inches shorter even at six feet. Upon looking closer, however, it became apparent that he wasn't a weakling by any means. He was thin, to be sure, but what little bulk was on him was all lean, wiry muscle. His features were fine, almost feminine, and he was strikingly handsome. His hair, which fell in loose curls about his face and tumbled down in waves over his shoulders, was the same raven black that she'd seen on every vampire aside from Kain, and his eyes were the same shade of gold. Amalia could only assume that he'd been much younger than Raziel when he was turned, perhaps even still a teenager, whereas Raziel appeared to have been close to thirty when he was sired. He quietly shut the door behind him and then strode to the side of the bed, dropping to one knee before his sire the same way Raziel had done to Kain earlier and with every bit of the same grace of movement.

"You called for me, Sire?"

"I did. I hope Lorrelin didn't give you too much trouble," Raziel replied.

Tantallon glanced up, looking somewhat annoyed. "No, she only said that you had summoned me to your bedchamber, and when I asked if you'd given a reason she just cackled the way she does when she finds something inappropriately funny and kept walking. I was almost afraid to come." His eyes settled on Amalia. "It's been some time since you've brought a human into your bed."

Raziel sat up, bidding Amalia to do the same. "Yes, it has. This is Amalia. She's the reason for Kain's visit earlier; he came to bring her to me." 

Tantallon raised an eyebrow, glancing between the two of them and wondering why the human had her gaze on him rather than directed at the floor. "Okay, and...? Are you offering her to me now that you've finished with her, then? I'd rather she be bathed first, if you'll forgive my saying so."

Amalia stiffened, no doubt ready to fire off a smart remark, but Raziel reached around and covered her mouth with his hand before she could. "No, Tan-," he said before suddenly giving Amalia a sharp glance and a slight jostle. "If you're thinking of biting me, and I know you are, I would recommend against it." She glowered at him, reaching up to pry his hand away from her mouth.

"Oh what, so you're the only one allowed to bite anybody around here?" she growled.

Tantallon was scandalized by the way Amalia addressed Raziel. "My god, does Lorrelin have a long lost daughter we're only just finding out about?" 

Raziel couldn't help but laugh at that. "Hah! No, although I shudder to think of the grief they'll cause me when they inevitably team up." 

Tantallon rose to his feet, crossing his arms over his chest. "Sire, I would very much like it if you explained what's going on. Why do you allow her to speak with such disrespect? We do not need another Lorrelin around here, much less a team of them. One is bad enough."

Raziel drew in a deep breath, bracing for the impending fallout. "I don't know where Kain found her and she cannot remember how she came to be here... but Amalia is not from Nosgoth. She's from another world entirely, and though her memory is sparse and fragmented, she carries in her head music that is nothing short of astonishing."

Tantallon's brow furrowed in confusion, and he eyed Amalia warily. "That... raises more questions than it answers, but ultimately would explain her lack of manners if not for the fact that she's clearly been in your custody long enough to have learned her place."

Another deep breath. "Her place is..." he trailed off, ultimately deciding on a somewhat more cowardly approach to the issue. "...Perhaps it would be better if I simply showed you my memories of our first meeting."

Sensing that the situation might deteriorate rapidly once Tantallon knew the truth, Amalia shuffled back down under the covers and pulled them up to her chin to ride out the coming storm, watching Tantallon's expression change from confusion to astonishment to amusement to outright shock as Raziel recalled the highlights of Amalia's performance.

"As you can see, Tantallon," Raziel said, breaking the heavy silence that hung in the air, "Her place is by my side."

Tantallon blinked at him.

"...as my bride. I've married her."

Two more blinks, and then the dam broke. 

"Have you lost your mind?! She's a human! How the hell are you going to explain-" He threw up his hands in much the same fashion Lorrelin had and began to pace. "She won't survive this, Sire! You might not survive such a scandal as this will cause! And what of the rest of us then? How could you put us all in danger like this?"

Raziel held up a hand. "Tantallon, we are not going to explain anything to anyone. The only ones who can know about this are Kain, myself, you, and Lorrelin. To everyone else, she is a pet, nothing more. Do you think I haven't thought of the consequences of this getting out?" That was a half-truth, really, since to his great shame he in fact hadn't thought of what might become of his clan if the worst were to happen. But Kain knew, Kain approved, for whatever reason... even if he hadn't, Raziel couldn't imagine that the Master would punish his descendants for a transgression that their patriarch had made.

"I saw no evidence of any thinking whatsoever on your part during that memory! The music was astonishing indeed, just as you said. That much I will grant. But to fall in love with her?"

"Tantallon, I-"

"Since when are you even capable of falling in love? I'd thought Kain had throttled the life out of that part of you ages ago!"

Amalia glanced up at Raziel, surprised. Now that was an interesting revelation. Had Raziel and Kain been lovers at some point?

Raziel grit his teeth. "Well as it turns out, my immortality apparently extends to my capacity for romantic love!" he spat. "Don't act like you're the only one who's surprised. I didn't ask for this."

"And Lord Kain approves?!"

"Clearly he does, or she'd be dead and I'd probably still be getting thrashed straight into the ground at this very moment!"

Tantallon continued to storm around the room on a tirade. "You and your... your blasted... Music! Boredom! Inability to resist novelty in any form!" he raged. "Leave it to you to..." he trailed off with a snarl of frustration.

"You are frightening her," Raziel growled.

"Good! Perhaps it'll improve her attitude!"

"You're not, actually," Amalia piped up, unable to resist knowing that Raziel wouldn't allow Tantallon to harm her. Tantallon bared his fangs at her, but Raziel silenced her first by poking his claw into her side just hard enough to command her attention. "Hush, Amalia. Do not antagonize him, this is difficult enough. Not another word out of you." Amalia yelped softly at the sharp press of his claw, flinching away hard enough that she nearly elbowed him in the side. Not quite brave enough to disobey him, she glared balefully at him but shut her mouth for the time being.

The bickering continued, however, and Amalia soon began to grow irritated at being discussed as if she weren't even in the room. She rolled to her back, pulled the coverlet further up over her chest and crossed her arms as they went back and forth, staring up into the bed's soft velvet canopy, tracing patterns in the deep red fabric with her eyes. Finally she could stand it no longer and with a huff thumped Raziel's ribs none too gently with the back of her hand to get his attention. He stopped mid-sentence to glare down at her from where he was still sitting next to her in bed, and, completely uncowed, she sat halfway up to glare right back. "Go. Argue. Somewhere. Else. Leave me out of this shit until you're done squabbling like children," she demanded. With that, she turned onto her side and yanked the covers up over her head, leaving Raziel and Tantallon to sort themselves out.

Both vampires were stunned silent. Raziel recovered first, and huffily rose from bed, reaching for a robe that was hanging off one of the bedposts on his side. "Fine," he snapped, his temper flaring now that he was being assaulted from both sides. "Stay in bed until we return. Don't be surprised if by then I've taken to heart Tantallon's concerns regarding your attitude."

"Don't be surprised if by then I've tied all your sheets together and escaped off the balcony just to find some goddamn peace and quiet," Amalia fired back from under the covers.

Tantallon snorted with laughter, incredulous at the sheer audacity of it all, and Raziel sighed in exasperation. They silently left the room to retreat back down to the parlor, where they fell backwards into chairs opposite one another. Tantallon spoke first. 

"Well, my Lord," he began, a smug grin still prominent on his face, "I wish you all the luck in the world with that little spitfire."

"Don't 'my Lord' me," Raziel groused, glaring at Tantallon for a brief moment before returning his sullen gaze to the floor. "You know I hate it when you do that."

"You certainly do seem to attract aggressive women," Tantallon observed.

"Lorrelin has never been attracted to me that way, you know that." Raziel countered, knowing exactly who he was referring to. "Though to tell you the truth I've never known her to show that sort of interest in anyone at all. She's married to her work, more or less, and frankly, so much the better. But Amalia is... willful, yes," Raziel sighed.

"I hope she's willing to learn some manners, then. Keeping your love a secret will require subtlety, and she does not appear to be capable of such."

"She will learn, Tantallon. She's not stupid. I've already made her aware that her survival depends on it, and that any harm coming to her means that harm will come to me for failing to protect her. Spirited though she is, she'll play the part." 

Tantallon stared at the floor a moment, guilt creeping up on him now that he'd recovered from his initial shock and settled down. "I must apologize for my own willful attitude, Sire. I should have handled the news with more gra-"

Raziel cut him off with a wave of his hand. "Forget it, Tantallon. I ought to be the one apologizing; I know it's difficult for you to wrap your mind around. The second most powerful vampire in Nosgoth, marrying a human. I can still scarcely believe it myself. Apparently my temper isn't the only thing that leads me to rash decisions."

"And all this out of absolutely nowhere, after never having shown the slightest bit of interest in marrying at all." Tantallon pointed out. "Even if you had been allowed to turn her, I shudder to think how this would go over with those who would think themselves more deserving of her place by your side."

"They would fall in line or die. It's as simple as that. I'll not suffer any defiance and anyone who attempts to harm her will die screaming." 

Tantallon gave him a wry look. "Please. I've watched you suffer nothing but defiance from her since I got here, but oddly enough I almost feel as if she's earned the right at this point, the little monster," he said. "I'm not sure I've ever seen a human straddle the line between fearlessness and stupidity as skillfully as she does."

"She is not like any human I've ever known," he replied. "She really isn't from this world, and the world she is from is advanced far beyond anything I'd ever have expected out of them; far beyond what we ourselves have achieved. She's completely unaccustomed to being surrounded by predators; there are no vampires where she's from. Her intelligence, like Lorrelin's, rivals our own. I'll not go as far as to say she's our equal, Tantallon, but she's damn close. The closest any human has ever been." he said imploringly. "If you'll just give her a chance..."

"I simply can't fathom why Lord Kain would forbid you to turn her after all this."

"Nor can I, but I wasn't about to question him."

"Perhaps he feared what calamity might befall the world if she were given physical weapons and immortality in addition to her verbal arsenal and contempt for her own safety," Tantallon mused.

"It matters little. She obviously doesn't want to become one of us, and I'll not betray her trust any more than I'd betray the Master's."

They sat in silence for a moment, and then Tantallon sighed. "Fine. A chance, then, but only out of sheer morbid curiosity as to how this ridiculous drama will play out. Shall we go see if she's decided to let herself down off the balcony?"

"No... she's obviously angry with me, and I cannot bear it. I shouldn't have snapped at her the way I did."

Tantallon regarded him with pity. "Boy, you've really got it bad, haven't you?" 

"Tell me about it," Raziel sighed, dropping his head into his hands. "Lorrelin will probably return soon, at least. Perhaps she'll bring some food I can ply her with, although I'm not sure we'll have anything like what she's used to."

"You're not so besotted as to attempt to join her for meals, I hope?"

"She doesn't expect me to; she knows what will happen if I do. I've already told her all about that little adventure," Raziel replied, narrowing his eyes. "Which, I'd like to remind you, was your idea."

That stopped Tantallon short. "You actually admitted to that foolishness?" he asked, incredulous. "Who are you?"

"Oh, spare me, will you?" Raziel responded, crossing his arms and falling into a sulk. 

Chapter Text

Raziel turned out to be correct; Lorrelin returned within the hour. She breezed right past him and Tantallon with nary a word, making a beeline for the hallway that led to the two spare rooms in his home. One of them was mostly full of racks and dummies where he kept his armor and weapons, as well as a locked cupboard containing his most powerful and dangerous splash potions, ready to be taken into battle and hurled at his foes. His clan's alchemical skills were renowned far and wide; it had been well known among their human enemies that any vampire they met in battle who was likely to be carrying them should be targeted first and with extreme prejudice. Raziel had spent decades refining the formulas, concentrating them to make them strong enough to wreak havoc with little more than a few drops in a small, easily concealed glass vial without causing them to become so unstable as to explode at the slightest jostle. This meant that any vampire could carry several at a time, and the humans would have no way of knowing who had them.

The cupboard wasn't just for offensive concoctions, of course; the shelves also held ingredients and reagents used to create elixirs that would heal even the worst injuries, pre-measured and easy to transport in large quantities to be mixed up quickly by medics in field hospitals. These potions were used to rapidly heal wounds that would normally result in complete incapacitation without requiring the injured vampire to seek out and drink blood, which in a heated battle was often the difference between life and death.

Of course, now that humanity had largely been conquered, the room mostly sat unused with everything inside collecting dust. Raziel rarely even opened the door these days; the sight of it all was an unsettling reminder of the gigantic question mark that had replaced the sense of purpose he'd once felt now that the excitement and thrill of war had vanished and been replaced with little else but free time and a dwindling list of fulfilling ways to occupy himself. Perhaps that was why he was so eager to seek out new curiosities and experiences. Eternity, after all, is a very long time, and the looming threat of becoming bored with life genuinely frightened him. Amalia was a breath of fresh air in all of it despite the complications their whirlwind romance had brought, and the distraction from these concerns was most welcome.

The second room was little more than a facsimile of the parlor, only much cozier and with a small wood-burning stove in one corner rather than a hearth. A large plush sofa sat near it, surprisingly old and a bit shabby looking considering Raziel's usual tastes but comfortable and inviting nonetheless. As the use of his armory had declined, this room had steadily gotten more and more attention, and during times when he and Tantallon were both free they could often be found here, curled up comfortably on the couch together sharing a bottle of wine and reading books. This was the room that Lorrelin had gone into, and she stood surveying it with hands on hips when Raziel and Tantallon came to ask what she was up to. 

"What I want to do, my Lord," she began, "Is bring in a bathtub for her so that I don't have to take her down to the common ones the rest of us use every day. There's space enough to put a small one in the corner here," she said, pointing to the spot in question. "The issue, of course, is plumbing; or rather the lack thereof up here."

Tantallon shrugged. "Seems a small thing to install pipes to divert from the boiler and a drain that leads outside, does it not?"

Raziel shook his head. "Wouldn't be difficult, but would attract attention. Everyone will know that the water being supplied obviously isn't for me, and a private bath for a human pet is going to raise eyebrows. I'm not sure this is something we can get away with, Lorrelin; we're trying to convince everyone that I don't dote on her. Even if we did manage to set one up in secret, the servants will talk when they realize they never see her brought down to bathe."

Lorrelin sighed. "I suppose you're probably right," she huffed. "I just wish she could be given the indulgences that her status as your bride ought to afford her."

"So do I, but there's nothing to be done for it; her safety is far more important." said Raziel, pausing to think a moment. "However, perhaps she can be given special privileges under the guise of it being a reward for good behavior. Allow her a bit of privacy, perhaps, and some time to soak."

Lorrelin rolled her eyes. "That would breed resentment among the other humans were it not already standard procedure. We do have some leisure time most days, you know. I make sure of it when I work out the scheduling for each shift."

"Problem solved, then," he shrugged. "She does need her own space, however... she'll probably spend more time in the library than in here, but she's going to have to put any belongings she ends up with somewhere, and this room is the only one that will suffice. What changes do you think we should make to accommodate her?"

"Well, that really depends on personal taste," replied Lorrelin. "Perhaps as she remembers more of her previous life she can make her own requests. I would suggest a small wardrobe to start with, since I highly doubt there's room left in any of yours. It isn't like having another one of those brought up here would surprise anyone."

"Oh, hush," he groused, waving a hand at her. "The artwork here could be replaced with something more to her liking. We could repaint the walls, even, if she prefers."

"All in good time, I suppose," she said, already making her way out of the room. "I'll go and get her measured for her new clothing, then."

Raziel and Tantallon exchanged glances, and Lorrelin immediately knew something was up. "What have you done?" she sighed, pausing at the door.

"We haven't done anything!" Raziel huffed. Lorrelin only rolled her eyes and walked out of the room, and the three of them made their way to Raziel's bedchamber.

"What's he done to you, love?" she asked, entering the room without even knocking while the two vampires hovered outside the door, unsure of whether Lorrelin would help the situation or make it worse (but expecting the latter). Surprised, Amalia sat up in bed, pulling the sheet up to cover herself and tucking it under her arms.

"What? Nothing, they were just arguing and it was getting annoying, so I told them to fuck off somewhere else until they were done."

Lorrelin cackled as she approached the bed. "Hah! Oh, I like your style, dear!" she cried. "What were they arguing about?"

"Tantallon didn't handle the news about me very well... but to be fair, I really didn't help the situation any. I... have a bad habit of running my mouth."

"Oh, never you mind, now," Lorrelin replied with a wave of her hand. "Tantallon's over it and they're quite used to that sort of behavior anyways thanks to me," she stated proudly. "If I can get away with it as a servant, you can certainly get away with it as his bride."

Raziel walked into the room with a huff, not wanting to allow her to encourage Amalia's irreverence any further. "Get her measured, Lorrelin, and leave us in peace."

"Out of the room, please, Master Tantallon," Lorrelin called to him where he was still standing in the doorway. "I'm not going to make her get dressed just so you can stay here."

"It's fine, Lorrelin, he can stay as long as they're done bickering. I can put Raziel's robe on for a minute."

Lorrelin sighed as she pulled a measuring tape out of her apron pocket. "As you wish, my lady. I do nonetheless hope that he'll refrain from gawking, however," she said, shooting Tantallon a look as Raziel removed the robe and slunk past her back to his side of the bed, handing it off on the way.

"Mind your tongue, Lorrelin," Tantallon warned. "Concern yourself less with where my eyes land and more with doing your job."

Lorrelin was well aware that Tantallon had considerably less patience with her than Raziel did, and she knew from experience that if he decided to physically chastise her for her misbehavior that Raziel would not intervene so long as he didn't permanently injure her. Though she sniffed haughtily and tried to position herself so that she blocked his view as Amalia donned the robe, she wisely shut her mouth and set about her task. "What's your favorite color, love?" she asked.

"Blue," Amalia responded. "Light blue, I mean. The color of the sky." 

"Well then, my dear, I'll reach out to our clothmakers and see who can come up with the finest fabric and best designs. We'll have a set of clothes ready for you before long," Lorrelin said, folding the measuring tape back up. "I'll head down to the kitchens first, however. Your stomach's been growling this entire time." 

Amalia glanced over at Raziel, who was now sitting on the edge of the bed, wilting a little under his gaze even though he looked as remorseful as she did. "Wasn't my finest moment, earlier," she said by way of apology. "Probably could have handled it better."

Immensely relieved that she was no longer angry with him, Raziel lifted the covers and slid his legs under them, shuffling sideways to reach for her. "Nor was it mine, my love... frankly, you're not the only one here prone to fits of temper," he said, brushing his talon across her cheek in much the same way she had when she'd pierced the armor surrounding his heart. She took the time to carefully wriggle out of the robe, keeping the sheet above her chest as she tossed it over Raziel to the floor.

"Well, if you're already getting naked again then I can only assume you've forgiven me as well," said Tantallon with a smirk. He took the liberty of stretching out on Raziel's bed right next to the both of them, though he stayed on top of the covers. 

"Don't read too much into it, pal," she groused, shuffling closer to Raziel. "I don't think I can handle having both of you pawing at me all the time." 

Tantallon shook his head in amazement, but chose not to take offense this time. "You really must be from elsewhere," he muttered. "With the way you talk you wouldn't have survived to adulthood had you been born here."

Raziel allowed her to snuggle into his side, feeling quite a bit better now that the tension had dispersed and Amalia had warmed to him again. "You needn't worry, Tantallon has an entire harem at his disposal when he's in a 'pawing' sort of mood if you're not interested. He's quite popular with the ladies. He'd be popular with the men as well, were he interested in their company. A pity for them that he isn't, hmm?"

"Mmm, I dunno... he's pretty, but thus far just as big a pain in the ass as you are," she smirked, glancing backward at Tantallon, who rolled his eyes.

"Consider it fortunate that you amuse me, you little savage."

The three of them fell into comfortable conversation, interrupted only by Lorrelin's delivery of Amalia's dinner, complete with a small chalice of wine and even a bowl of grapes to snack on later. With her belly full and her head buzzing pleasantly with alcohol, she began to drift toward sleep between the two of them as they continued to talk, relishing the way Raziel's talons continuously carded through her hair. She soon nodded off, his contented purrs rumbling in her ears.

When Amalia awoke a few hours after dawn, she found that Tantallon had fallen asleep alongside them, and immediately realized that Raziel wasn't in bed behind her. She sat up to peer around the room, noticing that his robe was hanging on the chair at his vanity, but his clothing was no longer on the floor. 

"He'll be back, Amalia," Tantallon murmured after a wide yawn. "He said he had some work to do; he's probably in the library or his lab."

"Aren't you cold, Tantallon?" Amalia asked. "I can put something on so you can get under the covers."

He opened one eye, surprised at the kind offer after their somewhat tumultuous introduction. "I'm fine; it's quite comfortable in here, and I'm still dressed. Go back to sleep, little human. Your husband will return soon enough," he said, shutting it once more and rolling onto his side facing away from her.

Amalia huffed a sleepy laugh. "Husband... You know, where I'm from there's supposed to be an actual wedding first."

"Ah, yes, of course," Tantallon replied with a smirk. "How could we overlook the wedding? We'll have a grand ceremony just the way you humans like to do; invite half the kingdom. Raziel's brethren can sit in the front row. I'll bet their gifts will be simply to die for."

"I see what you did there, smartass," she said with a roll of her eyes, earning herself a glare from over his shoulder. "I know why there isn't going to be one. I just... I don't know, we've only just met, and I don't even know where I came from. It's odd to think of myself as married."

Tantallon rolled back the other way to face her. "It's not the only reason; wedding ceremonies simply aren't done in our society. A spoken agreement and the decision to live together is enough. Trust me, if a bunch of lavish pageantry were customary Raziel would be a lot more upset about foregoing it; he loves that sort of thing. But your love is mutual, is it not?"

"Well, yeah," she replied. "But where I'm from, people usually wait for quite some time after falling in love before getting engaged, and then usually another year or two before actually marrying."

"And how often do people where you're from get swept off their feet by a prince the way you have?"

"Is he a prince?" she asked. She supposed he was, now that she was actually thinking of it, but it hadn't occurred to her before now.

"More or less. As Kain's firstborn, he's next in the line of succession and is stronger and more powerful than any of his brothers," Tantallon said, with a hint of pride in his voice. "He's got five; two of them hate him with everything they have and the other three are resentful even if not outwardly spiteful. That is why you must be kept so secret. No lesser vampire would care one bit if Lord Raziel had a human pet that he doted on, but if Turel or Zephon found out... And that's to say nothing of if they knew the truth of your relationship."

Amalia hummed. "Makes sense, I guess. He doesn't mind you being here in bed with me?"

Tantallon shook his head. "Not at all. He'd allow me to bed you provided you were actually willing," he replied, waving his hand dismissively when her eyes widened. "You can relax, I'm well aware that you're not; and no offense, but neither am I. My point is, he and I are very close. Most firstborn fledglings have the privilege of a close bond with their sire. Now, if he caught anyone else in here, he'd have his fangs at their throat before they even knew what was happening. No one would be so foolish as to even enter his home without permission, unless they had a death wish."

"You don't live here with him?" she asked. 

"No, I have my own residence within the stronghold. Quite a bit larger than his, actually. I need the space to accommodate my harem," he replied. "I keep six."

"Good god, six?" she exclaimed. "How do you find the time?"

Tantallon laughed. "By strategically choosing women who are independent and fairly solitary. That's why my own home is so large. They get along well, but they all need their own space and lots of time to themselves." he shrugged. 

"Okay, but even so... how do you keep six women... satisfied?," she asked.

"Frequent bedding, of course, though they also find plenty of sport with one another when the mood takes them." 

Amalia had to laugh. "Wow. That's actually kind of impressive."

Tantallon preened. "I do have my talents, yes. He taught me well, though his libido is far more opportunistic than my own. He doesn't get restless the way most do when they go without for a long time; he's always seemed perfectly content to occupy himself otherwise until someone he fancies practically crawls into his lap."

She cocked an eyebrow at him. "What do you mean, 'he taught you well'? Were the two of you...?"

He shook his head. "No, nothing like that. I've no preference for men myself, and even his own preferences skew heavily toward women. He simply taught me the art of seduction, is all. I was still a virgin when he turned me. Fortunately, I'm a fast learner," he said haughtily, pretending to idly examine his claws.

Amalia snorted. "Man, you guys are wild. How old were you when he turned you, anyway? You look a lot younger than him."

"I was barely a fortnight into my twentieth year, so quite young, yes."

Amalia had wanted to press him for details on Raziel's past relationship with Kain, but now she was curious about how he and Tantallon had found one another. "He told me about the whole food prank you pulled on his brothers, but didn't say how you met."

Tantallon grinned. "Ah, so he told you the entire story, did he? I suppose I should have expected as much; it was centuries ago and we're both still smug about it," he laughed. "As for how we met... it's not a pleasant story, I'm sorry to say. There was a murderer in a village that neighbored mine; the son of a rich man with a twisted, sadistic mind. Everyone there knew of his... hobby. And everyone looked the other way, because his father was rich and he wasn't killing among them, he was killing among us. I lived with my family on a farm outside of town at the time. The bastard poisoned our well, and my parents fell ill and died along with all our animals. My twin sister Lenore and I were barely hanging on when Raziel and his brother Rahab happened by. When they saw the dead animals strewn about the property they grew curious and left off hunting. Found the two of us dying on the kitchen floor, the pitcher of poisoned water still sitting on the table where we'd shared it after coming in from watering the animals that evening."

"Holy shit," Amalia breathed. "So he turned you both to save you?"

Tantallon shook his head, looking pained for a moment. "No, only me. Lenore became Rahab's firstborn... but I'd rather not speak of it any more, to tell you the truth. You can rest assured that the murderer and all those who enabled him paid for their crimes the night after I woke from my first state of change armed with fangs and claws, and that's that."

Amalia was still curious, but wasn't about to press Tantallon to elaborate on what was obviously a painful memory. Perhaps she'd get the end of the tale from Raziel later on.

"Raziel said Kain brought you here as a gift," Tantallon commented.

"More or less," Amalia answered, wanting to steer the conversation away from her time with Kain. "I'm happier with Raziel. Kain talks too much shit."

This made him laugh out loud. "Boy, that's rich coming from you. You're worse than Lorrelin, and that's really saying something. Perhaps that's why he opted to make you Raziel's problem rather than keep you for himself."

Amalia shrugged, grinning. "Probably." They continued to converse until Raziel quietly opened the door some time later. He was surprised to find them awake. 

"Well, look at you two, friends already," he said with a smirk. "I've mixed up something for you to wash your hair with while you bathe tonight, cyar'ika. Lorrellin will take you down to the baths later."

Amalia narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Do I get to wash myself this time?" 

Raziel laughed. "Yes, Amalia. You'll be allowed plenty of time to soak as well."

"And a servant isn't going to physically attack me afterward when I refuse to be dressed in ridiculous lingerie?"

"You were attacked?" Tantallon asked, intrigued.

Amalia huffed. "Yeah. She got the wrong idea about why Kain was having me bathed and sent to his rooms, apparently. Came at me with a wooden dowel when I told her where she could shove her stupid outfit. I bit her good for it, too."

Tantallon's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You... bit her?"

Amalia crossed her arms over her chest. "I tore her fucking arm open," she said darkly, causing Tantallon to burst into laughter. "And I regret nothing."

She hadn't mentioned that part earlier, and Raziel immediately swelled with pride. "Why, you little barbarian," he said, practically beaming as he stroked her hair. "Well, you'll be pleased to hear that while I can appreciate the aesthetics of lingerie, I find that its impracticality outweighs its beauty. I'd personally rather you just go naked. It makes things easier."

Amalia reached for him as he slid between the sheets, and she was quickly pulled into his embrace. "Have you remembered anything else, darling?" he asked. Tantallon perked up at this. "Yes, tell me about this strange place you come from before we go back to sleep."

"It's mundane, from what I do remember. Only humans and animals. No vampires, no monsters, no magic. Nothing supernatural at all."

"Billions of humans, Tantallon," Raziel remarked. "Try and wrap your mind around that."

"Billions?!" Tantallon cried. "Why, that's... it's mind-boggling! It sounds to me like you could use some vampires and monsters to thin your ranks."

"Indeed," Raziel responded with a shudder. "With the industry that must exist to sustain such a huge population with such advanced technology, I can only imagine the state of the natural environment. We have a hard enough time managing the waste and byproducts of our own society along with our human herds, and we're nowhere near so numerous. And we have magic."

"You couldn't imagine it if you tried," she said, shaking her head. "You don't have any concept of all the different ways we've come up with to ruin it. It's bad, and only getting worse," she sighed. "I think maybe I'm better off here in the long run." 

"Show Tantallon the city," Raziel said. "Tantallon, look into her mind."

Amalia imagined the Chicago skyline again, as clear as she could. This time, however, she could also remember what the skyscrapers looked like close-up, standing at street level beneath them. She then imagined a map of the area, impressing upon them that the city was actually built next to an unfathomably large lake rather than the ocean, despite what her memories of the shoreline appeared to show. Tantallon sat straight up. "How is this possible?!"

"The humans of her world clearly possess far more ingenuity than ours do," Raziel said. 

"Or," Amalia countered with a roll of her eyes, "Without a race of apex predators oppressing our entire population, we're able to achieve things we wouldn't be able to otherwise. Where I'm from, we're the apex predators."

"That is why your numbers are so out of control, though. You'll be the authors of your own demise, eventually. It sounds like you're hard at work to that end already," said Tantallon. Amalia couldn't argue with that. 

"You spoke of weapons, Amalia. Devastating weapons which require no magic. What are they?" Raziel asked. 

"Terrible things," she replied, showing them her memories of things she had seen on television over the years, such as a gatling gun, submarines firing underwater missiles at a warship, and an airstrike by a bomber type aircraft. "Those bombs they're dropping," she said, "They can be regular bombs; just explosives, usually packed with shrapnel of some sort. But they can also be made into what we call weapons of mass destruction."

The looks Raziel and Tantallon were exchanging grew more horrified with every memory she showed them. "What could possibly cause more massive destruction than explosives dropped from... Wait, you've figured out how to make machines of that size fly? Over great distances?" Raziel asked, incredulous. "How is this not sorcery?"

"I swear, it isn't!" she exclaimed. "Just an understanding of physics, applied to making a machine that takes advantage of the air to defy gravity. You guys could do the exact same thing, given enough time to research the technology. But as to your first question, the answer is once again an understanding of physics that you just haven't gained yet. I can't explain the exact mechanics without explaining a whole lot of other stuff that frankly I don't even fully understand, but they can make bombs that can level entire cities. The fallout poisons everything. There's no cure for the damage it causes. If you're exposed to enough of it, your body will start falling apart from the inside and you'll die the worst death imaginable. All the major nations know how to make them by now. We've all got them set up and aimed at one another, but everyone knows that if one nation fires them, everyone is going to. We could more or less doom our entire population within a day."

"Clearly, in the absence of magic, the humans of this world have instead been forced to turn to technology to accomplish their goals," Tantallon said, still looking disturbed.

Raziel hugged Amalia closer. "I thought perhaps I'd like to visit this place, if we could find out how to safely bridge our worlds. Now I'm not so sure even the music would be worth it." 

"There must be some redeeming qualities, Amalia?" Tantallon asked. 

"Oh, for sure," she replied. "We've invented terrible things, but we've also made amazing things, and the environment isn't completely destroyed. There are plenty of natural places left." She brought up memories of Mount Rushmore, of riding a rollercoaster at a theme park she couldn't remember the name of, of an aquarium with a tank so large you could walk through a tunnel within it and be surrounded on all sides by aquatic life. She thought of the Grand Canyon, the Redwood forests of California, and the different mountain ranges throughout the United States. "Those places are all within one single nation; the one I'm from. The rest of the world has its own wonders," she said. "We've also produced great works of art and literature, and then there's the music that Raziel mentioned." 

"Give us some, Amalia," Raziel urged. "You can teach Tantallon the songs he likes; he's as good a singer as you are."

Tantallon had warmed to Amalia completely by now, and his face lit up. "Yes, give us a good one. Your favorite, perhaps."

"I don't even remember what my favorite was," Amalia laughed. "And honestly, you're really not getting the full experience here; the memories I do have are hardly perfect. I wish you could hear it for real."

"Just do your best, darling. Even if some detail is lost it's still something new to us," Raziel urged, eager for more of what he'd already heard.

Amalia couldn't deny them their wishes, and as she watched their expressions shift as their minds were repeatedly blown by her music and memories, she was certain she'd never get tired of it. It was well past midday by time they finally went back to sleep.

Chapter Text

Shortly after dusk, Lorrelin stole into Raziel's bedchamber to wake Amalia for her bath. Both vampires were roused as she tried to slip out from between them unnoticed. Tantallon decided that it was probably best for him to get home, but Raziel wanted to watch her bathe even if he couldn't join her in the water. 

"You'll frighten the absolute daylights out of the entire staff!" Lorrelin cried in protest when he informed her of his intention.

"Tough. I want to make sure her accommodations are sufficient," he said.

Lorrelin grit her teeth in irritation, knowing that there was no deterring him. "Horse shit," she snapped, tossing Amalia a plain gown she'd brought up for her to wear around until her own clothes arrived. "You're interested in nothing more than the spectacle of watching her bathe and we both know it. Come on, then!"

Raziel had never bothered to visit the servant's quarters, aside from an initial inspection after the fortress was built. He took the time to remind Amalia of the rules of conduct she needed to follow whenever strangers were around and handed her the small bottle of shampoo he'd concocted for her before they left. Lorrelin led them down the hall to an obscure, out of the way staircase which wound its way down to a set of plain wooden doors, which she promptly flung open. The room they entered was spacious and surprisingly welcoming. A hearth with a roaring fire sat along one wall, and chairs, benches, and tables were scattered throughout. Some of the off-duty servants were eating, and a few were in the middle of playing a board game. They all tensed when they saw Lorrelin and Amalia walk in only to outright blanch when Raziel followed them.

"What are you lot gawking at? Eyes down before I have you all on chamber pot duty for the rest of the week!" Lorrelin snapped, and they all immediately dropped their gaze. Amalia didn't particularly like the way she addressed them, but kept it to herself for now. They followed her to a hallway lined with single wooden doors. "The dormitories," she explained as they passed them. "Well, the women's dormitories, anyway. The baths are through that door at the end. The men have their own on the other side."

The tubs here were similar to the ones in the Sanctuary, though partitions had been built in between them and curtains installed to allow for a bit of privacy. "Where did the walls come from?" Raziel asked, bewildered. 

"I had them built the moment you promoted me," she responded. "Little things like that add up when it comes to morale, and good morale leads to good performance."

"Just took it upon yourself, then, did you?" he asked, shooting her a glare.

Lorrelin glared right back, and Amalia could tell she was barely containing an outburst. "This is my domain," she hissed, keeping her voice down so as not to show open disrespect in front of the others. "I run it as I see fit, and you've never had cause to complain, so don't start now."

Raziel huffed, but knew he had no real reason to reprimand her. Only the tubs nearest to the door were occupied, and those who occupied them quickly found their towels and slunk out the door when they saw who'd come to call, with the bath attendant remaining behind just long enough to open the drains. "Second shift will be leaving work in two hours, but the baths will likely remain otherwise unoccupied as long as you're hanging around in here," she informed Raziel with a scowl.

"I don't need that long of a bath," Amalia quickly interjected. "I don't want anyone to be disturbed or thrown off schedule."

"Well it's a bit late for that, dear," Lorrelin groused as she retrieved a bucket, washcloth, and towel from where they were stacked on nearby shelves. "Come on, let's find a tub with water cool enough for you to get in. The attendant drains the tubs and refills them once they're no longer in use, but the water from the boiler is far too hot to withstand right out of the tap. This one here will do, I think," she said, dipping her hand into the water to test it.

Amalia shed her gown and climbed into the tub, shuddering in delight as she lowered herself into the water. Raziel watched her closely. "Is it to your liking, darling?"

She sighed happily, leaning on the side of the tub with her arms folded and nodding her head before resting it upon them. "Mmmhmm. I don't know whether it's all the travelling I did with Kain or all the sex I had with you, but I'm actually pretty sore. This feels fantastic." 

Lorrelin snorted. "Probably a combination of both. I do hope my Lord was gentle the first time around at least," she said.

Raziel bristled. "Of course I was, Lorrelin, what sort of beast do you take me for?"

"The kind that lives off of human blood?" she replied without missing a beat.

Raziel waved his hand at her. "Oh, shut up. I treated her with care, and will continue to operate within her limits."

Amalia was hardly listening, she was so wrapped up in how wonderful the bath felt. "I won't take too long, but I would like to soak a little before I wash."

"That's quite alright, love," Lorrelin replied. "The bucket and cloth are here when you're ready, and I'll leave the towel within reach. Once you've dried off, you can put the gown back on until this one here inevitably pins you to the nearest horizontal surface again." This made Amalia laugh, luckily for Lorrelin. Raziel was finally beginning to lose patience with her.

"Go find something else to do, Lorrelin, and give your mouth a rest for once. Now." 

Once his chamberlain had flounced out of the room to go and address the rest of the servant population about the reason for Raziel's visit and inform them of the strict rules of engagement concerning Amalia, he glanced around to ensure they were alone and before walking over to sit on the floor next to the tub. "Mind your splashing, cyar'ika. Vampires and water don't mix, otherwise I'd be in there with you." He reached over to brush her hair, which was only wet at the ends at this point, behind her ear. "I didn't treat you too roughly this last time, did I?" he asked, sounding as if Lorrelin's jabs had unsettled him.

Her eyes popped open and met his. "No, not at all. I wasn't a virgin to begin with anyway; although I still can't recall a single detail of any of my experiences. I just know it's happened before."

Raziel shrugged. "I honestly didn't expect it hadn't, I just wanted to err on the side of caution the first time. You must be at least twenty years of age by now. Rare to see someone make it to their twentieth year unbedded." 

"Not too unusual where I'm from, but I'm twenty-four," she replied. 

"And have you loved anyone before?" he asked, curious about what else she may have remembered.

"I have. More than once, I think, from what little I can remember. None of it lasted. And honestly..." she trailed off, drawing in a deep breath. "As much as I'm sure it hurt then, at this point it's for the best. I had the sudden awful realization earlier that I might have already had a boyfriend or husband back home who'd be frantic by now not knowing what happened to me, and here I am happily in love and married to someone else, having completely forgotten him. It makes me want to cry, imagining myself in that position. It's bad enough that my family will never see me again, and will never know what happened. I still can't even remember their names or faces, or what our relationships were like," she said. "I sort of just hope I never do, as selfish as that is."

"It's okay to be selfish sometimes, darling. Whatever happened to bring you to us, it wasn't your fault. You mustn't fret over these things; none of it can be changed... and you have a family here now."

"I know," she whispered, reaching for the washcloth that Lorrelin had draped over the side of the tub. "Oh, I almost forgot you made me shampoo," she said, leaning over the side of the tub to grab the bottle. "It smells good," she stated upon pulling the stopper out and handing it to him. "Why do you know how to make this if you can't touch water?"

"Simple cleansing mixtures are one of the first thing any aspiring alchemist learns to make, since it's a good way to become familiar with the basic equipment without having to get into the use of actual magic so early on. I'm quite skilled and well practiced in both the magical and alchemical arts, so I simply used the cleanser as a base and added a few flourishes," he informed Amalia as she wet her hair and poured some of the bottle's contents into her palm. 

"It's a pretty color, too," she observed. "All purple and shimmery. Will it make my hair purple and shimmery?" she teased as she began to work it into her hair.

"No, darling, it won't," he laughed. "I could make something that would, but didn't think you'd appreciate such an effect. I certainly wouldn't; I like your hair as it is."

Raziel very much enjoyed watching Amalia wash herself, though it was torturous for him to only be able to look and not touch. Realizing this, she put on quite a performance. By the time she rinsed off and stepped out of the tub he was half hard, and the sight of the water dripping off her glistening skin in the torchlight finished the job. Raziel lifted his hand and uttered a strange word, and she froze, eyes wide, as her hair suddenly went *poof*, standing out straight to its ends for an instant and falling back down dry.

"Could have warned me," she groused.

Raziel snorted with laughter. "And miss out on the delightful face you just made? No, I think not," he said, still chuckling. "Come along, then."

Amalia huffily donned the gown and he quickly bustled her straight back up to his quarters.

"I suppose Lorrelin had a point. I might as well just take the gown right back off," she said once they were through the doors, glancing down at the obvious tent in his pants.

He promptly began to undo the laces so that he could free his cock. "Yes indeed," he replied. "Come here." She only smirked at him and took a step backward in direct defiance of his command. "Amalia," he warned, eyes narrowed. She bit her lip with a grin... and then turned to run. Oh, she wants to be pursued, does she? he thought. Well then. Let the chase begin.

'The chase' did not last very long. Raziel caught her before she even made across the parlor. He swept her up in his arms and threw her over his shoulder as she squealed and laughed, giving her a hefty swat on the ass as he hauled her up to his bedchamber, eliciting a yelp. "Deliberate disobedience," he said, clucking his tongue and shaking his head. "We'll just have to do something about that, now won't we?"

"You just swatted my ass! That is something," she laughed.

 "Oh no, little human. You're not the one who gets to decide when you've been properly chastised," he replied, chuckling darkly. "That privilege falls to me."

***

Raziel tossed her face down onto his bed once they'd reached it, quickly grabbing her around the hips and positioning her so that she was bent over the edge. Holding her in place with his hand at the small of her back, he reached into the space between his bed and the bedside table... and produced the aforementioned cane.

When he met her eyes, they were full of fear. "Raz," she whispered, "I was only playing..." 

"Shh," he soothed, leaning down over her to kiss the top of her head. "I think you'll find that this will be more pleasure than pain." He felt her relax under his touch as she realized that she wasn't in any actual trouble. His erection had diminished somewhat on the trip back up from the baths, but even having the cane in his hand was enough to produce a Pavlovian response; he was hard as a rock again by time he even finished the sentence. He lifted her gown and gently trailed the tip of the cane up the back of one thigh, stopping at the curve of her ass. He was delighted to see her entire body reflexively tense when she felt him lift the cane away. 

"Ahh," he grinned, recognizing her own trained response. "You've done this before, I believe. Your body seems to be reminding you of experiences that your mind cannot recall." He tapped her lightly with the cane, just hard enough to sting, and she jolted with a gasp. This development was exciting. Raziel had always been inclined toward dominance in bed. Indeed, the only partner he'd ever taken a submissive role with was Kain, and that was because Kain allowed nothing else. Once he started taking other lovers, he quickly found that he preferred to be in charge. He had wanted to gradually introduce his new love to these practices, hoping fervently that she would enjoy submitting to pain as much as he enjoyed applying it. 

Just as he was about to give her another taste, it suddenly occurred to him that it was possible that she had learned this response from being punished harshly against her will, and wouldn't be able to remember enough to tell him as much. He winced, eyeing her warily, ready to make the cane disappear and calm her at the slightest hint of panic or distress. If she'd been abused with one in the past he would ensure that she never even saw it again, no matter how much it would disappoint him to do so. When she didn't respond negatively, he cautiously continued.

"Amalia," he began. "Are you at all familiar with the concept of a safe word?"

Her brow furrowed, and then he saw understanding dawn in her eyes as that particular phrase unlocked the relevant part of her brain. She nodded with a gulp, confirming that her prior experiences had indeed been for sexual pleasure, and he sighed with relief. "Traffic light system," she said. 

Raziel knew by now that if she was speaking of a concept foreign to him, all he need do is lean into her mind, and she'd likely already be picturing it for him to see. This time was no different. He received an image of an intersection in a roadway, with strange lamps suspended above. He watched as the bottom light within each lamp, which was green, went out just as the middle light flashed yellow. The cars approaching the intersection on both sides slowed to a stop just as the yellow light went dark and the red light at the top came to life, and the lights above the intersecting road went from red to green, prompting the cars that were waiting there to proceed. So that was how they handled the logistics of having so many automobiles going so many places.

"Remarkable," he whispered, having almost forgotten what they were even doing. Amalia's voice brought him back to reality. "Green means I'm fine, yellow means I'm nearing my limit, so you should probably ease off. Red means we need to stop immediately and undo any restraints, because I can't continue and don't want to do it anymore," she said.

Raziel hummed thoughtfully, stowing away for later her mention of restraints. It was a good system, better than only employing just one word that meant stop. This way he could easily ask her while they got up to their mischief how she was doing, and adjust his actions accordingly. He kicked himself for not having come up with such an approach on his own by now, though truth be told, he'd only done this sort of thing with other vampires thus far, and vampires could take a lot of pain before ever tapping out. Agreeing on a safe word was more often than not done as an afterthought prior to engaging since they were so rarely used.

"You're feeling 'green', then, I take it?"

"Yellow," she replied, her voice shaky. "I remember some details about this kind of thing, and I know I must have done it before, but I still can't remember my own experiences. I have no idea what I can handle."

"Alright, my love," he said, gently stroking the cane up and down her back. "We will proceed with caution. I may enjoy hurting you in this regard, Amalia, but I do not want to harm you." Just to reassure himself, he laid the cane on the bed momentarily and slid his talons between her legs, causing her breath to catch in her throat. When he examined them, they glistened with her arousal. His face lit up with a wolfish grin.

Once he had repositioned his hand across her lower back to hold her in place, he once again tapped her with the cane. This time, she moaned softly, and though she shied away from the pain for a second, she quickly relaxed and held still, awaiting the next stroke. "Good girl," he purred, issuing another tap, this one a bit harder. "Your skin reddens beautifully, my love," he informed her, watching the faint welts appear across her ass. 

She took several more strokes before finally beginning to falter, looking over her shoulder at him with a pleading look in her eyes. He recognized that she was nearing her limit without having to even ask. "Can you take one more for me, cyar'ika?" he asked, brushing her hair out of her eyes, and she took a deep breath and nodded with a soft whimper. "Of course you can, darling," he encouraged, rumbling with a delighted purr. "You were made for this, weren't you?" 

The praise seemed to please her as much as his soft touch did, and she laid her head down on the mattress, relaxing as best she could. She gasped sharply as the last stroke fell, fisting her hands in the bedding. Raziel promptly dropped the cane onto the floor and ran the tips of his claws up her spine, delighting in the way she squirmed pleasurably as her toes curled. She appeared as if she was beginning to fall under the spell of her own endorphins, and though Raziel had no concept of what caused the relaxed, dreamy state a submissive might enter during these games, he recognized its effects. She hummed softly as his claws reached the back of her neck, a sleepy smile gracing her face. 

***

"Turn over, cyar'ika," he said, swiftly moving to help her. Once he had her settled on her back, he dropped to the floor between her legs, hooking both hands underneath her knees to spread them. She jolted again with a loud moan the second she felt his tongue on her, and he could not stop the satisfied growl that erupted from his throat at the taste of her. She seemed to have lost her fear of the pointier parts of him by now, and eagerly submitted to his ministrations. Deciding that perhaps now was as good a time as any to introduce a bit of magic to their dalliances, he quickly muttered a word that temporarily blunted the deadly tips of his claws, enabling him to slide one of his talons into her and curl it upward without harming her. Her back arched as she came, and it was all he could do to hold her still so that he could draw her pleasure out as long as possible.

Once she stilled and quieted, Raziel gently withdrew his talon and crawled up from between her legs. "Are you all right?" he asked, watching as her eyes blinked open. "Wha...?" was the only response she could manage, and Raziel snickered softly. He gently caressed her cheek with the tip of a claw. "Perhaps I'd better just let you sleep," he said, unsure whether or not he could get a straight answer from her in her current state. 

She shook her head. "Noooo, what? You can't just... not," she mumbled. Raziel tried not to laugh, smugly proud that he had reduced her to a puddle of sexual bliss. "Please..." she begged, lifting her hand from where it had fallen next to her head and reaching for his face. 

"Alright, my love, alright. I won't deny you," he purred, as he reached down to guide himself where he needed to go. She sighed happily as he entered her, her fingers finding the back of his neck and once again tangling in his long hair. Keeping his movements slow, he dropped down onto his elbows to kiss her, making sure he didn't rest too much of his weight on her. She did not beg him to increase his pace or fuck her harder, and for once he was perfectly content not to do so. He remembered the depth of the emotions he felt when they took things slowly during their first coupling, and he reveled in them. She nuzzled her face into his jaw when they broke their kiss, and he turned his head to sigh into her ear. He eventually felt her legs slide upward over his thighs and pull him deeper inside her, eliciting a satisfied growl from him. 

The primal, animalistic sounds that his kind were capable of making seemed to arouse her quite a bit, he'd noticed. His growl was all she needed to begin to urge him on. Knowing that he wouldn't be able to find his release at the pace he'd been going at anyway, he propped himself back up on his arms and began to fuck her in earnest. It was not long before he found himself once again resisting the urge to sink his fangs into her as he emptied himself within her.

This time Amalia was boneless after he'd finished with her, utterly exhausted, appearing as if she'd be perfectly content to lie there on her back with her legs hanging off the edge of the bed for the rest of the night. Raziel hauled himself to his feet, scooped her up, and put her properly to bed. "Rest now," he told her. "I'm going to go and grab a book to read. Lorrelin will probably be here with something for you to eat soon enough."

To Raziel's surprise, it was Tantallon who appeared an hour later, knocking softly at the door and rousing Amalia from sleep. He was carrying a tray laden with a plate of food and two golden goblets, and Raziel raised an eyebrow at him. "Well, what's Lorrelin gotten herself into this time?" he asked, sitting up in bed and setting the book aside.

"One of the servant girls slipped on a step near the cellars and appears to have broken her ankle. It wasn't the girl's fault, really, someone had let the torches go out, and she needed to get downstairs," Tantallon replied, setting the tray down on the vanity as he took Raziel's robe off the back of the chair and tossed it to Amalia.

"Ah. She's seeing to the girl, then?" Raziel asked.

"For now. I'd hate to be whoever is in charge of the torches this shift when she catches up to them, though," he answered, eyeing the cane that was still lying on the floor. "I suspect whoever it is won't be enjoying the cane as much as you two apparently have been." Amalia, who had donned the robe and settled into the chair at the vanity to eat, turned and shot him a look. 

Raziel smirked as Tantallon handed him his own goblet. He was about to ask Amalia what she'd been given to eat, but thought better of it, realizing that it would only draw her attention to his own meal. He didn't want her to lose her appetite upon realizing that the red liquid he was drinking wasn't the same as what she had. "Your women weren't upset with you for tarrying so long with us, I hope?" 

Tantallon shook his head, leaning against the wall and folding his arms over his chest. "No, as usual they hardly noticed I was gone... well, save for Arista. I suppose you could say she was frustrated. She was waiting in bed for me when I returned," he said with a grin. 

"Apparently we're all having a good time tonight," Amalia said between bites. "Well, except for the torch servant. Lorrelin won't be too hard on whoever it was, will she? I'm sure it was just an oversight."

"Yes, darling," said Raziel, "But it was an oversight that's put another servant out of service for quite some time; to say nothing of the pain it's caused her. Lorrelin favors the strap over the cane, but either way, whoever it was will be sleeping on their belly for a while."

"She's... really not very nice to them, is she?" Amalia hesitantly asked, not wanting to disparage Lorrelin but unable to deny that she was a lot kinder to her than she was to anyone else she'd seen her interact with.

"Lorrelin is quite strict, my love, and most of them do fear her to some extent," Raziel replied with a shrug, "But she is also quite fair when it comes to doling out both punishments and rewards, and she does everything possible to ensure that her charges have all they need. Her organizational talents are unsurpassed; she's developed strong relationships with our farmers and vendors in order to procure better food in higher quantities and her efficiency with scheduling ensures that they all have a bit of leisure time. She's even managed to provide them a few luxuries. You saw that their quarters had board games and the like for them to amuse themselves with, and the modifications she made to the baths speak for themselves."

Tantallon shrugged, leaning against the wall. "I won't lie, Amalia, I'm not Lorrelin's biggest fan, but even I have to give her credit for how she runs the place. A taste of the strap won't kill anyone. It'll merely teach them a lesson they'll likely not forget and hopefully prevent any further incidents. Your kindness is admirable, to be certain, but it would not serve you well if you were doing Lorrelin's job. Discipline must be maintained. Her efforts to provide for everyone would count for nothing if they got away with shirking their duties or making stupid mistakes, because they'd all be wasting time and resources every day putting things right."

Amalia merely sighed and continued to eat, and Raziel quickly drained his goblet before she finished. Tantallon swiftly bore it away with the rest of the dishes before Amalia could focus her attention on it, knowing that she likely needed a little more time to adjust before she became comfortable watching her husband guzzle human blood. By time Tantallon had left, Raziel was up and rifling through one of his wardrobes trying to put together an outfit. Amalia watched, amused, as he took a step back and regarded the clothing before him with his arms crossed, entirely focused.

"You gonna put on a fashion show for me?" she asked with a smirk, and he did not respond other than to furrow his brow and wave his hand dismissively without even glancing her way. She snickered softly and settled in to observe.

Once he'd carefully chosen a pair of black leather breeches (out of a drawer full of what appeared to Amalia to be identical pairs of black leather breeches), he went to lay them on the bed next to where she sat, and that was when he remembered her own pants. "Ah! I nearly forgot, I wanted to have a look at these," he said, snatching them out of the corner where they were lying crumpled and forgotten. "What is this called?" he asked, pointing to the metal strip below the button. 

"A zipper," she responded. He brought it closer to his face to study it, peering closely at the pull tab before attempting to pull it back up. It stuck immediately, and Amalia showed him how to pull the strips on either side straight to get it to close. "It needs to be nearly closed already for it to work. For these kinds of pants, the button is usually done first so you have a hand free to tug at the seam near the bottom to keep it straight while you pull the zipper up."

"And then these little teeth interlock as they pass through," he breathed. "I will study this further. If it can be reproduced..." he paused, and Amalia smiled, knowing that it would be better than having to thread and tie laces all the time. A small convenience, to be sure, but an improvement nonethe- 

"These could be made larger, flashier," he continued, "And added in places where their purpose will be more form than function. No one else will have them," he said, his face lighting up in a delighted grin.

Amalia pinched the bridge of her nose. Of course his mind would immediately hurdle past convenience and crash headlong into the idea of using them as a design element. A memory of a series of video games she used to play suddenly popped into her mind, and she very nearly snarked at him about throwing a few unnecessary and randomly placed belts into the mix before realizing that first, he wouldn't get the joke, and second, he might actually do it.

After he'd finally dressed and accessorized, Raziel led her downstairs to show her his extensive library. As eager as she was to see it, Amalia could not resist getting a jab in about his gigantic portrait above the fireplace while she had the chance. Before he could duck into the library door that sat adjacent to the stairway, she strode out and stood next to the couch and chairs in front of the hearth, pointing up at it.

"Hey, you wanna talk about that?" she asked with an eager grin. "Because I do."

Raziel knew where this conversation would lead, having already endured teasing about it from just about everyone who saw it. "No," he responded flatly before walking into the library. Amalia deflated a bit, disappointed in his refusal to engage. 

"You're no fun," she pouted as she followed him in.

"I'm more fun than you can handle."

She wasn't listening. Her focus had immediately shifted to the contents of the room, which was by far the largest in his home. A beautifully carved desk sat in the center, surrounded by multiple tables positioned within reach. Every inch of surface was piled with everything from maps to written records to half-written letters to sketches and diagrams of weapons and armor. One table contained nothing but what appeared to be blueprints for buildings, and all of them had at least one book sitting open on top of everything. This was another thing that Raziel had been avoiding since the end of the war with humanity; everything was exactly as it was back when he actually needed it and though the sight of it caused him anxiety, he simply could not bear to clear it all away. After all, would staring at an empty desk and tables really be any better? 

Amalia's gaze hadn't lingered on the organized chaos of his workspace, however. She was staring open mouthed at the shelves lining the walls from floor to ceiling, each one containing a multitude of either books or scrolls. "Oh my god," she breathed. "This is it. This is where I live now. I'm never leaving this room."

Raziel huffed a laugh, pleased to see her so impressed. He pointed to the far corner of the room, where he'd had a column containing a large sphere-shaped cubbyhole built in. To Amalia's delight, it was lined with plush fabric and deep enough for both of them to crawl all the way into, lit inside with small magical orbs that threw a soft glow about. He followed her as she ran over and gleefully clambered into it, noting that he would have to adjust the lighting to make it bright enough for a human to read by.

"I'll just go ahead and set a chamber pot right outside and instruct Lorrelin to hand your meals through the entrance," he teased, bending down to lean against the rim of the opening.

She only shrugged as she curled up like a cat, snuggling into the soft interior. "Sounds good to me."

He was about to respond when his sensitive ears picked up the sound of someone knocking at the outer doors. "Of course," he huffed. "Stay here for now, Amalia. Hopefully I won't be long. In the event I have to leave, wait until you're certain no one unfamiliar is around if you want to leave the library, and go nowhere but straight back upstairs to the bedchamber."

That was when the door to the library swung open. "Raziel, are you in here?" came a deep voice, and Raziel tensed with a soft gasp of surprise.

It was Rahab.

Chapter Text

Raziel was caught completely off guard. For all the caution he'd been trying to take to keep Amalia safe, he'd somehow managed to overlook the fact that Rahab occasionally dropped in to visit the library, being an avid reader himself and just as big a fan of the cozy little reading cubby as Amalia had just become. Of all the people to show up right now and test Amalia's ability to maintain their charade... it just had to be his brother. He'd hoped to keep her presence concealed from whoever had come to call, but there was little chance of hiding her now that Rahab had entered the room they were in. Fortunately, Amalia remembered exactly how to behave around any vampire that was not him or Tantallon. She'd slipped flawlessly into "pet" mode the second she heard a strange voice and was now sitting demurely on her heels in the cubby with her legs folded under her and her hands in her lap, eyes downcast and silent.

"I'm not sure why you bothered to knock, brother mine, seeing as you've let yourself in anyway," said Raziel, rather testily. 

"I'm not here to use the library for once," said Rahab, as if that were a reasonable excuse for barging in. "Although I did bring these back."

Raziel fervently hoped that he'd simply follow him back to the parlor once he'd set down the satchel containing the books he'd borrowed a month prior. "What is this about, then?" he asked, starting toward the door in an attempt to lead him away from Amalia.

No such luck. Before Raziel had taken two steps toward the door, Rahab had taken two away from it, toward one of the shelves. "Turel," he snarled as he began to put the books back in their places. Realizing that an introduction was inevitable, he resolved to remain nonchalant and prayed that his bride would keep her composure. 

Unfortunately, Amalia was already beginning to panic. The moment the word 'brother' had dropped from Raziel's lips she'd frozen in fear. She heard him heave a sigh, but didn't dare look up to try to discern which of his brethren had come to pay him a visit.

"What's he done this time?"

"I am sick to death, Raziel, of finding him sporting with his spawn in public. He goes out of his way to flaunt that freakishly large cock of his, and I'm about ready to tear it from between his legs right along with everything else!" 

"He would make a fine eunuch," replied Raziel, a hint of amusement in his voice. 

"Has he so little else to be proud of?"

"I think we both know the answer to that, Rahab. Are you quite certain you're not simply jealous of it?" he teased.

Rahab... which one was Rahab? Amalia sat wracking her brain, trying to remember the names of the brothers she'd been told about. The name 'Rahab' sounded familiar, but she couldn't remember when Raziel had mentioned it... or was it Tantallon that had spoken of him?

"Please," he grumbled. "The only thing I envy is the blind after what I saw earlier this evening. Though I must say, Raziel," she heard him continue, "This one here is quite a vision."

Fuck. Amalia swallowed hard, knowing that Rahab was referring to her. "I thought I'd caught the scent of a human female when I came in. I'd no idea you were keeping a housepet," he said, sounding as if he were delighted to discover it. Within seconds he was kneeling before the cubby and a single sharp claw was pricking at the underside of her chin, forcing her to tilt her head back. She already knew that this was an an order to make eye contact, and was the only situation in which she was permitted to do so. As frightened as she was, she knew she had to look Raziel's brother in the eyes.

She was in no way expecting those eyes to be an icy shade of blue. Rahab appeared, in fact, to be an exception to the vampire standard in more ways than one. His skin had a blue tint to it as well and appeared to be flecked with purple and silver mottling along his arms and shoulders, and his talons, while still tipped with razor sharp claws, were slender and webbed rather than thick and armored. His shoulder-length hair was as black as any vampire's, however, and his fangs just as deadly. If she were being honest with herself, despite his odd features he was actually rather attractive, though not nearly so much as Raziel. But which one was he?

"Why, Raziel, the poor thing is frightened half to death," he observed, giving his brother a sidelong glance. "Whatever have you been doing to her between those excessively fancy sheets of yours?"

"Nothing she doesn't want, brother; you know quite well what I think of forcing the issue. She's merely still adjusting to her situation, is all; I haven't had her but a few days. You're the first strange vampire she's met, aside from Tantallon." Raziel's tone was aloof, as if he genuinely did not care that she was frightened, and rather than step in to rescue her from his brother, he moved away, leaving her at his mercy. "Would you like something to drink?"

"I wouldn't say no to a glass of wine," said Rahab, before turning his attention back to Amalia. "What is your name, little one?" he asked, trailing a claw over her cheek. It was then that she remembered: Rahab was Kain's fourth son, the one who hadn't fallen for Raziel's ploy to trick them all into eating human food and sire to Tantallon's sister Lenore. Raziel had described him as intuitive... which made her fear even more that he'd see through the act she was supposed to be putting on. Try as she might to answer him, she only managed a small, terrified squeak, flinching under his touch. Raziel's voice floated over from the far side of the room. 

"Her name is Amalia, Rahab. Do be gentle with her. I'd rather she not suffer a heart attack before I can even get a proper collar on her."

"Of course, Raziel. You know I've never been one to mistreat a housepet," he replied. "Even if she has commandeered my favorite spot." He then stood and, to Amalia's absolute shock and dismay, crawled into the cubby with her. By time Raziel had poured him a glass of wine and handed it off, he'd pulled her into his lap and begun stroking her hair as if she were nothing but an oversized cat. It was just as well that Amalia was too terrified to become indignant, because he also began to speak to her like one. 

"Easy now, pretty one, I'll not harm you. Your master would have my head if I did, wouldn't he? Oh yes, he certainly would." He cradled her in his arms, shifting her so that she could comfortably rest the back of her head against his shoulder (as if she'd ever be able to relax enough to do so), and she tried her hardest to focus on the truth he'd just uttered. Raziel would never let him harm her; would in fact probably attack him if he so much as spoke a harsh word to her. All she needed to do was sit tight and wait for this to be over. She drew in several deep breaths to calm herself.

"Don't you have any treats I can give her? Perhaps that will ease her fear of me." Rahab asked. To Amalia's chagrin Raziel quickly retrieved the bowl of grapes Lorrelin had brought up earlier before dragging his desk chair over to the corner and settling on it with his own glass of wine. Peering into the cubby, he was relieved to see that his poor bride was holding it together despite Rahab... well, being Rahab.

The night soon took a turn for the truly surreal. It was obvious what was expected of her, and Amalia soon found herself taking grapes from between his oddly webbed talons, enduring near constant petting that was only interrupted when he brought one to her lips or took a drink of his wine, which he bid her to hold in her trembling hands in between sips. Soon enough her indignation at this treatment roared back to life and rapidly began to overcome her fear of him. She fought to keep her expression neutral, finally breaking when she glanced up at Raziel and saw amusement sparkling in his eyes at the situation she was in. The corners of his mouth twitched as Amalia glared at him with a mouth full of grapes, and he quickly covered it by taking a drink of his wine. In truth, now that he realized that she was no longer afraid he was sorely tempted to tease her a bit about having warmed to his brother, but he didn't dare antagonize her for fear that she would be unable to resist the impulse to talk back to him. He was careful not to look at her after that, saying nothing even when Rahab held his own wineglass to Amalia's lips, bidding her to share it with him as he and Raziel conversed.

"He'd stopped doing it for a while, and I'd hoped that perhaps the thrill had finally worn off," said Rahab.

Raziel gave him a wry look. "He's been getting off on it for nearly three centuries by now, Rahab. The habit is clearly entrenched. The only reason you haven't seen him at it recently is because I threatened to throw a bucket of water over him the next time I caught him."

Rahab snorted. "A pity you weren't the one to catch him, then."

"No, but it ought to count anyhow. Where was he this time?"

"A side room in the Sanctuary, you know the one. Can't help but pass it on the way in to the throne room. Has a door, of course, for all the good it does when one refuses to close it."

Raziel groaned. "That's exactly where I caught him at it last. I don't know how he's escaped Kain's notice while playing this game, if that's his new favorite spot."

"The Master has better things to worry about than his secondborn's sexual proclivities, I'm sure."

"Turel has better things to worry about than debasing himself in public, but here we are."

The conversation droned on, and Amalia soon began to feel the effects of the wine Rahab was giving her. She'd tried to take only tiny sips at first, but it was good, and before long she was pulling entire mouthfuls from the glass every time he lifted it to her lips. Raziel must have noticed this, because after refilling Rahab's glass once he made no move to do it again once he'd noticed him slipping it to her. He knew better than to let her get too drunk to effectively maintain the charade.

Buzzed or no, Amalia still could not relax enough to doze in Rahab's arms. Once the grapes had run out along with the wine, there was nothing for her to do but endure the unwanted physical contact while the two vampires conspired as to what to do about Turel and his... habit. 

"I can't do anything to him myself, Raziel, you know that. You are the only one besides the Master who outranks him, and if you've already threatened him to no effect, I'm not certain what there is to be done."

Raziel sat with his arms crossed, tapping his claws on his bicep. "I've half a mind to simply stake that room out with several buckets close at hand and melt his flesh right off his bones the next time he even walks through the door. Barring that, perhaps I could rig up some sort of magical trap. I did warn him, after all, and he knows as well as anyone else that I don't make idle threats."

Rahab's face lit up in a malicious grin. "I'm listening."

Raziel shrugged casually. "I'll simply use the same spell the human mages use on us; I'm far better at it than they are anyway. The runes aren't particularly complex, and the Sanctuary is the last place Turel would expect to walk into one of those; he won't have any wards up. He'll be lucky if he doesn't slip prematurely into his next round of evolutionary torpor from the damage that will cause. I'll be watching the whole thing play out on a scrying mirror, of course."

This prompted a sharp bark of laughter from Rahab, and Amalia startled at the sound of it, accidentally digging her nails into his thigh. Fortunately, he didn't seem to notice. "I think that perhaps you might enjoy teaching him this lesson a little too much, Raziel."

"Only because I know how little he'll enjoy learning it," said Raziel, prompting another guffaw from Rahab. "You're welcome to join me, of course."

"I just might," he laughed. "And what of little Amalia here? What does she think of this plot, hmm?" Rahab asked, catching Amalia completely off guard. She looked to Raziel for guidance, unsure of what to say. 

"Well, Amalia? Rahab has asked you a question. It's alright, you may speak freely. You won't be punished for sharing your opinion when asked for it."

"Well, um," Amalia began. Suddenly being put on the spot had sobered her almost instantly, but she managed to find her voice after a moment. "What about his partner? Won't she get hurt too?"

"I see no reason why she ought to be spared punishment for such behavior," Raziel said rather loftily, bringing his wineglass to his lips.

"Respectfully, Master... If she's given no choice in the matter, which I wouldn't expect she would be... is it punishment, or is she just collateral damage?"

Rahab chuckled. "Well, well, Raziel. This new pet of yours is quite intelligent, even if she is a nervous wreck. Such a strange accent, as well. Where did you find her?"

Raziel shrugged carelessly, weaving a believable half-truth that omitted the true reason Kain had given her to him off the top of his head with little effort. "Kain found her somewhere. Brought her back because he knows I have a thing for redheads. Dumped her practically on my doorstep like a stray dog as if he were doing me a favor, saying he thought I could use a pet since I hadn't had one since Thomas died."

"I'm inclined to agree, I must admit. That was quite some time ago," Rahab commented. "But you needn't spare any concern for Turel's little harlots, pretty one," he continued, condescendingly patting Amalia on the head and making her wish she could snap at his hand without consigning herself to instant death. "I can assure you that any who accompany him on these little trysts have made up their own minds to do so. I'm quite certain they line up for a chance at it, in fact, hoping to earn a scrap of his favor to improve their station."

Amalia wrinkled her nose, forgetting herself for a moment. "Does that ever actually work?" she asked, cringing when she realized she was only keeping Rahab's focus on her by continuing to talk.

"I doubt it," he laughed. "Turel is nothing but a vicious brute. None of his relationships with women are love affairs."

Thankfully that was the end of it, because she didn't want to be drawn any further into their conversation. Unfortunately, however, even if she refused to participate in it there was no way to escape becoming the subject of it.

"She does have striking coloration, doesn't she?" asked Rahab, examining a lock of her hair. "Red hair and green eyes is quite uncommon. You do plan to breed her, I hope? I'm certain a suitable stud could be found. Perhaps one with a more favorable temperament, that will balance out her excessive skittishness."

Another casual shrug. "Seems like a lot of work," he replied dismissively, idly examining the tips of his claws. "And she'll never willingly submit to a coupling with a strange male."

Rahab was somewhat indignant. "Oh, come now. Her intelligence and coloration are traits that ought to be furthered. It isn't as if the encounter needs to drag on for long, just pull him off her as soon as he's seeded her." It was fortunate indeed that Amalia hadn't had enough alcohol to really loosen her tongue, because the road their conversation had gone down had her biting it.

Raziel's eyes flashed, and when he spoke, there was an edge to his voice. "Again, Rahab, you know how I feel about rape. Now, if I won't let my own children rape the humans they conquer, what makes you think I'd allow a human to lay hands on my unwilling pet?"

Rahab immediately picked up on the sudden danger in Raziel's tone, and decided that perhaps Amalia would like to be somewhere other than in his lap. "Why don't you return to your master, hmm?"

"Yes, my Lord," Amalia managed to choke out before sliding out of Rahab's grip and wriggling out of the cubby. Quite agitated at this point, Raziel directed her to the floor at his feet and bid her to lay her head in his lap as he continued to drive his point home. Taking it upon herself to aid him in reminding Rahab exactly who she belonged to, she immediately settled in, hugging his legs and risking a dramatically contented sigh.

"You know why there are no ranches in my territory, Rahab. The practice of breeding them may be necessary, but I find it highly distasteful. Since I seem to be the only one around here who isn't a prolific rapist, I am all too happy to let the task fall to the rest of you." he snapped.

Rahab bristled at this, briefly baring his fangs at his elder brother with a soft growl. "Just because I'm practical about what you yourself just admitted is a necessary practice does not mean that I engage in it personally. You know I have never once taken anyone, whether one of them or one of us, by force. Don't be spiteful, Raziel," he spat. "It ill becomes you."

Wincing as he realized that he'd once again let his temper get the best of him, Raziel held up a hand. "Forgive me, brother," he sighed with a shake of his head. "You're right, of course. That was... rather unfair of me."

Still looking somewhat injured, Rahab sulkily crossed his arms and leaned back into the plush upholstery. "I'm not like them. I thought that was why you and I actually got along," he pouted.

"Oh, stop mewling. I said I was sorry," Raziel replied with a dismissive wave of his hand.

"No, you didn't," came Rahab's petulant reply.

Raziel groaned, leaning his head back with a dramatic roll of his eyes. "Fine. I'm sorry. Now are you happy?"

Thus placated, Rahab dropped the issue and the conversation moved on to gossip about the goings-on within the different clans. Amalia soon fell asleep, only waking when he gently nudged her head from his lap so that he could walk Rahab to the door some time later.

"You will provide me with the the details once Turel has been dealt with in the event I can't join you to watch, won't you?" Rahab asked.

"Down to the very last scream and sizzle," Raziel responded, and they exchanged malicious grins.

"Oh, and I suppose if Amalia ever decides she wants to be bred, let me know," Rahab said on his way out the door. "I'd very much like one of her offspring."

"...We'll see. Goodbye, Rahab." Once Raziel closed the library door, Amalia breathed a giant sigh of relief. He held his hand up for silence until he heard Rahab open and close the outer doors and then turned back toward her with his hands on his hips. "We really need to work on your poker face."

"Says the one who was about to burst into laughter at my predicament," Amalia sniped. "I hate him." 

Raziel snorted. "He's the most tolerable out of the whole bunch. Well, save for myself, of course." She ignored this in favor of venting her spleen.

 "Got any more of those grapes? I don't think the hundred or so I had while he had me captive in his lap was enough."

"Amalia," Raziel said, warningly.

"Maybe I can eat those to distract myself while being impregnated like a brood mare."

"You are not going to be forcibly bred, Amalia. Did you not hear a word I said to him about it?" Raziel replied with a roll of his eyes.

"Only because you'd never find my hiding place, since I'm so skittish," she growled.

Raziel crossed his arms, inclining his head with a stern look. "Are you done?"

 They stared one another down a moment before she huffily relented, more out of having run out of material than out of intimidation. "...Fine. Yes."

Amalia soon found herself back in the parlor, slouched in Raziel's chair while he paced back and forth behind the couch lecturing her on what she'd done right and wrong during Rahab's visit. "You performed flawlessly up until he asked your name," he said. "Then... you panicked. Understandable, considering how suddenly this came up, but suboptimal." 

Arms folded, she stared sullenly at the wall. "Didn't even take that long. As soon as I heard you address him as 'brother' I started panicking."

"Also understandable," he replied. "Fortunately, as I said before, out of all my brothers Rahab is the most amiable, and he clearly bought what we were selling. At most, word will get around that I've got a pretty redhead with green eyes collared as a housepet. That won't surprise... well, anyone."

"Who was Thomas?" Amalia asked, suddenly remembering Raziel mention having a pet before.

Raziel stopped pacing and fell silent a moment. "Thomas was Lorrelin's older brother... he was my last pet. The only human pet I've kept, really, since in actuality you're not. Unfortunately I didn't have him very long; he fell ill and died while he was still yet a child, barely ten years old himself. It was... upsetting. He was a delight to have around, and I was looking forward to watching him grow up. I'd likely have turned him once he came of age." 

He walked around from behind his chair, and Amalia slid back onto the floor to allow him to reclaim it. "I didn't know Lorrelin had a brother... How old was he when you got him?" she asked, laying her head in his lap once more.

"He was six when I took him in. Their mother was my erstwhile chamberlain's sister, so I just went ahead and had him brought to me when she died giving birth to Lorrelin."

"Don't take this the wrong way," Amalia said, "But I'm having a hard time imagining you raising a human child."

Raziel laughed. "If you think I didn't have a nursemaid for him, then you really aren't paying attention to how things work around here," he said, running his claws through her hair. "Even if I'd wanted to raise him all on my own, I hadn't the time for it back then any more than his uncle did. I did manage to teach him to read and write, though, and I often designed puzzle toys for him to play with, which he invariably worked out and became bored of within a day. Intelligence clearly runs in Lorrelin's family; just like her, the boy was whip-smart. Perhaps that's why I was so fond of him."

"You didn't keep Lorrelin as a pet too?"

"She was a newborn when I got Thomas, and only four when he died. His untimely demise had soured me on wanting to keep another, so she remained with their nurse, and I more or less forgot about her until her late teenage years." Amalia raised an eyebrow at him, and he laughed again. "Don't give me that look. She didn't catch my attention because I wanted to bed her. I noticed her because of how effective she was at her job as a servant. She became my new chamberlain when her uncle retired. She was about your age at that time, and to be perfectly honest with you I did offer myself to her then. She was clearly uncomfortable with such talk, however, so I immediately reassured her that I was merely offering, not commanding, and promptly dropped the issue. I never brought it up again, and neither did she."

"Huh. Maybe she prefers women," Amalia suggested.

"Perhaps," Raziel replied with a shrug. "But it seems to me that she lacks interest in such activity entirely. I could be wrong, of course, I certainly haven't asked; but Lorrelin is and always has been rather different from my other humans. I wouldn't be surprised at all to find out that she'd never been touched."

"Maybe I'll ask her sometime," she responded, crawling up into his lap and wrapping her arms around his neck. "Weren't you going to read to me earlier?"

"Well, seeing as the books are all still in the library and you've just wound yourself around me like a climbing vine, I think perhaps we should continue reviewing what happened during Rahab's visit instead."

Amalia merely groaned.

Chapter Text

Amalia quickly decided that she did not care to talk about Rahab anymore, and thus endeavored to dissuade Raziel from conversation in the best way she knew how to. Resisting the urge to nip at his throat lest he tighten his grip on her, she went boneless and quickly wiggled back out of his grasp to rest on the floor between his legs before he'd managed to get through the first sentence of his lecture.

"Amalia," he warned. "I believe I just made clear what our next activity was to be." She ignored him, reaching for the laces to his pants, and he narrowed his eyes at her. "You think yourself remarkably clever, don't you?"

She bit her lip with a grin as she ran her palm over him through the leather. "You don't think I'm clever?"

He fixed her with a stare. "You're confusing 'clever' with 'bratty'. There is a marked difference."

"Is there?" she asked as she tugged at the laces.

"Indeed," he replied, with a tilt of his head and an arch of one brow. "One will earn you praise, while the other promises a significantly less pleasant outcome."

A smarter woman might have course corrected at this point to avoid the impending collision with disaster, but where was the fun in that? Amalia grinned defiantly up at him. "Ooh, is that a threat?" A soft growl escaped his throat, but he wasn't fooling anyone. She could feel him getting hard underneath her palm. It would only be a matter of moments before he broke; all she needed to do was get her hand into his pants and-

"Ow!" she squawked as his talons suddenly found their way to her forearm and pulled it upwards, leaving her draped awkwardly across his chest as he held it fast over his shoulder and leaned down to growl low into her ear. "You want to play games, do you?" he asked in a voice smooth as silk, sending shivers down her spine. "Very well. Let's begin."

Maintaining his grip on her arm, he forced her back down to sit on her heels, then released her and stood. "Straighten your back, and keep your hands clasped behind you," he commanded, watching as she eagerly complied. "Good. Now, don't fucking move."

Amalia stared expectantly up at him, waiting for him to undo his pants the rest of the way and make her get on with it. Instead... he retied the laces and sat back down in his chair. "Now, as I was saying," he began, smirking maliciously down at her as her face fell, first into surprise and then into annoyance. He paused in order to give her a chance to get herself even deeper into trouble, and she did not disappoint.

"'You think yourself remarkably clever, don't you?'" she said mockingly.

He was having entirely too much fun to take the time to dole out a physical punishment for her insolence, however, and thus opted to simply press on. "Yes, indeed," he laughed, aware that they both knew he'd just proven himself more crafty than she was. "Now, you remembered to address Rahab as 'my Lord', just as you were instructed, although you sort of mumbled it," he stated, tilting his hand back and forth, "which could easily have been interpreted as disrespect. In fact, it would have been by any lieutenant aside from Rahab. In the future-"

"It's not a game if you're the only one having fun," she interrupted, scowling darkly up at him.

"Oh, my dear, you're gravely mistaken," he countered with a savage grin. "Those are, in fact, my favorite kind of game."

"God dammit," she gritted to herself, and he snickered. Realizing that pushing things any further would result in the exact opposite of what she wanted, Amalia decided to stand down and shut her mouth. The fact that he'd so effortlessly put her in her place aroused her as much as it irritated her, which in and of itself was irritating, because he clearly wasn't about to indulge her. This was about when she noticed that the position he had her in wasn't a particularly enjoyable one to maintain long-term, and shifted her weight slightly.

This did not escape Raziel's notice. "Are you uncomfortable, darling?" he asked, rather casually. Amalia glared balefully up at him, figuring that there was no way to answer the question that wouldn't result in him taunting her even further. 

"Splendid," he continued without even waiting for a response, confirming her suspicions. He leaned back into the soft cushion of the chair with his hands clasped behind his head. "Anyway..."

"Okay, I'm sorry," she whimpered, dejected. "Can we please just-"

Raziel leaned forward, suddenly no-nonsense again. "No, we cannot. This discussion is an important one, Amalia, and we will not be swayed from it. However, seeing as your attitude has finally begun to improve, you may relax and lean against my legs. I would advise against acting out any further. My patience is not endless."

Truthfully, at this point Amalia had no further interest in acting out. His casual dominance had by now obliterated any and all desire to do anything but submit to him and obey, even if she was squirming and squeezing her thighs together while doing it. She scooted over to sit at his feet, folding her arms over his knee and resting her chin on them much the same way she had Kain's when she was still with him. She'd be good... for now.

"Good girl," he said, prompting a happy sigh as her eyes slid closed. "As I was saying, in the future, I expect you'll be a bit better prepared for these situations, and they won't seem so harrowing. I certainly don't plan on you meeting any of my other brethren, but as tonight has proven, unexpected circumstances do arise. I'm certain that now that you've been through it once, you'll fare much better next time. And, really, as justifiable as your dislike of Rahab is, he is both the least likely to take unnecessary offense at your behavior and the most likely to be the only one who actually shows his face here. Better him than any of the others, believe me."

"I really, really wanted to bite him," she murmured.

Raziel couldn't help but chuckle. "I know, my love. But his bite is far more dangerous than yours, mild-mannered though he is." He hummed to himself, thinking a moment. "I suppose I ought to tell you about the rest of them while I actually have your attention."

"Yeah, how many of you are there, again?" she asked, her head popping up off her arms.

"Don't interrupt," he chided, reaching around the back of her head to direct her chin back to its place. "Be still and listen. There are six of us in total. The one Rahab and I were just discussing, Turel, is next in line after me. You can recognize him by his large size and the length of his ears... if not by the fact that he's the only one of us who you'll find fucking in public," he muttered as an aside. "Turel is one of the two who hate me the most. As Rahab mentioned, he's absolutely vicious, and will kill you if given even half a chance. Though he tries to be obedient and dutiful in order to maintain the Master's favor, he's quite impulsive and more or less attempts to solve every issue that vexes him with violence, so he's unlikely to consider the ramifications of harming you before doing it. He's still useful, however; he pushes his clan toward industry and they have a rather large foundry, where they cast many of the metal tools and parts we all use."

Pointing toward the entryway, he continued. "The hinges on the doors, for example, are all from Turel's foundry, although we make our own locks for reasons that should be obvious. Next after Turel comes Dumah. Dumah is a formidable warrior, and often underestimated due to his aloof and stoic personality. It's often difficult to get a read on what's going through Dumah's mind. He has talented smiths among his clan, and uses the ore that the Turelim mine to produce almost all of our weaponry. Dumah loves nothing more than a good fight, but cares far less than the rest of us about Kain's favor, and thus isn't likely to be much of a threat since he's not quite so bitterly jealous of me. If he were to show up, he'd be just as likely as Rahab to accept that you're nothing but a pet, except he'd ignore you completely instead of engaging the way Rahab did."

Raziel paused here, expecting Amalia to make a crack about how she wished he'd shown up instead of Rahab in that case, but she remained silent and attentive. He began to stroke her hair with a soft purr, wanting to reward her for behaving herself instead of running her mouth.

"See? I can be good," she said with a knowing smirk, eliciting an exasperated sigh from Raziel.

"Yes, and now it doesn't count, because you're being smarmy about it," he chided, withdrawing his hand.

Amalia figured it was worth it, continuing to grin as she rested her head back down.

"Rahab comes after Dumah, and Zephon comes after Rahab. Now listen, Amalia, because Zephon is the most dangerous one out of all of them. Zephon is the resident spymaster, and he has them everywhere, no doubt even within my own ranks. He's cunning and deceptive, and is more likely to attempt to manipulate you than he is to kill you outright. He hates me every bit as much as Turel does, and he'd be positively elated to find himself staring down a chance to turn you against me and take you for himself, even if he's convinced he's only stealing a housepet. You can recognize him if you see him by his slight build and his hair; he's the only one of us who keeps it short save for Melchiah, who has none at all. If by some terrible twist of fate you ever find yourself in his company, do not take a word that comes out of his mouth to heart. Whatever it is, it's almost certainly a half-truth if not an outright lie. Last comes Melchiah, who is by far the cruelest out of all of us. Melchiah..." He paused here, trying to come up with a way to describe his youngest brother that was relatively magnanimous. 

"Well, Melchiah is a mess, to put it bluntly," he finally said. "You're not likely to ever see him at all, since he rarely leaves his own stronghold. Since he was made last and received the weakest portion of Kain's gift, his immortality is only barely hanging on. His flesh slowly rots the way a corpse's does and regularly needs to be... replenished. He takes what he needs from whatever unfortunate humans find their way into his clutches, be it skin or flesh. The only reason he's less of a threat than Zephon to one as fair as you is that he keeps to himself for the most part and cares little for what's going on outside his own clan, and he'd never dare to cross me."

"That is horrifying," said Amalia, disturbed.

Raziel only nodded. It was horrifying. "Rather. Unfortunately, Melchiah has passed his weakness on to his own children, and they onto theirs. He tries to make up for this and remain useful to the Master by ensuring there are a lot of them, so they, along with Dumah's warrior offspring, were always the expendable front-line fodder in our war. Since the war's end, he's focused less on siring children and more on pushing them toward learning refined surgical techniques to keep their own skin and bones together. Vampires are immortal, however, and attrition is slow. His clan's large population requires vast amounts of blood to keep them fed, which puts him in the unenviable position of relying on Zephon for supplies, as Zephon is prudent enough to have amassed an impressive reserve. Of course, Zephon needed some rather intricate spellwork to enchant the vats he uses to store it so that it stays fresh long-term. He had no one to turn to for that except for me, which puts him in the unenviable position of being in my debt," he said with malicious satisfaction. "He tries to deny it, insisting that we all need blood same as Melchiah and that I owed it to Kain to help him. Perhaps he has a point," he said with a casual shrug. "But I nonetheless enjoy having something to hold over his head. Still, credit where credit is due. He worked out the logistics of his supply chain all on his own, which is no small thing considering how many humans need to be continuously sacrificed to the cause if he's to maintain his reserves while feeding Melchiah's pitiful brood."

"Also horrifying. Your entire society is horrifying," she stated flatly. 

Raziel bristled slightly, but couldn't truly fault her for her opinion. He very nearly pointed out that it was inevitable that the superior species would come out on top and do what was necessary to survive, but thought better of it, knowing that it would be... less than diplomatic, and he did not want her angry at him. Fortunately, she moved on to her next train of thought. "I am wondering, though... what's with Rahab's talons and skin?"

He tilted his head. "The webbing and blue coloration, you mean? That is... an interesting development, to be certain. We all enter a state of change from time to time, generally about a decade after Kain does, and emerge with a new gift. This is why vampires my age have hands that look the way they do; it's a vast improvement over human hands tipped with short claws, which is what younger vampires bear after fledging. If you look closely at mine, you'll see that the claws are serrated, and four of the original digits have fused into two strong talons which, along with the thumb, are ridged along the underside." 

He turned his hand palm up and offered it to Amalia, and she hooked her finger around one claw and gave it a gentle tug, feeling the serrations rasp against her skin. His talons weren't dangerous at times like this; when he was handling her and flexing them so gently, or when he drew the tips of his claws so lightly over her skin or through her hair, leaving goosebumps rather than wounds in their wake. Even when he'd grabbed her arm earlier, he'd measured his grip perfectly so that it was firm enough to keep hold of her yet gentle enough not to do her any harm. But it was obvious what those same talons could do to anyone that Raziel wanted to hurt.

"I'd hate to find myself needing to wrench something out of your grasp," she said, shifting her attention to the ridges.

He smirked. "Precisely. We're nearly impossible to disarm, once we've developed these. Truly impossible, really, considering that they're weapons in their own right."

"What if somebody cuts your hands off?"

Raziel snickered. "They eventually grow back, although I'd love to see someone attempt it regardless. Good fucking luck."

Laughing at his arrogance, she looked up at him, still keeping hold of his hand. "So why does Rahab have smooth, slender talons with webbing instead of these?"

"His talons used to look exactly like mine, until his last evolution around seventy years ago. None of us thus far has been able to influence his own evolution... none except for Rahab. You see, Rahab's territory lies in an area of Nosgoth that is plagued with vast amounts of surface water. Rivers, lakes, swamps, the whole rotten lot... and it's adjacent to the coastline. He's been bitter about the land he was assigned to since the beginning, particularly since what humans are left there are so easily able to repel him and his children by using the landscape to their advantage. But Rahab is driven, and incredibly tenacious. He confided in me nearly a century ago that he's been trying to develop a tolerance to water's damaging effects, by exposing himself to it while drinking blood to heal the burns. He simply refuses to be defeated by it. The last time he emerged from pupation, his eyes and skin had taken on their blue coloration and his talons were as they are now. The rest of our brethren have mocked him for it ever since, calling him useless and likening him to a fish who can't even swim, but they don't know what he's up to. He's keeping his cards close to his chest for now, particularly since his efforts toward resisting the damage done by water's touch has yet to bear any useful fruit. The results thus far are promising, however... he told me last year that he'd plunged his arm into a vat of water and pulled it out stinging, but still intact. He did lose the skin over the course of the next few hours, but it all healed within a few days. If any of the rest of us tried that, the burns would be horrific and we'd likely lose the limb and be without it until our next pupation."

"So, if I were to push him into a lake right now, it would still hurt a l-"

"Hush," Raziel interjected with a stern look. "His hope is that one day he and his clan will all be able to actually submerge themselves and swim. Once that happens, and I absolutely believe it will, the humans that populate his lands are going to get a nasty surprise, and the rest of our brethren will hopefully learn a little humility and respect, though I doubt it."

Amalia tactfully ignored his dig at his brothers' lack of humility, as if he had any room to talk. "Does Kain know he's doing this?"

Raziel shrugged. "I'm sure he investigated his unique evolution soon after it happened. Rahab will have told him then, no doubt. Kain will pay little attention to his efforts until they actually bear fruit, of course. He honestly probably doesn't care all that much at all now that we've won the war, but Rahab is desperate for his favor, so..." He studied her expression a moment. "You look as if you've got something you want to say. Speak."

"I'm... trying to think of a diplomatic way to put it," said Amalia.

Raziel sighed. "Yes, I'm the favorite; yes, Kain makes that more than plain; and yes, that is why they all harbor such resentment toward me, Rahab included," he stated, guessing her train of thought. "Honestly, I care little about their feelings. We work together to further the Master's interests, because the Master's interests are all that matter. Rahab is the only one I care for at all, to be honest, and he'd be the only one I'd miss if anything happened to him. So throwing him into a lake is out of the question, unfortunately for you," he told her.

Amalia shrugged. "Whatever. I'm sure I can manage to avoid him from now on."

"No, he'll want to see you anytime he shows up to loaf around my library," he replied, making her groan. "He likes human pets; he's kept a few himself. In fact, if he had a male right now he'd no doubt be bringing him around in the hopes that you'd take a shine to him and allow a coupling, annoyingly enough."

"Yeah, no. If I'm not having your child I'm not having anyone's," she replied. 

Raziel wrinkled his nose in distaste at the idea. "You'll certainly not be having mine. Like all of our kind, I am sterile and cannot beget children. If this is how you truly feel, then you'll remain childless."

"I suspected as much once I realized I had yet to see any vampire children running around biting everyone's ankles."

He chuckled. "Nor will you. We don't reproduce that way, and no human child has ever survived the Change, or Thomas would still be around. You're unlikely to see anyone much younger than Tantallon was when I turned him," he explained. 

"Oh yeah, Tantallon told me about his twin sister," she said, suddenly recalling her earlier conversation with him. "But didn't seem to want to elaborate. I can only assume, having met Rahab, that he's upset that she has to put up with him."

"Lenore is dead," said Raziel after a pause, his voice soft. "That's why Tantallon doesn't want to talk about her, and Rahab even less so."

Amalia gasped softly, her head popping up off Raziel's knee. "Oh... I'm sorry, I didn't realize. That was kind of insensitive."

"It's alright, cyar'ika. You'd no way of knowing what happened to her. She was taken by vampire hunters while journeying outside Rahab's stronghold and burned at the stake along with her entire entourage. Now, Lenore wasn't just Rahab's firstborn. He hadn't been caring for her for even a single day before he'd fallen head over heels in love with her. He took her as his bride the moment she fledged to adulthood, and he loved her dearly. He was pupating at the time of her murder... in fact she'd already been dead for a week by time he emerged. I found out about it all when he showed up in the middle of the day and crawled into my bed while I slept, able to do little more than babble 'She's gone! She's gone!' over and over between fits of sobbing and absolutely inconsolable no matter what I did. He didn't leave for days; it was all I could do to even get him to feed. Tantallon was much the same when he found out. My own grief was nigh unbearable; remember that I was there when she was sired. It was a difficult time for all of us."

Horrified, Amalia sat with wide eyes, her hand covering her mouth. "They burned her at the stake?"

"Do you suppose that they grant us kind deaths when we fall into their hands? Certainly not. Whether they employ the use of fire, water, or sunlight, they're sure to make us suffer."

"You slaughtered them all, I hope," Amalia replied, an edge to her voice.

Raziel nodded. "Oh, yes. Their lives were forfeit the instant they had laid hands on Lenore. I don't think I've ever seen either Tantallon or Rahab so utterly consumed with wrath, either before or since. I hung back, of course, and let them do the killing, since their suffering was ultimately greater than mine. Not a single one of them escaped their terrible retribution."

"That may be the only thing I'll ever hear that will make me feel bad for Rahab," said Amalia. "As much as I can't stand him, I'd never wish that sort of grief on anyone."

"The worst part of it is... Lenore was a rarity among vampires in that she was shy, demure, and completely gentle. That was what he loved most about her, I think. She drank blood just the same as us, she had to, but only ever from a chalice. Rahab was always too soft-hearted toward her to force her to hunt and kill like he does with any other reluctant fledglings," he said as he sadly got to his feet, holding his hand out for Amalia to take. "When they murdered her, they killed who may have been the only vampire to ever live who'd never once put fang to a human throat."

Amalia rose and solemnly trailed in Raziel's wake as he led her back into the library. "Maybe I should read to you tonight instead of the other way around. I feel like you need it more than I do."

Raziel huffed a soft laugh. "The sentiment is appreciated, darling, but I'm quite alright. Go and find a book with pictures you like."

"I can read, you know. Did you forget? I don't need pictures."

"Then find one without pictures," he said, waving her away as he made his way to the cubby to get nestled in and comfortable. "But all the best ones have them. I'd suggest the one on the third shelf from the left door with a light blue cover that bears an illustration of a multitude of animals arranged in a spiral, unless you're too proud to be read to from picture books. If that's the case, then try the shelf that sits directly opposite the desk. That's where all the boring, technical stuff is."

Amalia rolled her eyes as she made her way to the shelf near the door. They were soon curled up together inside the cubby, her head tucked under Raziel's chin with his arm encircling her. She handed the book to him, and he cracked it open and began to read, his soft purrs occasionally filling the space around them whenever she would turn her face toward his throat to nuzzle him.

Chapter Text

It was fortunate for Raziel that his body's unnatural resilience did not allow him to become sore from resting too long in an awkward position, because the hours spent sharing Amalia's memories rather than sleeping soon caught up with them both. Soft magical light glinted off the coppery metallic foil that traced the intricate spiral of animals on the cover of the book he'd been reading to her, and the talons of one hand lay splayed across it as it rested face down on his chest. His bride's head lay beside it as she curled into his side, settled comfortably into the crook of his arm. The talons of his opposite hand were curled possessively over her hip, the tips of his claws making small divots in the fabric of her gown. All was quiet and calm and the cubby was warm and cozy; the two slept peacefully until Raziel's eyes snapped open at the sound of a pair of servants allowing the outer doors to slam shut as they entered carrying baskets filled with cleaning supplies. Cursing under his breath, he hurriedly nudged Amalia awake.

"Amalia, we need to move. Quickly now, servants have arrived and they cannot find us in such an intimate embrace," he said, shutting the book and unwinding his arm from around her waist. Grumbling, she moved to obey, shuffling backward out of the cubby and taking the book from him the moment her feet hit the floor. Raziel quickly followed, and they brushed themselves off and smoothed their hair down just as one of the servants opened the door to the library. He froze upon realizing that the room was occupied.

"B-Begging your pardon, Lord," the man stammered, dropping his gaze and his basket to the floor in the same instant. "I meant no interruption. Only need to do the dusting, is all."

"At ease, Vance," Raziel replied, breezily waving his hand at the human, who visibly relaxed upon realizing that Raziel wasn't angry about the intrusion. "My pet and I will leave you to your work. Amalia, go and put the book back; we're finished reading for the night," he ordered, his tone clipped and no-nonsense.

Adopting a similar air of deference to the man who stood at the door, Amalia immediately moved to comply. "Yes, Master."

Nodding with approval, he strode past her toward the door, paying no further attention to his trembling servant. "Come along then, your midnight meal should be arriving soon enough."

The second servant, a young woman with mousy brown hair only a few shades lighter than Lorrelin's, wasn't nearly so frightened of him. "Good evening, Lord Raziel," she called as they emerged into the parlor.

"Evening, Stella. Your brother is as jumpy as ever, I see."

Stella rolled her eyes and waved a hand as she began to sweep the floor in the entryway. "Pay him no mind, Lord; I don't know where he gets it from. He ought to be more afraid of Lorrelin than you, I'd say. Boy, she's in a foul mood tonight. Triss broke her ankle, poor girl, and now we're down two line cooks instead of just the one."

Raziel paused at the foot of the stairs as Amalia continued up. "Ah, yes, I heard about that unfortunate incident."

"Oh, it gets worse, Lord," Stella continued. "She herself jumped in to finish up the vegetables Triss had been chopping, and in her hurry to get the prep station caught back up she cut herself quite badly."

Raziel winced. That would certainly make her even more cantankerous than she usually was. "Oh, dear. I'd say whoever let the torches go out is the one who ought to be afraid right now."

"Oh, she's already dealt with him. Serves him right, I say; he had one job tonight and it happened to be the easiest one we've got."

Laughing softly, Raziel started upward again, joining Amalia in the hallway and leading her to their room.

"Hey, Raz?" she asked after she'd closed the door behind her.

He raised an eyebrow at her in mild annoyance. "'Raz'? That's the second time you've taken the liberty of shortening my name that way."

Crossing her arms, she looked him in the eyes and shrugged casually, clearly ready to argue if he challenged her on it any further. "Considering the liberties you took with me right after the last time I did it, I'd say we're even. I think formality in private is a bit silly at this point, don't you?"

Realizing that he didn't actually mind the nickname all that much so long as it was coming from her, he relented with a sigh. "Fair enough, I suppose. Just mind when and where you do it. What were you going to ask me?"

"What's the door off to the right as we're coming down the stairs lead to?"

He perked up. "Ah, that. My private alchemy lab is through there. I'd planned on showing it to you after you'd seen the library, actually, but I hadn't counted on us falling asleep. It'll have to wait until-" Raziel paused, listening. "...after you've been fed," he finished, pulling her out of the way of the door just as it was flung open. 

Lorrelin's arrival was not unlike that of a sudden violent storm; the kind that kicks up out of nowhere and leaves absolute devastation in its wake. Looking at her standing in the doorway with blood on her apron and a crudely bandaged thumb, Amalia wouldn't have been entirely surprised to see lightning erupt from her ears. 

"Forgive me, my Lady, but your lunch will be a bit late," she growled to Amalia. "It's been a hell of a night."

The scent of the blood seeping through the cloth immediately drew Raziel's attention to her shoddy attempt at patching herself up, and he stepped forward and reached for her hand only to scowl at her when she jerked it away from him. "Lorrelin, that's the worst bandaging job I've ever seen. It needs to be dealt with properly."

"I don't have time to-"

"Now, Lorrelin," he interjected, brooking no argument. "I've got healing potions in the lab; it won't take but a moment and then you can get back to terrorizing everyone in your path. Come along, both of you."

Ignoring the way his chamberlain tangled her fists in her own hair and grit her teeth in exasperated anger, he led them both down the hall to the staircase closest to his lab. Stella had wisely made herself scarce the moment Lorrelin had arrived, and was nowhere to be seen as they emerged into the parlor. Raziel stepped to the lab's door, preparing to dispel the wards that protected it since they hadn't yet been modified to recognize Amalia, and promptly noticed Lorrelin edging toward the entryway out of the corner of his eye.

"Get back over here," he barked, stopping her in her tracks. She glared balefully at him as she moved to obey, and he simply glared right back. "You're not nearly as slick as you think you are," he informed her as he swung open the door to his lab. His sensitive ears picked up the sound of a soft snicker coming from nearby, and he smirked as he realized that Stella must have been hiding in plain sight somewhere in the parlor to have overheard his remark. 

Good. It certainly wouldn't do Lorrelin any harm for her underlings to see her taken down a peg or two on occasion.

Raziel's alchemy lab was lit with torches that sat in sconces lining the walls, and with a wordless wave of his hand all of them roared to life, revealing the mysteries within. Shelves laden with equipment ranging from pots and pans to clean glass vials and beakers sat to the left of the door, and near them was a stack of small cauldrons awaiting use. A sizeable cast iron stove lay directly ahead, with a stack of firewood sitting in an alcove to the left of it and an upright stand holding a large recipe book sitting behind a worktable ro the right. The hearth along the far right wall was even larger than the one in the parlor; nearly large enough for the average person to walk into without even crouching. Two large chains with hooks dangled from an anchor somewhere inside the flue and a sturdy metal arm mounted to the wall swiveled back and forth between firebox and floor. The nearby twin cauldrons that these were intended for were enormous; how Raziel managed to lift them in order to put them to use Amalia could not fathom. Cupboards to the right of the door held various ingredients, neatly labeled in alphabetical order, and just beyond those were floor-to-ceiling shelves which held finished potions arranged in a similar fashion. 

At the center of the room a trio of small copper boilers with hinged lids sat on a grate over a fire pit, and Amalia could not resist running her fingers over the various dials and gauges. "Mind what you touch, Amalia," Raziel admonished as he led Lorrelin off to the right, reaching for a small vial sitting among the finished potions. "None of the equipment is hot since it's not currently in use, but the dials on the boilers are set just as I need them, so don't go fiddling with them."

"I won't," she replied, distracted. She'd already moved past the boilers and was now gently turning the pages of the recipe book, gazing in wonderment at the runes and illustrations and reading the notes he'd scribbled in the margins. Satisfied that she'd get up to no mischief, Raziel expectantly held out his hand, waiting for his irritable chamberlain to uncover her thumb so he could drip the healing potion into the cut.

Lorrelin was not above being deliberately unhelpful out of pure spite, and promptly offered up her hand with her thumb still wrapped. Unfortunately for her, Raziel was not above being deliberately indelicate out of pure spite, and he promptly snatched the bandage right off, eliciting a sharp yelp of pain.

"I've only so much patience, young lady, and-"

Lorrelin went rigid with outrage. "I am forty-" she hissed, sputtering. "Don't you 'young lady' me, you ancient bag of reanimated bo-"

"I'll 'young lady' you all I like, as childish as you're acting!" he snapped, cutting her off. "Now, we can do this the easy way," he stated, holding the stoppered bottle up, "Or I can get a needle and a spool of catgut and we can do it the hard way. What's it going to be?"

Knowing she was defeated, Lorrelin huffily held her thumb out once more, and Raziel pulled the stopper out and held it between his teeth as he took her hand and tipped the bottle over the cut. "Hold still while it knits," he admonished as she began to fidget.

"It itches," she complained.

"Indeed it does. You should try having it applied to half a dozen arrow wounds peppered across your back where you can't reach them sometime," he said, turning her hand this way and that to inspect it and finally scraping the side of his claw over the newly formed skin to clear the dried blood away. "Absolutely maddening. Go on over to the basin there and wash it well. Scrubbing at it will ease the itching. Amalia, what are you up to?"

"Reading," came her absent reply. Knowing that the book would likely have her occupied for some time, he turned his attention back to his cantankerous chamberlain only to see tears coursing down her cheeks as she scrubbed at her thumb. To say Raziel was surprised was an understatement; he couldn't remember the last time he'd seen her cry. 

"...Lorrelin?" he began, keeping his voice low as he cautiously approached.

"I'm fine," she insisted, sniffling. "It's just been a very difficult evening, and now I'm even more behind."

Raziel dragged his palm down his face, sighing. "Lorrelin, you are clearly overwhelmed and your exhaustion is clearly undermining your work and putting you at risk of injury. I think it would be best if you took the rest of the evening off."

"I can't!" she protested, choking down a sob. "You know I can't! I've still got to bring Amalia's lunch up, the laundry needs to go down to be washed... it's the middle of the night, I've got hours of work left to do!"

Huffing, Raziel strode to the door and stuck his head out into the parlor. "Stella? Attend," he called, and the servant promptly materialized from the library with a duster in her hand. "Listen closely. Lorrelin is unwell and I've commanded her to take the rest of the night off whether she likes it or not. I want you to go and tell Vance to retrieve the laundry from the basket upstairs and take it... well, wherever it goes," he finished, airily waving his hand. "While he's doing that, I'd like you to go and retrieve Amalia's meal from the kitchens, along with some lunch for Lorrelin as well. Bring it up to my bedchamber; we'll be out on the balcony."

"Oh! Yes, Lord, of course, I'll just-" Stella began, stopping short as she turned away to follow Raziel's orders. "Wait, is Lorrelin okay? I knew the cut was bad, but-"

"Don't concern yourself with Lorrelin," he replied, putting considerable effort into keeping the impatience out of his tone (and not entirely succeeding). "I'm only keeping her here because she needs to rest and I know that unless I tie her to a damned chair she'll never sit her arse down. Now do as I've commanded; I'll not tell you again!"

Amalia had disengaged from the fascinating book of alchemical recipes the instant she noticed that Lorrelin was upset, and when Raziel shut the door to the lab he found her fussing over the older woman's hair, which had come partway out of the tight bun she usually kept it in. "Don't mind it, Amalia," she sighed, wiping her eyes. "I'll have to take it all the way down to fix it. I should have washed it this morning before I went to bed..."

"When was the last time you got to soak in a tub for a while?" Amalia asked.

"I bathed earlier," Lorrelin explained. "I just kept my hair pinned while I did it. I wanted to go to bed at a reasonable hour for once, and since my hair is so damned thick it takes quite a while to wash and even longer to dry."

"Amalia, are you at all opposed to accompanying Lorrelin to the baths and ensuring that she sits in one for at least half an hour after lunch?" Raziel asked.

"Wait, what? I-"

"Nope. I'll get in with her if I have to."

"You cannot be serious," Lorrelin pleaded.

"Lorrelin, the world is not going to end if you relinquish control of the servants for a few hours."

"You have clearly never seen what happens when they're left to their own devices!"

"I'll hear no more about it. Come, let's go upstairs. You can go down to the baths once you've both eaten."

Upon entering the bedchamber, Amalia took the liberty of making a detour to the vanity while Lorrelin and Raziel continued on. "I'm going to wet a cloth for Lorrelin to wipe her face with," she called from behind them, and he nodded absently as he led Lorrelin out onto the spacious covered balcony, which had a table and chairs at one end and a comfortable chaise lounge at the other. Flowering vines wound their way throughout the railing around the edge, their delicate fragrance hanging in the air. The same floating magical spheres that graced the library cubby floated underneath the awning here, casting their soft light onto every surface and giving the entire space a warm, cozy aura. Below the balcony the Razielim town sprawled between fortress and outer walls, and from this vantage point the full range of stunning architecture was on display. Raziel was known for his emphasis on aesthetics, after all, and nothing made this clearer than the intricately carved woodwork, magnificent statues, and perfectly manicured landscaping that made his clan's home a true wonder to behold. All of this beauty was unfortunately lost on Lorrelin, who promptly broke down completely the moment they were outside, leaning against the wall and burying her face in her hands.

"Lorrelin..." Raziel began, alarmed. "Are you quite sure that your overburdened schedule is the only thing that's vexing you?"

"Yes!" she insisted. "I run a tight ship, you know that, and everything's just gone wrong tonight. And not even just tonight, all week it's been one near-calamity after another, and I can't set one thing right before another goes wrong!"

Unable to bear seeing his chamberlain so upset and feeling a pang of guilt upon realizing that he'd only added to her burdens by charging her with Amalia's care, Raziel reached out and gently ran his talons through her mussed hair, arching a brow when she flinched under his touch. As many times as he'd laid hands on her to correct her misbehavior, he'd never once resorted to outright striking her, and he was baffled at her response. "You do know that I'm not angry with you, I hope?"

She huffed defensively. "I know that," she snapped, wiping her eyes. "I just... Well I'm not exactly used to it, you know! How often do you think anyone sees me like this?"

"I've certainly never seen you like this," he said softly, stroking her hair once more before withdrawing his hand so as not to push what he suspected might be a limit of hers. "Come and sit at the table while we wait for Stella to bring your lunch. I think a full belly, a hot bath, and some rest will do you a world of good. From now on, I'll have Tantallon take on a larger share of Amalia's care. I should have been more cognizant of your workload before adding to it. What else needs to happen to get everything back on track?"

Amalia emerged onto the balcony then, having finally located a cloth to dip into her pitcher of cool drinking water. "Here, Lorrelin," she said softly, offering the cloth up.

"Oh, thank you, dear," Lorrelin replied as she began to dab at her red, puffy eyes, finally drawing in a deep, shuddering breath as she began to calm. "As to your question, my Lord... We're down two line cooks, and we were already stretched thin in that regard. Aside from the broken ankle, we have four servants quarantined in the infirmary due to respiratory illness. It's mild so far, but I'm not about to take any chances. Besides that, three women have given birth since last week, one quite prematurely, and two more are due within three months and thus are on restricted duty. As you know, the autumn harvest has begun, and we'll soon have a glut of produce to process for long-term storage. We need at least one crate of new glass jars to replace the old ones that have chips or cracks, and I haven't been able to procure one; I've sent two letters to the glassmaker and haven't gotten a response to either, and with everything else going sideways I haven't been able to march into town to harass him in person."

"That will be rectified swiftly; I'll summon him to court and demand an explanation. As to the understaffing, I'll send word to Zephon and order him to send a score of the unfortunate wretches bound for Melchiah's supply our way. He won't like it, of course, but that hardly concerns me."

Lorrelin blinked in surprise. "Twenty will be more than enough, my Lord. Ten would suffice, really. Although..." she paused, wrinkling her nose. "Allowing the other ten to fall into Melchiah's horrid grasp isn't something I'm willing to have on my conscience, now that I think of it. We have food and space enough for another score."

"Twenty it is, then. Are there simple tasks to give them to keep them busy until they can be properly trained?"

"There are plenty, I assure you. The little things are what have really been falling to the wayside, what with everything else going on. By now everything has begun to cascade, especially with injuries, illnesses, and maternity reducing our labor force. So long as at least a few of them can handle a needle and thread, we'll at least be able to get caught up on the mending that's been piling up."

Having little to contribute, Amalia sat quietly listening to them iron out the kinks that had formed in Lorrelin's usually flawless system until Stella arrived with lunch, which included, much to Raziel's chagrin, a chalice of blood for his own sustenance since he'd forgotten to ask her to forego it for now. Ah, well. His bride knew she'd married a vampire; he couldn't shield her from seeing him feed forever, and by now he was quite hungry. He glanced at her as Stella took the two plates off the tray she had carried up, noting with satisfaction that she had immediately assumed her pet disguise with hands folded in her lap and eyes fixed firmly on the table. She didn't look in his direction even as Stella set his cup before him.

"Will there be anything else, Lord?" she asked, eyeing Lorrelin's healed thumb.

"Nothing at the moment," he replied, noting where her eyes had landed. "As you can see, Lorrelin's injury has been dealt with and she's quite alright."

"Oh, that's good!" Stella said with obvious relief. "I was worried, Mistress."

"I trust you said nothing to anyone else about why I'm suddenly absent?" Lorrelin asked, rather tersely.

"Oh, no, my Lady! I spun a tale about Lord Raziel having summoned you for a job he needed done right away. I was vague on the details, of course. I hope that wasn't too bold, Lord," she said to Raziel, wincing a bit.

"Not at all, you've done well," he replied, quite pleased. "As I'm sure you've noticed, things have been a bit hectic for you all lately. You'll soon have plenty of extra help."

"I do appreciate your discretion, Stella. Hopefully within a few days we'll be able to stop running around like headless chickens," Lorrelin said darkly as she began to pick at her food. "Run along, now. I'll be heading down to the baths soon enough, but first I'm going to make some more poppy tea for Triss; the first cup will have worn off by time we're finished eating. Let her know, please, and ensure that she's keeping her ankle tightly wrapped and elevated."

"Belay that, Stella," Raziel interjected, holding up his hand. "Go into my lab and retrieve a healing draught to give the girl. The wards are still down from when we went in earlier, so it's quite safe to approach the door. That'll have her back on her feet and she can be put back to work immediately. The finished potions are to the right of the entrance, past the shelves of ingredients. Look for the ones filled with opaque sky blue liquid, third shelf from the top. Any one of them will suffice. I don't believe I need to tell you not to touch anything else."

"Yes, my Lord. I'll get it right away." said Stella. After a brief curtsey, she scurried off to do as she was commanded.

Lorrelin shrugged, looking relieved. "Well, that'll please Triss just fine. I think she was more annoyed at the prospect of having to sit around bored off her arse mending stockings than she was the pain of the broken bones. Though if I'd known you'd be willing to part with one of your potions I'd have been tempted to delay the punishment of the idiot who neglected the torches and hand her the strap instead. She'd have been all too eager to swing it, I'd wager."

Amalia relaxed the instant Stella was back inside, reaching for one of the plump strawberries that sat alongside the steaming bowl of vegetable soup and chunk of buttered bread on her plate. "Your kind certainly does have a fondness for sweet things," Raziel remarked, thinking back to the ill-advised night of gluttony that had ended so badly for him and Tantallon. "Though even I have to admit to liking the taste of fruit. I can't remember what Tantallon called the dessert we ate, but despite how ill it made us I have to concede that it was damned good."

This stopped Lorrelin short. "You ate human food and got sick?" she asked, her spoonful of soup halfway to her mouth. Raziel grit his teeth, kicking himself for speaking so freely of it; he wasn't in the habit of telling that story and didn't relish the idea of giving Lorrelin any ammunition to use against him in the future. He scowled darkly at the smirk that had formed on her face.

"Once, a very long time ago. And once was enough, thank you. I've not touched it since," he stated, reaching for his chalice as if to emphasize his words. He was quite relieved to find that Amalia's only response to seeing him take a sip of the blood was a wrinkled nose and a flat "I'm not kissing you for a while."

"That's fair, I suppose," he replied with a casual shrug as Lorrelin snorted with laughter. It was far from her usual loud cackle, but heartening nonetheless. "Eat well, both of you, and then it's straight to the baths with you. Half an hour in the tub, at least, Lorrelin," he said, ignoring the way his chamberlain rolled her eyes, "And then you're to stay in your room for the rest of the night. You needn't worry about the fortress descending any further into chaos; I'll send word to Zephon this very night. Go read a book, or something."

"I don't have any I haven't already read," she shrugged.

"Then get one from the library on your way out, and return it later when you've finished it." Raziel insisted. "Whatever it takes for you to indulge in a bit of the recreation you're so insistent on everyone else having time to do. I need you at the top of your game, Lorrelin, and if you won't take care of yourself of your own volition then I will make you."

They soon finished their repast, and once they got to their feet Lorrelin promptly began to shoo Amalia back toward the bedchamber. "Do me a favor, love, and go find a book on the magical arts for me while I round up the dishes. I've no talent for magic myself, but I find it fascinating and I'd rather not start yet another novel."

"Books detailing the finer points of magic are among the ones that Rahab brought back earlier, Amalia," Raziel called to her as she slipped inside, nodding over her shoulder before disappearing. The instant the door was shut Lorrelin turned to him, stepped forward, and threw her arms around him.

To say Raziel was shocked would have been the understatement of the century. It wasn't that he didn't know that Lorrelin genuinely cared for him despite their contentious dynamic, it was that she'd never once displayed it by initiating any sort of physical contact with him. The moment was over as suddenly as it began; before he could so much as rest his talons upon her in return she let him go and stepped away, looking equal parts confused and disturbed.

"I don't know what I expected from that," she said bluntly, shuddering slightly. "I should have just said 'Thank you for stepping in to help' and been done with it."

He arched a brow at her. "Have you... never hugged anyone before?"

"I'm not usually the touchy-feely sort, alright?" she snapped. "Why do you think I never-" She cut herself off here, looking aghast, as if she couldn't believe she'd come out and said it.

It didn't take a genius to understand her meaning, though Raziel couldn't believe she'd finally brought it up after all these years, even if she hadn't meant to. "It... would be exceptionally difficult to complete the act without making physical contact, yes," he began. Now, he knew he probably ought to refrain from pouncing on the opportunity to tease her about it. It would cost him absolutely nothing to keep his mouth shut and let it go, just as he had the first time they had spoken of this.

Did he resist the temptation? No. "...but I'd have been happy to give it a go regardless," he finished with a smirk and a casual shrug.

She rounded on him in an instant with a baleful glare and jabbed her finger at his face. "This conversation did not happen."

He lit up with a malicious grin as she huffily began to stack the lunch dishes in preparation to bear them away. "Magic does go quite a long way, after all. Might have done you some good, actually. Perhaps if you'd been achieving orgasm on the regular this entire time your disposition would be more pleasant."

To his surprise, rather than become flustered she merely scoffed. "You assume, quite narcissistically as usual, that I require your talents in that regard. I can assure you that I manage quite well on my own."

My, but Lorrelin was full of surprises today! It took considerable effort not to let his shock register on his face, but he managed to play it cool, bent on winning this round of verbal sparring. "Well, what's your excuse, then?" he asked. Realizing that the only way to win this game was to refuse to play it, Lorrelin simply clammed up as she continued to fuss with the dishes. 

He chose his next angle of attack based more on sheer morbid curiosity than any desire to fluster her further, though he in no way expected her to actually indulge him. "Did you ever consider it?"

That stopped her short, and she heaved an exasperated sigh. "Your ego knows no bounds," she snapped. "If I promise to answer that question honestly, will you promise to drop the issue and never bring it up again?"

Full. of. surprises. "You have my word," he quickly agreed, once he'd picked his jaw up off the floor.

"Fine," she said, refusing to look at him. "Yes, I did. After I ran from the initial proposition, I thought about it for several days, in fact. I waffled back and forth, wondering if perhaps I should return to you and let you do as you pleased with me. Just so that I could say that I had, so I'd know what it was like."

Raziel blinked, promptly forgetting his desire to rankle her altogether. The time for teasing had clearly flown, and his expression grew serious. "I wouldn't have done whatever I pleased, Lorrelin," he said, softly. "Your inexperience would have become apparent immediately, and I'd have taken all night to make you comfortable enough to engage if that's what it took. For god's sake, the last thing I'd ever want is for you to regret it."

"I know that," she replied. "That's the only reason I ever considered it in the first place. I knew that if I wanted to explore that part of myself, you were by far my safest bet, and not only because I wouldn't have to worry about you knocking me up."

"So why didn't you? Do you not realize how much fun we could have been having this entire time?" he laughed. Perhaps she was too innocent to realize to what extent a dynamic like theirs could lead to aggressive, explosively mind-blowing sex, but Raziel was well aware of it, and as hedonistic as he was he couldn't help but feel as if they'd both missed out somehow.

"Because as it turns out, that part of me doesn't exist," she shrugged. "I don't think I'd be able to enjoy the experience regardless of how patient you were with me. If it had to be someone, then yes, I suppose it would be you. But after torturing myself over it for a few days I realized that it didn't have to be someone. It didn't have to be anyone. I'm perfectly content managing my own affairs in that regard; I find the idea of involving anyone else somewhat repulsive, actually. Once I came to that conclusion, I was happy with it, and I trusted that you would let the matter rest if I didn't bring it up again."

Raziel crossed his arms and leaned back against the wall, contemplating as he regarded her. "Yes, but there must be something I could do to... You've truly no sexual desire at all? I'm quite certain I could find a way to ignite at least some passion," he said, tilting his head as he peered at her. As he'd mentioned to Tantallon and Amalia before, he'd always suspected that Lorrelin had little to no interest in sex, but now that he was actually thinking about it he found it utterly baffling. How could anyone go through life perfectly content never to share such pleasure with another? And she was already somewhere in her fourth decade; how much time did she have left in her short human lifespan to learn to enjoy these things? Surely Amalia would understand if he wanted to help; sharp tongue or no, she was clearly compassionate and generous, and he very much doubted she'd refuse to allow him to do what he could for Lorrelin out of petty jealousy.

Lorrelin quashed the idea immediately. "There's that ego again," she replied with a roll of her eyes. "My Lord, I have no doubt that you are the most fantastic lover alive, capable of wringing a toe-curling orgasm from a stone. And I know that you're not coming from a place of selfishness now any more than you were the first time, truly I do. But I'll still thank you to stop eyeing me up the way you are right now, as if I'm a problem that needs solving. Perhaps you didn't hear me just a moment ago when I told you that I'm quite content with things as they are."

He wilted a bit at her admonishment, realizing that he'd more or less just propositioned her again, except this time he was approaching the matter as if she were some sort of science project rather than just trying to ascertain whether or not she were up for some mutual mischief. "Forgive me, Lorrelin... I didn't at all mean to demean you," he said, genuinely remorseful. "If you truly are content with things as they are, then that's really all that matters. I just find it difficult to understand, I suppose."

"Yes, well, I find it difficult to understand the appeal of getting naked and mashing your parts together, but here we are."

"Well if you phrase it like that, of course it sounds repulsive," he huffed with a roll of his eyes. "Come, let's go and make sure Amalia was able to locate the shelf that Rahab was at earlier. Either she couldn't remember which it was or she got distracted, else she'd have returned by now."

"Wait, Rahab was here?" Lorrelin asked, immediately alarmed.

"Did you not hear me mention him to Amalia before she left? He let himself in earlier this evening without so much as a by-your-leave, and an encounter between him and Amalia was inevitable. We played our parts well, however... which unfortunately means he treated her as exactly what he believed her to be. As you can imagine, she now absolutely loathes him."

"That is unfortunate indeed. He usually at least waits to be let in."

"Yes, clearly I'll have to discourage him from taking such liberties." Raziel replied as they went back in. "And by 'discourage', I mean 'threaten', of course. Come on, let's get you both down to the baths."

Chapter Text

When Raziel and Lorrelin entered the library looking for Amalia, they found her looking through a shelf along the opposite wall of the one she needed to be searching. "I didn't realize until I was already at the door that I didn't actually see Rahab put the books back," she said. "I had my eyes glued to the upholstery in the cubby."

Ah, right. "As you should have," said Raziel, redirecting her to the proper shelf. "This is the one he borrowed from... and now that I'm looking at it I'm reminded that he left without borrowing any new ones, which means he'll probably come right back."

"Tell him I'm deathly ill when he shows up and boot him back out the door. If he comes at me with another bowl of grapes I'm going to absolutely lose my shit."

"You will do no such thing," Raziel admonished, immediately moving on before she could argue with him. "Lorrelin, do you see one that catches your interest?"

"What do you think of this one?" she asked, handing him a medium sized book with a leather cover embellished with stylized symbols representing a drop of water, a snowflake, and a cloud.

"This is one of the ones he just brought back," he informed her, flipping through the book's pages. "A book on magical theory as pertaining to spells that involve water, from basic cantrips all the way through advanced spellweaving that can enable you to breathe while fully submerged or summon shards of ice that you can send at an opponent at blinding speeds. Much of the theory surrounding magic is speculative at best, of course; no one truly knows what makes it work. We can experiment and get consistent results, but it's difficult to draw conclusions about what natural processes produce those results. Honestly, Lorrelin, I'm not certain I want this one to leave the library... despite its focus on theory it does outline how to build on the basics to achieve advanced results, and I'd rather it not fall into the wrong hands."

"You let him leave with it!"

"Yes, because no one is going to attempt to take it from him; he's a Clanlord, none would dare. You, on the other hand..."

Lorrelin huffed in irritation. "I don't suppose you'd be willing to loosen your obnoxiously tight grip on my evening somewhat and allow me to stay here in the library rather than take a second bath tonight?"

Raziel considered it a moment, then relented with a sigh, waving her away as he turned toward his desk. "Fine. Take it and go to the cubby to read it. I need to write to Zephon."

Amalia was torn for a moment between accompanying Lorrelin to go and look through what was no doubt another fascinating book and following Raziel to his desk to observe him going about his usual business. She ultimately decided to follow her husband, reasoning that the book would still be there when Lorrelin was through with it, and then she wouldn't have to share it. "Your desk is kind of a mess," she laughed as she approached it.

"It's..." he began, thinking a moment before heaving another sigh. "It isn't a mess to me; I know my own system. The system isn't particularly useful these days, of course, but I haven't gotten around to clearing everything away."

"There are lots of maps," Amalia noted, gazing at the closest of the tables surrounding the desk, which was covered in them. "What's this valley here? Mountains on three sides, ocean to the south. Seems like a good place to build a fortress if you don't put it right next to the coast."

"Darling, that is Nosgoth itself," he laughed. "See the dots representing the cities and strongholds?"

Upon closer look, it became obvious that the area the map covered was much larger than she had realized at first glance. "Oh, wow. Yeah, now that I'm really looking..." she trailed off, her eyes roaming over the details. "Where are we?"

Raziel pointed to an area in the western region. "This here is the Sanctuary of the Clans, which is where Kain resides. You'd have followed this road here to come to me," he said, trailing his claw along a thin line drawn between the two places. "This is our home here. To the northwest is Melchiah's domain, to the southwest is Rahab's. Technically, he has the largest territory out of all of us, if you're looking at where the boundaries are drawn. That's because his land isn't particularly desirable, what with all the water, and no one bothers to challenge his claim on it."

"Sucks to suck." she replied with a smirk.

Raziel shot her a look, not understanding what exactly the unfamiliar phrase meant but discerning from her tone and smug expression that it was something derogatory. Ultimately he decided to let it go. "Turel and Dumah are northeast of here, near where this mountain range extends north to south. Zephon is due east. The major cities outside each clan's territory aren't held by any one clan; their populations are made up of vampires from each. There are villages of unclaimed wild humans dotted throughout the land, but the only major population center they have left is the citadel up in the mountains here."

"How kind of you all to leave them a few small scraps of semi-freedom."

He winced at the edge in her voice. How did she expect him to respond to that? He wasn't going to tell her he was sorry or make excuses, because as far as he was concerned the vampire race had done nothing wrong in conquering and domesticating their prey.

"Forgot I was human for a minute there, didn't you?"

"I don't know what you want me to say," he snapped, feeling defensive regardless of his whole-hearted belief in the superiority of their species. "And I don't know why you'd care; perhaps your own memory has failed you, but you're not from Nosgoth. You're not one of them, and things aren't going to change for them, so you might as well get used to the way things are here."

It was unclear what exactly Amalia had been hoping to achieve by needling him about the way her kind was treated in Nosgoth, but she was still taken aback by his angry response. It took a great deal of effort not to escalate things further. She had to remind herself that her time here was temporary; that Kain planned to set things right and ensure that the subjugation of Nosgoth's humans would never happen in the first place. "You're right," she said, intent on dropping the issue. "I'm not one of them."

Raziel sighed softly. "Forgive me, cyar'ika, I shouldn't have spoken so sharply."

"Whatever," she shrugged. "It's like you said. It's just the way things are here." For now. Only for now. She had to remember that.

"I know it's difficult for you to understand," he said, softly. "I know that your world is ruled by humans alone; that you have no competition there. But here in Nosgoth there are two sapient species who went to war, and we're the ones who happened to come out on top. And I'll bet this entire library that the humans where you hail from have done the exact same things we're doing, only to one another. Those flying machines you showed us weren't dropping bombs filled with pretty pink bubbles. You said it yourself, you've invented weapons that can level entire cities and kill everyone within."

Fuck. He wasn't wrong. "Yeah," she said, after looking somewhat gutted a moment. "Yeah, you're right. God, we're just as bad as you are."

His eyes softened, and he reached over to stroke her hair. "Life is a constant struggle when resources are limited, darling, and they always are. Everyone wants to eat-"

"But no one wants to be eaten, yeah... I know," she replied, stopping just short of telling him that Kain had said the exact same thing to her as they traveled. She knew that drawing his attention to her time with him could have disastrous results should he start asking questions.

"Precisely. Now, why don't you go find a book of your own to read while I write this letter? Lorrelin won't be keen to share the close quarters of the cubby, but there's a fire lit out in the parlor and the couch there is quite comfortable."

Amalia wasn't sure how well she'd do at focusing on a book after narrowly avoiding what could have been an explosive fight between them, to say nothing of the depressingly illuminating conversation that followed. Nonetheless, she turned away and went to find the one with the animal spiral that he'd been reading to her before they'd fallen asleep. Once she had it in hand, she slipped out into the silent parlor and stood before the roaring fire, placing the book on the mantel so that she could warm herself a moment. She'd noticed that while Raziel seemed to enjoy heat, he did not appear to notice or be particularly bothered by cold. Outside the range of any of the fireplaces his home was rather chilly, and the opportunity to luxuriate in the fire's warmth was welcome. Once she'd finished warming her front and turned to warm her rear, her gaze swept through the room and fell on the entrance to a corridor along the left wall, and her face lit up. She'd never been down there! Eager for further distraction from her current state of mind, she promptly forgot about the book and fire and went to investigate.

The corridor was well lit, and at the end she could see the fountain that trickled down into the basin below. The decor was surprisingly sparse down there, she thought, considering who lived here. Maybe he'd let her do something with it... she wouldn't mind having a little spot to herself, especially if it had a fountain. Two wooden doors sat opposite one another just a few paces ahead of her, piquing her curiosity. She hadn't been forbidden from exploring, so she didn't expect she'd be in any trouble for investigating either room. Faced with the decision of which door to try first, she reached for the one to her left... the one that led to Raziel's armory.

"Amalia, no!" 

Before she could even turn around she was grabbed roughly from behind and dragged backward down the hall toward the parlor. Panicked, she struggled with all her might, and when one of the arms holding her hostage moved upward to keep hold of her, she bit into it with all the force she could muster. It gained her absolutely no ground; the flesh was solid and unyielding, as if protected by armor underneath the skin. There was a soft growl from behind her as her assailant stilled and tightened his hold even further.

"I would suggest, child," came a deep, familiar voice, "That you take your harmless but annoying little human teeth off of the arm of the vampire who just saved you from instant obliteration."

The hair on the back of Amalia's neck stood on end as she realized who had accosted her. She released Rahab's arm from between her teeth, then slowly turned as he loosened his grasp on her, looking up into his icy blue eyes without even thinking. They narrowed immediately, and he crossed his arms and pointedly cleared his throat. She needed no further bidding to drop down to kneel before him, breathing hard. What had just happened? What did he mean by instant obliteration?

Rahab dragged his palm down his face as he stared down at her. Had his idiot brother not told her which of the doors in his residence were warded? "I'm going to assume that wasn't a suicide attempt, and that you are wholly ignorant of the danger of trying to walk through every door you come across. Many of them, such as the ones leading to your master's personal armory and alchemy lab, are protected from intrusion by magical wards. Had you touched that door, you'd have promptly fallen down dead," he admonished, causing the hair on the back of her neck to stand up all over again as she realized how close she'd just come to... well, instant obliteration.

"I didn't know! I saw him do something to the lab door before he took me in but I didn't know what it was!"

"And you weren't able to infer from that observation that it may have been some sort of barrier to entry, knowing what was in that room?" He asked, his voice full of scorn. "And here I thought you were intelligent."

She was too upset at the realization that Raziel had failed to warn her about a lethal danger within their own home to become indignant at Rahab's words. "I wouldn't have expected something that could kill me! I didn't think he'd let me get hurt," she squeaked, beginning to cry.

Rahab pinched the bridge of his nose, annoyed at the pang of pity he'd felt when she broke down. Amalia clearly revered his brother. It was an unfortunate tendency of human pets; they often grew far more attached to their masters than their masters were to them. He knew all too well how that felt; he could still remember the exact moment when it became apparent that his deep love for Kain was entirely one-sided. As a fledgling, not even a year old, he'd narrowly escaped an ambush by vampire hunters. Panicked and weeping, he had sought comfort from his sire only to be shoved roughly away and told that he'd have deserved whatever he got had he let them catch him. It was Raziel who'd consoled him and rallied the rest of their brethren to go and wipe the band of hunters out in retaliation for daring to attack him. Rahab had never gone to Kain again looking for sympathy; he'd run straight to his brother even after Lenore had... Ah, but it was best not to risk another emotional spiral by dwelling on that. The fact was, Raziel should have known that Amalia would trust him to ensure her safety, especially within their own home. With a deep sigh, he knelt down to catch her under the arm. "Come now, on your feet. Where is he, anyway?" Amalia pointed to the library, and Rahab promptly dragged her to the door and pushed her in ahead of him.

Raziel was at his desk, furiously scribbling away at a sheet of parchment, completely engrossed. It was only when Rahab cleared his throat that he looked up, only to find his crying bride standing in front of his brother, whose irritation was plain on his face. As much as he knew he needed to keep cool, his quill immediately snapped in his hand.

"If I were you, Rahab, I'd start explaining while I'm still a safe distance away."

"You didn't tell her the door to your armory was warded," Rahab stated. "You idiot."

That stopped him short, and his eyes widened as he realized what had almost happened. 

"Perhaps you ought to search your shelves for a book on the proper care and keeping of humans within private dwellings," Rahab sniped, arms crossed and indignant. "I'd suggest skipping straight to the chapter about house-proofing."

"She was told," he gritted as he stood and walked out from behind his desk, "To sit on the couch and read while I work."

Rahab was surprised to hear that Amalia knew how to read, but filed the knowledge away for later. "We tell every fledgling we sire to stay where we put them because the world is a dangerous place, Raziel, but is it wise to leave them to their own devices regardless? Is such an error the fault of the child when the parent sets it up to fail rather than succeed?"

Amalia would honestly have given Rahab credit for sticking up for her regardless of her dislike of him, if not for what came next. "She still ought to be soundly whipped for her impulsiveness, of course. Have you anything to hang her from? I'll bind her wrists and get her in place while you retrieve the lash. It needs to be done sooner rather than later if you want the lesson to stick." Her thoughts immediately went back to his promise to give her a hiding if she put herself in danger, and terror seized her now that she was being faced with exactly that, particularly if he was going to allow Rahab to involve himself. But this had to be an act he was putting on. He wouldn't, surely he wouldn't-

"That won't be necessary, brother," said Raziel, causing her to nearly collapse from relief. "I'm willing to concede that most of the fault lies with me and thus grant her clemency this one time," he replied, turning to Amalia and giving her a pointed look. "Do you hear that, little human? One time. If I catch you messing around where you don't belong in the future, I'll send for him immediately and we'll hang you so high your feet won't touch the ground and then take turns painting stripes across your back. Is that clear?"

She nodded vigorously, fighting to calm herself. "Yes, Master. I won't, I promise."

Rahab only shrugged. "You're putting an awful lot of faith in her, but she's your pet. Very well, I'll go and choose new books, and then I'll be on my way."

"What the hell are you doing back here so long after leaving anyway? I expected that if you intended to return for new books, you'd have come back for them right away."

"I was already ten paces out of the fortress when I realized I'd left without taking any, so I opted to simply go into town and see if any of your bookstores had anything worthwhile," said Rahab, running the tips of his claws across the spines of the books he was perusing. "They didn't have anything I hadn't already read, and your children were beginning to irritate me with their fawning, so that's when I came back."

Raziel gave him a wry look. "Most of us would be pleased to be given the proper deference by those beneath us, you know."

Rahab only snorted as he pulled a book from the shelf and held it in the crook of his arm. "Not me," he replied. "I'd rather simply be left alone."

"You'd best find a book about glamours, then, if you want to move about in public undetected."

That prompted a sharp look from Rahab as he was reminded of a promise which had yet to be fulfilled. "You said you'd teach me to brew potions for that purpose," he pouted.

So he had, and he knew Rahab wasn't likely to let the matter rest any longer since he'd already been hounding him about it for months. Irritated, he decided to just get it over with. "Fine, you big baby," he sniped. "Come to the lab and I'll show you the basics. Anything to stop your badgering me about it."

"I know the basics!" Rahab huffed, offended, as he pulled two more books from the shelves. "You're not the only one who knows how to brew. Shapechanging potions are well beyond basic."

Raziel ignored him in favor of pretending to admonish Amalia. "You," he began, pointing a claw at her as he strode past her, "Are coming with us, because I'm not about to let you go wandering on your own again. You will sit quietly on the floor and touch nothing." The book she'd taken to read was still sitting on the mantel, but when she went to get it as they passed the fireplace he stopped her. "Leave it. I'm not particularly inclined to allow you to bring it after your attempt at snooping around, so if you're bored in there it's your own fault."

Amalia wasn't feeling particularly charitable toward him, either, and her feelings weren't an act. Joke's on you, you negligent fuck, she thought spitefully, even though she knew his admonishment was only for show. I'd never get bored in there. It took all her willpower not to glare up at him once they'd entered the lab and he'd directed her to a spot on the floor next to the clean empty cauldrons. She did, however, stick her tongue out at the back of his head the instant neither vampire was looking.

Raziel, for his part, was now torn between guilt for his blunder and annoyance at himself for so readily inviting Rahab to stick around by offering to finally make good on his promise. Learning to brew shapechanging potions was a lengthy process, and though Rahab was a fast learner, it would still likely take several sessions for him to consistently get it right. Still, if Raziel established a schedule for his lessons he knew that his brother would stick to it, which would at least eliminate any possibility of him showing up unannounced for a while.

Furthermore, he was well aware that despite his introversion Rahab was incredibly lonely. He'd always had a tendency to isolate himself, and that had only gotten worse in the years since Lenore had been murdered. Raziel and Tantallon were the only people in existence that he regularly reached out to; he'd long since given up on Kain ever wanting to interact with him any further than it took for him to bark an order in his direction. Even the elders of his clan were held at arm's length and dealt with only in terms of governing his offspring or commanding his army, and there was little for the army to do these days besides drill. He was certain that his brother was resourceful and talented enough to learn to brew these potions on his own, and that the only reason he wanted Raziel to teach him was so that he had an excuse to spend time with him. He wouldn't deny him that, not after all he'd been through.

"Retrieve the ingredients to prepare both a basic cleanser and a simple hair alteration mixture. The latter will be the base which we'll build upon, and the former will be used to test the potion at a later stage. If it hardens, we'll set the mixture aside, prepare the next set of reagents, and then leave off and pick things up at a later date." Raziel instructed, and Amalia watched as Rahab immediately went to the proper shelves and began pulling from them. Clearly he'd been in here before if he was this familiar with everything. "Amalia, I've changed my mind; you're going to make yourself useful. Bring two of those small cauldrons over here." 

Irritable though she was, Amalia couldn't help but be somewhat delighted by the prospects of being involved in the fascinating process of potion brewing. She first tried to lift both cauldrons at once, but they were far too heavy, so she took hold of the handle of the nearest one and wordlessly hauled it over before repeating the process with another. Then she stood awaiting further orders, resolving to be on her absolute best behavior so as not to be dismissed from service and pointed back to the floor.

The next hour passed quickly. Rahab's presence was easy to ignore; he remained entirely focused on the task at hand and rarely spoke except to ask the occasional question or seek clarification on an instruction. Raziel moved throughout the lab with practiced ease, measuring this and combining it with that, adjusting the flames burning underneath beakers, and taking over stirring the cauldrons on occasion so that Rahab could take a moment to study what the recipe book had to say about the process. When all was said and done, a measure of each mixture was decanted into clean beakers and an eyedropper was used to add a drop of one into the other. It instantly solidified and cracked, throwing up a small puff of dust. This was apparently the result the vampires had hoped for, because Rahab broke out into a satisfied grin and Raziel gave him a shrug. "Well, there it is," he said. "I'll need to get ahold of some coltsfoot extract for the next step, but we can still prepare the rest of the ingredients."

Rahab was scratching at the solidified cleansing potion with the tip of his claw, and only nodded absently. "I've got some, actually. I'll bring it when I return." This was when he noticed Amalia eyeing the open recipe book, which was sitting on its stand in plain view. Thinking back to earlier, he turned to his brother, confused. "Who the hell taught her to read, Raziel? Surely not you, if you've only had her a few days."

Raziel shrugged casually. "No idea," he said, quite truthfully. "She knew how when she arrived, much to my own surprise."

"She must have been a nobleman's daughter, then. They do occasionally educate their women. I'd slap her hand off that book if I were you, however," he said, nodding to where Amalia was resting her fingers on one of the pages. She immediately withdrew her hand and directed her gaze at the floor.

"She's fine," he replied with another casual shrug. "She's not going to harm it and she's clearly fascinated by the contents."

"She bit me earlier, you know," Rahab said with irritation in his voice. Raziel had not been expecting this and couldn't help but burst into raucous laughter, causing him to throw his hands up in exasperation. "It's not funny, you half-wit! Gods above, why do I tell you anything?"

"Why did she bite you?" Raziel asked, still laughing.

"I had to grab her and haul her backward away from the stupid door before the pretty little idiot could touch it! I gave her the benefit of the doubt and assumed that it was a panic response, and that she didn't know who had taken hold of her. Otherwise she'd be dead and you'd be accepting my apologies."

"And you'd be accepting my boot up your arse," Raziel sniped, knowing that Rahab was all talk. "I'm unlikely to find another like her."

Amalia grit her teeth, annoyed at once again being discussed as if she weren't present and wishing she could bite them both right where they stood. She didn't dare touch the book again; there would be time for that later and she was only drawing attention to herself by displaying her interest in it.

"You do intend to modify the wards to simply give her a mild shock if she activates them, I hope."

Raziel huffed a sigh. "Yes, yes. I'll get to work on that as soon as you're out of here. Let's finish the task at hand, and then you can return a week from now to move on to the next step. Amalia, go back to the library and sit in the cubby. You may take the book from the mantel with you, since you've managed to behave yourself all this time. Even if you did bite Rahab earlier," he said, beginning to laugh anew and causing Rahab to shoot him a look. 

"Yes, Master," replied Amalia, but she was not any more amused than Rahab. Her tone was perfectly polite, but her gaze hardened into a glare when he met her eyes, and he suspected he'd have a bit of groveling to do once they were alone again. He was not wrong.

"What the entire fuck, Raziel?" Amalia hissed the instant he returned to the library to find her and Lorrelin waiting for him.

"Amalia, please, I-"

"You both are very, very lucky," said Lorrelin.

"Stay out of this, Lorrelin! You didn't think to mention the wards to her either, and you're just as aware of them as I am!" He had a point, and Lorrelin shut her mouth. "I'm sorry, my love. It was a terrible thing for me to have overlooked. I should have explained them when I dispelled the door to the lab. I was simply too distracted to give it any thought at the time."

"Are there any other non-vampire death traps around here I ought to know of?" Amalia asked, arms crossed.

"No, the only doors beside the outer ones that are warded are the lab and armory."

"Oh, so the outer doors would have killed me too?"

"Only if you had approached them from the outside!" Raziel exclaimed, knowing that it had not helped his case any.

Amalia groaned. "What about the other door in the hallway?"

"That one is safe, there's little in there but a woodstove, wall art, and an ancient couch. Tantallon and I read there often. There is no more danger, Amalia. I'll modify the wards to recognize you and permit you entry right away. From now on you can touch any door you like. Nothing else is warded, and this is your home as much as mine. You're welcome to explore all you want, and I hope the display I put on for Rahab's sake didn't make you feel otherwise."

Amalia was still annoyed. "Fine. I'm going to read the alchemy book."

Raziel had hoped to further placate her by telling her that he intended to allow her to take over the room with the couch and stove, but she was already stalking back to the lab's door. He dejectedly followed Lorrelin into the library to finish the letter that he still needed to send. Remembering that he'd snapped his favorite quill earlier, he sighed deeply as he fished a new one out of a drawer and took up writing again, needing only to add the last few words.

Zephon-

I require twenty humans of good health and sturdiness, suitable for general labor. Take them from among the supply destined for Melchiah; I doubt he'll miss them. Send them immediately, and if you're considering any trickery, I would strongly suggest you reconsider.

                                                                  - Raziel

Once he'd signed his name he folded the letter, sealed it with wax, and wordlessly left to go and hand it off to a messenger. He needed a strand of Amalia's hair in order to rework the wards to allow her access, and for a moment considered going up to the bedchamber upon his return to look for one on the pillows, but ultimately decided it was too cowardly an approach. No, once he returned from his errand, he'd have to talk to her. Fortunately, it took him a while to make the trip to the antechamber leading into the stables where the on-call messengers waited to be given something to deliver. Raziel was relieved to see that one of the three present was male; Zephon preferred the attention of women, and he wasn't about to send one of them to inevitably face his brother's groping and degrading remarks. The man he handed the letter to clearly did not want to have to deal with Zephon's nonsense either, but he nonetheless dutifully bowed to Raziel and went to saddle a horse. By time he'd returned to his chambers and hesitantly opened the door to the lab, Amalia thankfully seemed to have cooled off a bit.

"Teach me how to do this, and I'll forgive you," she said without even looking up from the book.

"Is that all you require?" Raziel laughed, relieved. "You'll need to learn to perform basic magic if you want to create anything interesting, but yes, I'll teach you."

"How am I supposed to do magic?" she asked, dismayed. "We don't have any. None of us can do it."

"There's almost certainly some magic inherent to your world. Your kind simply hasn't discovered it, I'm sure, what with your preference for technology. All humans have at least a small amount running through their veins, though few are able to harness it to any useful extent."

"How do we know if I do or not?"

Ah, he'd been hoping she'd ask him that! "Give me your hand," he replied, grinning ear to ear.

She immediately shied away from him. "No, you're going to slice it open! I know you are, because I know that look."

"I only need a drop, darling," he soothed. "The healing draughts are right here; the pain will be fleeting."

"Ugh, fine," she relented, offering her hand and closing her eyes when he put the tip of a claw to the end of her index finger.

Raziel knew that the pain would be sharp, and did his best to make the cut quick and clean. She winced and grit her teeth as her bright red blood began to seep from the wound, and after letting it flow a moment he scraped what had gathered there off with the side of his claw and brought it to his lips, eager for his first taste of her.

But something was wrong. It wasn't the slight difference in taste from the human blood he was used to; that was to be expected from one from the other side of Nosgoth, much less one from another world entirely. The issue was the total absence of any detectable magic. Amalia had been right... her blood was completely sterile and inert, unable to even serve any use in potions. Hell, he wasn't even sure if it would be able to sustain a vampire were one to feed from her.

She noticed the puzzled look on his face, and shrugged. "Told you," she said, withdrawing her hand and making her way to the shelf to get one of the healing potions, knowing from his earlier description of them to reach for the ones which were her favorite color. Raziel lifted her hand to his lips and sucked at the wound when she returned to him, only to come to the same conclusion: The humans of her world truly did not possess any magical capabilities whatsoever. It was really rather disappointing; he'd been looking forward to teaching her how to harness this power only to find that there was absolutely nothing to harness. "I'll still teach you what I can, cyar'ika," he said apologetically, watching her pour a drop of the potion onto the cut. "But I'm afraid your instincts were correct. Your blood is completely inert. It's honestly quite unfathomable."

Amalia was too busy dealing with the furious potion-induced itching to pay much attention. She scratched at the new skin with her thumbnail, rubbed it on her clothes, and finally resorted to chewing on it. "Get that out of your mouth," he chided, slapping her hand and earning himself a scowl. "Go and wash it, the cold water in the basin will help. Then I'll need a strand of your hair in order to modify the wards. You can go on back to the library once you've plucked one for me. I'll return momentarily and we can go about our business."

Having finally grown bored with her book, Lorrelin soon opted to return to her room and go to bed a few hours early. Raziel sent Tantallon to retrieve Amalia's dinner in her stead, and when he returned to the library he was carrying several bundles wrapped in brown paper and tied with string. "Your clothes are here, Amalia," he said cheerily, handing the packages off to Raziel.

"...Didn't you just order those yesterday?"

Raziel shrugged. "The tailors knew who was asking for them. They probably worked through the whole day to get it all finished. Oh, no you don't," he suddenly exclaimed, snatching up the tray that Tantallon had just sat down on his desk and heading out to the parlor with the whole lot. "You can eat out here, I'll not have you making a mess of my workspace." Amalia would surely have had a smart remark for him if not for her interest in her new clothes. "Let me see them!"

"Your meal will go cold, Amalia. Eat first, then you can look." She groaned and flung herself moodily down onto the couch, where she was forced to endure several admonitions to stop bolting her food before finally being allowed to unwrap the packages.

Inside the largest were two identical tunics that sat neatly folded on top of two identical pairs of plain brown cloth breeches with laces similar to the ones she'd seen on other pairs of pants here in Nosgoth (though not nearly so fancy as the ones that were popular with the Razielim, which were made of fine black leather.) Both tunics were the perfect shade of sky blue, just like she'd told Lorrelin, and were trimmed with copper colored embroidery which complimented her hair. 

"You see, Amalia, the designs are elegant, but quite simple save for the edging on the tunics, which I'll bet they already had lying around finished from an earlier project," Tantallon pointed out. "That's how they got them here so fast." Immensely pleased, she took one into the library and emerged a moment later with it on, carrying the plain gown she'd had on before in one hand.

Raziel had gone to retrieve a collar for her to try on, and soon returned with it. "You'll have to wear the collar I had made for Thomas for now," he said, wiping the dust from it with the edge of his shirt. "It ought to fit around that skinny little bird neck of yours with the clasp at its loosest," he followed up with an obnoxious smirk, causing Tantallon to snicker. "I'll have one made for you soon enough."

"'Bird neck'," Amalia groused, shooting him a withering glance as she pulled on one of the pairs of breeches. "You're the one who can't keep his lips off it."

"I am a vampire, am I not?"

She stuck her tongue out at him as she pulled her hair up out of the way so that he could fit her with the slim collar. This was made of fine black leather, and had golden studs the whole way around in the shape of Raziel's clan symbol. Once Raziel made sure it wasn't too tight, he handed her the belt that had been made for the tunic, which was made of light brown leather that was studded similarly to the collar.

"Your own collar will be larger, obviously," he said. "This is what you'll wear when we're out for a stroll or to pay someone a visit."

The other packages contained a multitude of stockings and undergarments, along with three nightgowns which were far more flattering than the one Lorrelin had given her. The only thing missing was a pair of shoes, which confused her a moment until she remembered that Lorrelin hadn't measured her feet the other day. Perhaps she'd ask for some later; she couldn't imagine Raziel denying her. For now, dawn was soon to arrive, and she was content to follow the two vampires up to the bedchamber and settle down between them to sleep.

Chapter Text

Raziel's messenger returned the next evening, and he and Tantallon were waiting in the stables to receive him.

"Does he intend to do as I've commanded?" Raziel asked the moment the vampire dismounted and handed off the horse to an attendant.

"Yes, Lord. He huffed and puffed about it, of course, and he practically threw me out on my arse after giving his reply, but he is going to send the humans our way," the messenger said. "Furthermore, he says he has important information that he needs to share with you."

"Information indeed," Raziel snorted, exchanging glances with his firstborn. "A pack of lies, no doubt. Let him share this 'information', then. I'll sort out whatever might actually be useful quickly enough, and disregard everything else. Tantallon, prepare to receive his emissary tomorrow; and be ready to do a thorough search of their person before you even bring them through our gates. I want them under guard from the instant they arrive to the instant the gates are locked behind them on their way out. The humans are to be searched as well; make sure there is a mage present to ensure that none of them are Zephonim spies disguised with a glamour. I'll ensure the servants have their quarters well prepared for the new arrivals."

"Yes, Sire."

Unfortunately, it wasn't an emissary who shepherded the herd of humans toward the stronghold shortly after the next sunset. Tantallon stood between two scorpions mounted on the top of the east wall, squinting up the road that wound its way toward the horizon. Slight build that made him the smallest of the six lieutenants, short hair that was greased and styled upwards into a ridiculous looking point, grey banner hanging from his right shoulder... There could be no mistake. The vampire in question was Zephon himself, and Raziel would not be pleased to host him. With a sigh, he turned and strode back along the walltop to the fortress to inform his sire of the imminent visit.

It only took them an hour to reach the east gate, and Raziel was standing outside waiting when they got there. The stock Zephon had brought looked solid, at least; he couldn't fault his brother there. He was in no way about to let him off the hook for daring to show up in person, however. "What are you doing here, Zephon? This hardly warranted a personal visit."

"It's good to see you too, Raziel," came Zephon's casual reply.

Unwilling to provide his brother or his escort with even the barest hint of hospitality, Raziel flatly ordered the vampires he'd assembled to receive the herd of humans to take them away and then promptly forbade any of the attending Zephonim from entering the gates. With that, he stalked back to the fortress where he waited for Zephon to be searched and escorted to the nearest conference room, turning his menacing gaze on him the instant he walked through the door.

"I ask again, little brother. What are you doing here? Whatever game you're playing, I can assure you it isn't one you can win."

Zephon spread his hands disarmingly. "I'm not interested in games, Raziel. I simply thought it best to deliver the cattle personally, seeing as the last emissary I sent here came back in pieces."

"I caught the last emissary you sent here inside my home hours after he was dismissed, attempting to dispel the wards on the door to my personal armory. If you were as clever as you think you are you'd have anticipated that the outer doors would sound a silent alarm the instant the obvious wards were dispelled by a stranger and sent the little sneakthief better prepared."

"I never gave him leave to trespass," Zephon replied, gesturing to himself. "He broke in of his own volition, probably hoping to earn my favor by bringing back some juicy intelligence on what you've got locked up in that cupboard in there." Raziel sighed inwardly. Let the games begin.

He made a mental note of the fact that Zephon knew about the cupboard; this meant that either one of the select few servants he trusted to enter his chambers had spilled the beans, or someone had been eavesdropping and overheard him speaking of it to Tantallon or Lorrelin. Either way, it was alarming. Furthermore, Zephon was too crafty to accidentally let it slip that he was aware of the cupboard; speaking so freely of it it was an intentional taunt. His brother was getting rather bold, it seemed... a little too bold for Raziel's liking. 

The only reassuring thing about any of it was that there wasn't actually anything particularly valuable in there- The ingredients he kept in the cupboard were things you could get anywhere, and the few splash potions he had left wouldn't be worth the risk it would take to steal them since they were single use items and none of his brethren were good enough alchemists to have any hope of reverse engineering them.

"Spare me your falsehoods, Zephon," he replied, eyes narrowed. "Even if I were to believe you, which I don't, the conduct of the lower ranks reflects back on their leadership, for better or for worse. That excuse wouldn't fly with Kain and it isn't going to fly with me. Overstep again," he growled, taking a menacing step toward his brother, "And you'll be the next one I take apart."

Zephon merely shrugged, completely uncowed. "If you say so," he remarked casually. "How's the new pet, by the way?"

That he knew of Amalia wasn't particularly concerning; he wasn't trying to conceal her presence entirely, after all, and vampires were every bit as gossipy as their prey. But that didn't mean he had to offer up any further information on her. "I fail to see how that's any business of yours."

"My, but you're prickly today!" Zephon exclaimed, arms crossed. "I don't suppose it is my business, but when I heard you were keeping a rare variant of human female, I was intrigued. I thought perhaps you'd be kind enough to show her to me if I asked politely, but seeing as you're in such a foul, distrustful mood, I suppose I'll just have to make it a condition of giving you the information I know."

Raziel grit his teeth. He wasn't entirely certain that Zephon was bluffing; with his penchant for spying it was inevitable that on occasion he did have useful intelligence and if that were the case now, he knew for a fact that the little weasel would ensure that Kain knew that he had passed up on it out of what would appear to them to be little more than petty spite. "I didn't realize you had such a soft spot for human pets, Zephon."

"I could say the same to you, Raziel. Hopefully this one survives longer than your last one."

He badly wanted to simply throw Zephon into the wall; hearing his bones crunch as they shattered would be most satisfying indeed. But he knew he needed to keep his temper in check, at least until his brother had given up the goods. "Fine. Tantallon, go and bring Amalia here," he ordered, immediately following it up with a private mental message. Reassure her that everything is under control and she need only maintain the act. This is nothing more than a petty little power play on Zephon's part; he suspects nothing, and he cannot harm her here.

"As you wish, Sire."

Once Tantallon had left, Raziel narrowed his eyes at his brother. "If you mistreat her while she's here, Zephon, it will mean your peril."

"Boy, she must really be something if she's this important to you," Zephon remarked, giving him an appraising look.

Shit. Raziel needed to deflect, immediately. "She's a particularly beautiful human female and eager to please me in bed. I plan to employ her for that exact purpose before dawn breaks, and if she's too upset to perform thanks to you I will be most displeased."

Zephon rolled his eyes, but he seemed to buy it. "Is there anything in Nosgoth that you won't fuck?"

"At least all of my bedmates are willing, Zephon. When was the last time any of yours actually wanted you?"

Raziel had meant this as an insult, but Zephon didn't at all take it as one. "I'm a vampire, brother, I don't care what anyone subject to me wants. I don't know where you get your soft-heartedness from. It certainly doesn't come from the Master."

Zephon had meant this as an insult, but Raziel wasn't any more offended than he had been. "Call it soft-heartedness all you want. The fact is, they're easier to manage when they don't absolutely hate you."

"I'm sure it has nothing to do with your narcissistic desperation to be admired by everyone."

Raziel gave him a sour look. "You exhaust me."

"You exhaust everyone."

Raziel maintained the necessary air of aloofness regarding Amalia once Tantallon returned with her, casually shrugging as he led her in. "Well, there she is. Red hair, green eyes. I don't know what sort of tall tales are making the rounds, but there's little else that's special about her."

Zephon began attempting to manipulate her immediately. "What a terrible thing to say, brother," he said, shooting him a dirty look. "One would think that of all people, you would be able to appreciate such a rare beauty. Come forth, my dear."

Amalia immediately looked to Raziel for guidance. He was casually leaning against the wall, and all he said was "If you feel the pressure of an intrusion into your mind, tell me immediately, and I'll haul him to my dungeons and invite the warden to break out his favorite toys and brush up on his skills of persuasion." A dire threat indeed for one who could be tortured at length without dying. 

Zephon shot him a withering look, but otherwise didn't acknowledge it. Having no other choice, Amalia did as she was bidden, praying that he wouldn't call Raziel's bluff... if indeed he were bluffing, which judging by the look on his face, he wasn't.

"So obedient!" he gushed, despite the fact that she had clearly hesitated before stepping to him. "Let's see those pretty green eyes." Contrary to what she was expecting, Zephon did not use the tip of his claw to force her chin upward like Raziel and Rahab had done when they'd met her; instead he tilted his hand and made contact with the second knuckle of his talon, so as not to cause her any pain. When she met his golden eyes, they were soft and earnest. Amalia remembered what Raziel had said about him; that he was a manipulative liar through and through. Looking at him now, she could certainly see how the unwary could be swayed into thinking that he was kind, friendly even. 

His eyebrows shot up the instant she looked up at him. "My, but that is an intense shade of green," he said, bringing his other hand up to take a lock of her hair between his claws. "The contrast with your hair is striking indeed." His eyes roamed downward over her body, but did not linger at her breasts the way she expected them to. Instead, he released her hair and lightly touched the sleeve of her tunic. "And to think that he's not dressing you in his favorite shade of red! He must be spoiling you to death. At least, I hope he is," he remarked, shooting Raziel another disapproving look. "Is this particular blue your favorite color, then?" 

Amalia gulped, nodding quickly. "Yes, my Lord. My master was kind enough to allow me this luxury."

"Well, for him, it is rather a kind gesture, considering the unwarranted level of emphasis he usually puts on aesthetics. I was told that he ensured that the boy he had always matched the surrounding decor." 

"I did no such thing, you little disease."

Amalia was somewhat taken aback at the venom in Raziel's voice, but Zephon completely ignored him. "I see he's still managed to brand you with his clan symbol, of course," he noted with an air of distaste, glancing at the tunic's belt and then up at her collar. When his eyes settled on the latter, they widened. "Well, that collar certainly does look a bit tight," he observed, even though it in no way was. A low growl from Raziel stopped him in his tracks as he reached for the clasp, and he made a show of shrinking back with an frightened expression on his face. He then met her eyes again, giving her a pitying glance, as if it were a great shame that she had such a brute for a master. The entire display was clearly meant to convey one thing: That Amalia would be far better off with kind Zephon, who spoke to her almost as an equal, rather than domineering Raziel, who clearly saw her as nothing more than an object. 

"I suppose you'd best return to your owner, Amalia. He's obviously feeling possessive at present."

"I'm feeling protective at present," Raziel spat, directing Amalia back to Tantallon's custody. "Keep your filthy talons away from her throat; I told you I didn't want her too frightened to perform later. And she knows which side her bread is buttered on, so you can dispense with trying to sway her loyalty. It's pathetically transparent." He wasn't wrong; Amalia had easily seen through the act and in fact was somewhat insulted that Zephon assumed her to be so stupid as to fall for it.

 Zephon sighed regretfully. "You've always been distrustful, Raziel. Perhaps it wouldn't be so lonely up there at the top if you'd stop chasing away anyone you can't keep hold of by force," he said, pointedly looking at Amalia. "I suppose at least with her around, you'll probably stop churning through bedmates at such a phenomenal rate for a while... at least until you grow bored with her."

"I grow bored with trading barbs with you, Zephon. I've fulfilled your little wish, so now it's time for you to deliver. And it had better be something worthwhile, or your retinue will be carrying you home unconscious."

Amalia fought the urge to smirk as she stood next to Tantallon along the wall. Was it terrible of her to sort of hope that Raziel would give him a good beating? 

Zephon ignored the threat apart from another roll of his eyes. "As you already know, the rumors about the dragon living in the mountains north of Coorhagen have been confirmed by Rahab's scouts," he began.

Raziel had heard no such thing from Rahab or anyone else up until now, and there was no way that Rahab would have kept this sort of information from him. He didn't expect that Zephon would fabricate such a story outright, as Kain would certainly go to the trouble of investigating upon his return and would be most displeased to find nothing to back it up. He wouldn't put it past him to lie about where it originated, however, since reporting such a thing would be seen as one's duty and there would be nothing for him to gain by being the first. Most likely, Zephon's own spawn had recently returned with solid evidence of dragon activity, and he was lying about the Rahabim scout in order to start trouble where there needn't be any. "Rahab hasn't reported any such dragon sightings to me."

Zephon suddenly looked distinctly uncomfortable. "Oh... well, this is a bit awkward. I would have expected that he'd have told you first... I really can't imagine why he wouldn't have."

Suspicion confirmed. "Not important," Raziel said with a dismissive shake of his head. "The dragon itself was seen in person by this scout? Tell me we're not talking about more scorched patches of earth and large piles of bones at the mouths of rivers, which can be easily explained by magery and the tendency of moving water to wash things downstream, respectively."

"From what I understand, the scout saw the dragon itself perched atop a cliff, looking out over a valley well away from the city."

"Well, I suppose that tracks with what little we know of their habits," Raziel replied. "Elusive and solitary, with no history of attacking or even interacting with anyone save for the dumb beasts of the wild that they prey upon. Seeing one flying near the city would have been alarming, but as things are, I see little enough reason to worry." 

He would immediately send word to those of his clan who lived in Coorhagen to pay close attention to how the uncorralled humans in the area were reacting to rumors of a dragon, of course. It was entirely likely the fools would attempt to seek it out, sending their strongest into the mountains with the hopes of returning with a trophy. Indeed, perhaps they could even be goaded into doing so... After all, why should he have his children do the hard work of tracking it down themselves when they could simply follow along at a safe distance, remaining out of sight, to observe the ensuing battle? This would not only ensure the elimination of an entire group of humans who were particularly likely to become nuisances, but also provide valuable information about dragon physiology, behavior, and prowess in combat, all without taking the risk of provoking the beast's wrath and giving it a reason to hold a grudge against their kind.

"So what's the information that you intended to bring me, then?" he asked, arms crossed.

"My own spies report that the leaders of the fortified human citadel up in the mountains are seeking out champions to find and kill this dragon. I don't know how they came to know of it, but clearly they've seen or heard something, because they're after it, the idiots."

Well, well... how very fortuitous! Perhaps even a bit too fortuitous. Raziel suspected that Zephon was attempting to do to him exactly what he'd just thought of doing to the humans. Clever, but not clever enough. "Well, they'll be down a few champions afterward, then."

"So will Dumah, if he finds out about it. You know how he is."

...Oh. Oh, no. Raziel hadn't thought of that. He had finally reached the limits of his ability to control his temper, and he snarled loudly as he once again began to pace. "Why must this happen now? Now, when the Master is away, when it will fall to me to dissuade him from doing something incredibly stupid?"

Zephon shrugged. "Well, he outranks me, so I certainly can't stop him. Someone's going to have to, though, because the Master will be absolutely furious if he sends his best warriors into the mountains to be slaughtered, or even worse, to survive and lead the beast straight back to us as they limp home to lick their wounds. And if he by some miracle succeeds in bringing it down, you and I both know that that stoic shell of his will crack and he'll be absolutely insufferable about it ever after. We'll never hear an end to the story of Dumah the Dragonslayer. No clan gathering, Council meeting, or celebration will be safe from his boasting, and the dragon will get bigger and the mountains more treacherous with each telling."

Dumah was indeed fairly independent and generally appeared to care little about anything but managing his own affairs, but his pride in his skill as a warrior had by now turned into outright arrogance and often led him to underestimate his enemies. And when it came to dragons, everything was an estimation. The only characteristic they were positive about was that they were capable of flight. Even the fire-breathing technically hadn't been confirmed, but it certainly hadn't been ruled out either, and Dumah would no doubt write it off as nothing more than legend and not even consider it when formulating his 'strategy'. 

Thus, it seemed that for once, Zephon was telling the truth. It made sense that he would run to him with information about a search for potential dragonslayers, because his prediction of Dumah's response to the news was a hundred percent likely to come true, and his neck would be on the line if he knew and didn't say anything. It also meant that he was in fact bluffing about refusing to tell him earlier, and Raziel could have avoided having to involve Amalia in any of this, which did not improve his mood in the slightest.

Sometimes he wondered if being second in line was really worth the grief of having to babysit everyone he outranked.

"Get out," he snapped at his brother, seeing as he had no more use for him and very much wanted him gone.

Zephon was indignant, and stood with arms akimbo. "Completely ungrateful, as usual. You know, you really-"

Raziel struck before he could finish the sentence.

He was thrown backward onto the table, where he rolled to a stop and lay bleeding and clutching at the jagged claw wounds across his chest. Amalia watched wide-eyed as Raziel took hold of his ankle and dragged him from the tabletop while Tantallon silently stepped to the door and swung it open. The last glimpse she got of Zephon before the door slammed shut, he was ass over end up against the far wall where Raziel had tossed him. The entire thing could have been something straight out of an episode of Tom & Jerry if not for the thick, dark blood smeared across the floor, and Amalia would certainly laugh at the thought later now that the memory of the cartoon had been unearthed, but right now she was too shocked at the blatant display of violence to do anything but stare, her hands covering her mouth.

Tantallon, on the other hand, had watched the whole thing go down with an air of casual indifference. "You'd really think he'd learn," he remarked, as if he'd seen this scenario play out a hundred times. "Are you all right, Amalia?"

"Yeah, I'm good," she replied to Tantallon, still staring wide-eyed at the door.

"Forgive me, my love," Raziel sighed. "I should have had Tantallon get you out of here before any of that happened." 

"I mean... he kind of deserved it, and I was honestly sort of hoping to see you slap him around a bit," she shrugged, finally tearing her eyes from the door and looking over at him. 

Tantallon couldn't help but laugh. "I'm beginning to think that you're as savage as any of us," he said, a hint of pride in his voice.

Raziel turned to survey the room. It was a mess, and so was he. "I need to get someone in here to clean up, and quickly. I intend to summon my council of advisors to help me figure out how to approach this situation with Dumah. Tantallon?"

Tantallon was already heading for the door. "On it. Shall I take Amalia back home while I'm at it?"

Amalia was not keen on going back to their quarters. "Aw, can't I sit in on your meeting? I know how to handle myself around others," she begged. "I'm just going to be sitting bored at home otherwise."

Raziel considered this a moment. One one hand, the less publicity Amalia got, the less likely anything was to go wrong. On the other, it was already becoming common knowledge that he had a pet, and showing her off was far more on brand for him than hiding her away all the time. She was already dressed and looking presentable, so he decided he might as well keep her around. "Very well, so long as you mind your manners, stay on the floor, and do not speak unless spoken to. A harsh rebuke will be expected of me should you step out of line, so I need you on your best behavior if I'm to grant you this wish. You're quite certain you're not upset by what just happened?"

She stepped closer to him, though not close enough to end up stained with Zephon's blood, which was still dripping from his talons. "I'm fine, Raz, really. I'm not going to have nightmares just because I saw you give your shithead brother a well-deserved thrashing." 

Tantallon promptly burst into laughter at the unexpectedly vulgar epithet, though it was more due to her blunt, matter-of-fact delivery than her choice of wording. Even Raziel couldn't help but snicker as he dismissed his firstborn with a jerk of his head toward the door. "If you say so, darling. I'm relieved that you don't think me a beast after seeing me attack him like that."

"Again, he absolutely deserved it. I honestly hope I get to witness the next beating you give him. I think I hate that fucker even more than Rahab," she stated, eliciting more laughter from Raziel. He'd never heard anyone use the word 'fucker' before, and found her extensive vocabulary of colorful insults quite amusing. "I'm serious!" she exclaimed. "At least Rahab seems to be genuine, even if he's obnoxious. Zephon is just disgusting. I mean, I don't know what I expected, after what you told me about him, but yikes."

"You see what he immediately tried to do, don't you? He began with flattery in an attempt to put you at ease around him, all the while trying his best to convince you that he'd treat you far better than I do. Once he felt that he'd made a good enough impression, he casually brought up my reputation for promiscuity, exaggerating it greatly, I'd like to add. I kept my eyes on him; he was studying you as he said it, waiting to see how you reacted, whether or not your expression changed. If he'd picked up on any jealousy, he'd have filed it away until he found an opportunity to use it to drive a wedge between us. You're as much a trophy to him as that dragon is to the humans in the citadel."

"I honestly hadn't even picked up on that bit," she replied, wrinkling her nose in distaste. "The rest of it really was absolutely transparent, though. Most of the stuff about the dragon went over my head, but he definitely seemed like he was playing games."

"Indeed he was; the way he shifted from disregarding every threat I gave him to cowering in apparent fear when I growled at him should have been enough to tell you that he was putting on an act. Tell me, what is your assessment of his claim that Rahab was the first to know of the dragon?"

"He seemed to be implying that he'd told him about it, but not you for whatever reason. His sudden change in demeanor from antagonistic to hand-wringing 'Oh dear' concern was kind of jarring."

"Precisely," said Raziel, finally pulling a handkerchief out of his pocket to wipe his claws on. "Do you think what he said was true, knowing what you know about my relationship with Rahab in comparison to the rest of my brethren?"

Amalia paused, her brow wrinkling in thought. "...No, I suppose not, now that you've got me thinking about it. Was he just trying to get you fighting with one another?"

"That is exactly what he was doing. He'd gain nothing by being the first to report the dragon sighting, as sharing that information is a basic expectation that warrants no reward, but instigating strife between me and Rahab might cause me to withdraw my support of him. He doesn't want any of us teaming up with another."

"Does he really think you're that stupid?"

Raziel smirked, pleased that she had so easily seen through Zephon's bullshit. "It's as Tantallon said... he never learns. I'm always thinking ten steps ahead of the little weasel."

Chapter Text

Raziel ultimately decided to hold the meeting with his advisors in a different room, knowing that it would take a while for his servants to scrub Zephon's blood from everywhere it had ended up. Once he'd taken Amalia to the one he'd chosen and directed her to sit and wait for his return, he sent the next three servants he came across to retrieve the members of his council that resided within the fortress. Tantallon, he knew, would send riders to collect the other two, who lived in town. 

Amalia was sitting quietly at the table just as he'd directed when he returned, though in truth she'd had only just sat down a moment before he'd come back. She'd noticed a strange rune painted onto the wall just inside the door, and hadn't been able to resist giving it a closer look. She watched him as he shut the door with one hand and raised the other to the rune, muttering a word that caused it to glow bright blue for a moment.

"Soundproofing spell," he informed her, knowing she was going to ask. "That rune is on the wall in nearly every room in the fortress. This particular bit of magic is woven into the wards on the outer doors to our home, but in most cases we simply paint a symbol on the wall in a potion made for the purpose and then enchant it so that it can be activated with a single word. Otherwise we'd have to recite an entire incantation every time."

"Makes sense," she replied. "Should I maybe not be sitting at the table when everyone shows up?"

Raziel regarded her a moment, considering. "You're fine there for now. There are enough chairs here to put one in the corner for you when everyone else arrives. They won't mind as long as you move once they're here."

Amalia had other concerns, however. "Will I have to do anything but sit? Like... I'm not going to have to pour blood into chalices for everyone, am I?"

He chuckled softly. "No, darling, nothing like that is expected of a pet. A servant will bring a pitcher for the table and I'll pour it myself for whoever wants it. All you need to do is sit quietly and only speak if spoken to, just like I've taught you. You'll probably be the subject of small talk before we get down to business, mind you, but you're unlikely to get much attention as long as you behave yourself. They expect a human to be skittish in a room full of unfamiliar vampires, so none of them will bother you overmuch for fear of drawing my ire."

"I'm not skittish," she grumbled.

The first three advisors arrived within half an hour, followed almost immediately by the expected servant. Raziel welcomed them in and sat them down, shooing Amalia off to the corner as the tray bearing a large pitcher and six golden chalices was placed at the center of the long table. 

"Well, my Lord, it appears the rumors are true!" one of the vampires said, casting a glance at Amalia.

"I really ought not be stunned at how quickly gossip gets around by now, but here we are. Yes, she's the new pet," he said, rather dismissively. "I'll introduce her formally once everyone is present, and then we'll get started. Please take a seat, we've got issues to discuss."

"Nothing terrible, I hope?"

"Not an emergency, just a few impending disasters we need to head off. Would the three of you like some refreshment while we wait for Esmerelda and Isaac?"

Amalia did not dare look up at the table even when the two advisors from town had arrived and been seated. Of the assembled vampires, it seemed that there were three distinct male voices and two female. The second female to arrive, who she assumed must be Esmerelda, immediately began to fuss over her. 

"Oh, just look at that hair! Isaac, come and look!"

"Darling, I've already made my stance on this plain," said the other, even as he approached. "We do not have the room for a pet and won't until the fledglings are on their own."

"I know, but isn't she the sweetest thing?" Esmerelda gushed, surprising Amalia by kneeling down in front of her rather than loom over her, ducking her head into her field of vision as she blinked in confusion. "Hello, little one!"

"This is what I'm dealing with," muttered Isaac, and she heard everyone snicker.

"Uh... hello," Amalia responded, not as unsettled as she was with Rahab or Zephon but not wanting to encourage more interaction regardless.

"What's your name?" the vampire asked in the exact sort of obnoxiously sugary tone usually reserved for human toddlers.

"A-Amalia," she began, quickly tacking on a "my Lady."

"That's quite enough, Esmerelda. Come, we've much to discuss."

Esmerelda stood, but then immediately leaned down and, to Amalia's dismay, smooched her right on top of the head before moving to obey Raziel's command. A guffaw immediately sounded from across the room, presumably at the look on Amalia's face.

"Heaven's sake, woman," said Isaac as Raziel pointedly cleared his throat. "Leave the poor thing alone, she's probably scared half to death sitting there among all of us."

After a quick introduction of Amalia which more or less amounted to 'Yes I have a pet, her name's Amalia, we don't have time to focus on her, let's move on,' the meeting got underway, and she sat listening with eyes cast down.

"I've called you all here because Zephon decided to grace us with his presence earlier this evening."

There was a collective "Ugh" from the direction of the table, forcing Amalia to suppress a snort of amusement as she stared at the floor.

"Yes, precisely. He brought with him all the complications you'd expect, and I was all too happy to show him the door just now," he said, omitting the fact that he'd first shown him his claws, the table, and the floor, and then followed it up with a harsh introduction to a stone brick wall. "Much to my surprise and dismay, it became apparent that the 'emissary' who attempted to break into my armory a few months back was after something specific. Zephon has become aware of a certain cabinet I keep locked in there, and he is quite interested in its contents. Now, if he were to successfully gain access, he'd be sorely disappointed, because there's nothing in there of note these days. That's not the issue. What I need to know is how he found out about it in the first place."

"Loose lips among the servants, no doubt," came one voice. "I'd start tickling some information out of them with your claws, Lord. If Zephon's got a spy among the ranks, it needs to be ferreted out."

Raziel quashed the idea immediately. "I'll not mistreat them and give them reason to intentionally betray me, you know that. There are only a handful who are allowed into my quarters. If questioned, I believe they'll voluntarily divulge anything they've seen or heard that seemed odd to them. In fact," he trailed off as if coming to a sudden decision, striding to the door and pulling it open just long enough to converse with a guard posted outside. "I've sent for my chamberlain, she'll round up the whole lot and we can interview them right here," he said as he returned to his seat at the head of the table. "While we wait, we can discuss the next matter on the agenda. According to Zephon, there is indeed a dragon living in the northernmost mountains near Coorhagen. It was seen in person by a scout."

"Near the city?"

"No, it was seen way up on a cliff in the mountains themselves. Alone, surveying a valley. The problem isn't that it exists, the problem is that the humans in the Citadel know about it and are seeking out dragonslayers. Now tell me, friends... Who might take an unhealthy interest in that particular development?" Everyone present caught on immediately, and there was another collective groan.

"Oh, gods," said one of the advisors, his voice muffled as if he'd dropped his head into his hands.

"How the hell are we going to stop him?" asked another. "It'll be a disaster if he goes after it."

"I've got an idea," said Raziel. "My plan is to call a Council meeting at the Sanctuary. I'll formally forbid everyone from going after it to avoid singling Dumah out, which will only anger him. He's still going to be the first one to argue, of course. I believe, however, that if I throw him a bone to soothe his inevitable indignation, he'll be much more likely to listen to reason."

"What kind of bone are we talking about?"

"Simple," he answered. "My first thought upon having the dragon's existence confirmed was that we could attempt to subtly goad a party of human champions into the mountains after it, and send a small group to follow them at a distance and observe what happens. This would provide us with valuable information on dragons, which we are sorely lacking. I had planned to send our own, but I believe giving the task over to Dumah might work out in our favor. None of them will have a leg to stand on if they want to accuse me of forbidding a hunt out of a desire to take the glory for myself. I'll once again emphasize that the objective is to return with information rather than a trophy. If he squanders the opportunity I give him and attacks it anyway, I believe the Master's ire will then be directed at him and him alone. Thoughts?"

"Can we afford to risk not obtaining such knowledge? It's possible that even if he does obey your command, that he'll bungle it and return with nothing useful."

Raziel considered this a moment. "I don't like it either, honestly," he finally said, "But if he is successful, we profit. If he's not, we're no more in the dark than we are already. And Dumah's a fool sometimes, but he's not stupid. So long as I lean on him to bring his stealthiest rather than his strongest and ensure that he includes a biologist to contribute his or her expertise to the mission, I think he's got a good shot."

"I'd suggest you make it clear that if he does end up in a fight with the beast and it goes badly, that he is to do the honorable thing and lead it away from our population centers rather than toward them to seek refuge from it."

"Are you quite certain, Esmerelda, that he won't interpret that as tacit approval to 'accidentally' put himself in harm's way?"

"No, she's right," said Raziel. "That order needs to be given and heard by all five of them; it'll serve to further cover our asses. I believe this course of action is the best way to mitigate any risk of Kain's wrath should he decide to be stupid while welcoming his praise if he obeys and returns with valuable information. What say you?"

Everyone seemed to agree, and the group settled in to wait for the servants to arrive, chatting casually until Raziel remembered another issue that warranted discussion. "Before I forget," he began, "Do any of you have any idea what's going on with our local glassmaker? My chamberlain has sent two orders for a crate of jars and both have gone unacknowledged. If he's overwhelmed with work, I'd rather not put him further behind by summoning him to court to explain himself."

"Actually, yes," said Isaac. "One of our neighbors has a fledge who's apprenticing with him. Last time I spoke to them they said something about his most recently acquired source of sand being of substandard quality. I suspect he's simply behind because he's scrambling to find some elsewhere that's suitable for the purpose. Can't make glass without it, after all."

Raziel pinched the bridge of his nose. "Once he does, he needs to scramble to find himself a secretary to handle all his correspondence. The matter of the jars isn't quite urgent yet, but it would have been nice to know what's causing the delay. Make the suggestion the next time you see the fledgling, will you? Tell him it came from me; that'll light a fire under his master's backside."

It was at that moment a knock at the door sounded. Raziel went to open it, and Tantallon strode in followed by Lorrelin and eight very frightened human servants, Stella and her brother Vance among them. "Along the wall, if you please," Raziel called to them, and they wordlessly moved to obey, eyes fixed upon the ground. "First of all, relax. None of you are in trouble," he said, waving a dismissive hand at them as he began to pace before them. "You're simply here to answer questions. As long as you are truthful in your answers, you will not be punished; you have my word. Lorrelin, at ease. I'll begin with you."

"Yes, my Lord," Lorrelin stated, raising her gaze and meeting his eyes. "Ask, and I shall answer."

"You know that cabinet in the armory?" he asked, folding his arms.

Lorrelin blinked, brow furrowing. "The locked one?"

"The very same. Do you know what its purpose is?"

"...Well, yes, you know I do. You removed the contents last year so I could clean the shelves. You've always kept dangerous potions in there, as long as I've been working for you."

"Indeed. Who else is aware of its existence? Mind, I'm asking for the benefit of my advisors; I already know the answer."

Lorrelin blinked again, and she glanced over at the other servants. "Well, you've modified the wards to recognize all nine of us, so everyone present has been in the armory, at the very least to dust. They'd have tried to open the cabinet to clean inside and moved on upon finding it locked, since they've been informed that anything unwarded but locked might still contain something dangerous... If it's not too bold, Lord, may I ask what this is about?" she asked, sounding completely unnerved.

"It is a bit bold, but you always have been," Raziel replied, rather testily, and for once Lorrelin looked sheepish at his rebuke. "My brother Zephon is somehow aware of that cabinet and sent someone to break into it, and that's why the lot of you ended up scrubbing a lot of blood off my floors a while back. I need to know how that information got into his hands. I don't suspect any of you intentionally let it slip; I expect he's got someone else, whether human or vampire, who's hiding in plain sight and listening very closely to any nearby conversations."

"Oh, dear," she replied, white as a sheet. Forgetting herself, she began to pace a bit. "Let me think a moment," she began, gnawing at her lip. "I can't think of a single instance of that cabinet coming up in my own conversations. The servants know what to do; they don't need specific instructions on what to clean, so I haven't mentioned it to anyone."

"No, but I have," said Tantallon from the chair to Raziel's left, which had been vacated for him to take the moment he arrived. Everyone turned to him, and he glanced over at Lorrelin. "I mentioned it to you several weeks ago, remember? I went in looking for a new bowstring since I'd accidentally sheared through mine with my claws, and the area near the cabinet smelled of vermin."

"Yes, you're right, come to think of it. And I did find mouse droppings under there. I put the traps out myself, though, and was done with it. No one else was involved."

"We were in our Lord's quarters when the conversation took place as well, so it isn't possible anyone was eavesdropping. Perhaps one of the other servants has something to share?" Tantallon suggested.

Raziel decided to take charge, knowing that if he allowed Lorrelin to lead the questioning they'd all end up even more terrified than they already were. "Thank you, Lorrelin. Wait here in case I have any further questions or instructions for you. Vance, step forward, please."

Poor Vance was a nervous wreck at the best of times, and right now he was frightened nearly out of his wits. He wordlessly took a single step away from the wall, shaking badly. "That one looks rather guilty, if you ask me," one of the advisors piped up, and Raziel silenced him with a sharp growl. 

"I'll thank you to keep your comments to yourself," he snapped. "These servants are hand selected by me, I trust them utterly. We've no reason to believe he's done anything wrong. Frankly, he's always like this, always has been. That's why I'm questioning him first; the suspense might otherwise cause the poor bastard a heart attack, and he's one of my best gardeners," he said, softening his voice as he addressed the human cowering in front of him. "Now, Vance... it's as I said. You are not in trouble. I don't think you've done anything wrong, and my opinion is the only one that counts in the end. I just need to know if you've noticed anything odd lately. Anything that would suggest a spy among the rest of the servants. You may speak freely; no one will get into any trouble based on what you say. If we suspect someone, we'll do a thorough investigation before taking any action."

The advisor's comment a moment ago had brought the man to tears, and Raziel's words had clearly brought him no comfort. He wiped his eyes as he found his voice. "No, Lord... nothin' odd, nothin' strange... Nothin' different lately. Just workin', and- and eatin', and sleepin'. J-just like always."

Amalia could tell by the way Vance was starting to hyperventilate that he was fighting a full-blown panic attack. She risked a glance up at him only to find him looking directly at her. "Only... only new thing is her, Lord," he began, then suddenly gasped. "N-not accusing her! I swear I'm not! None of us talk to her, just like you said, and she's only been here a few days besides, and-"

"It's alright, Vance, it's alright," Raziel soothed. "I know you're not accusing her of anything. Your logic is sound, she's only been here a few days and this information was leaked weeks ago. Amalia, come here."

Somehow, despite the fact that she'd been caught completely off guard and was frightened to once again become the center of attention, Amalia managed to immediately do as she was told. "Yes, Master?"

"None of the servants have spoken to you, is that correct?"

"Yes, Master, that's correct," she replied.

"Have you overheard any one of them say something about a locked cabinet to anyone else while they were within your earshot?"

"No, Master. They've all obeyed your command not to approach me, so I've never even been in the same room alone with anyone but Lorrelin," she said, feeling a pang of sympathy when Vance finally lost his battle and began to rapidly hyperventilate. "Master, is he okay?" she asked, softly.

"Apparently not," Raziel sighed, eyeing his terrified servant. He didn't want to dismiss him just yet, but the man was clearly of little use in the state he was in, and if allowed to continue as he was he'd almost certainly begin to upset the rest. Figuring a momentary exception to his rule could do little harm, he nodded to the chair Amalia had vacated. "Listen, Amalia, why don't you take him over to the corner with you and see if you can calm him. Vance, go ahead and follow Amalia. You may speak freely to her for the time being." With that, he turned back to the other humans, preparing to question each in turn.

Vance was frozen in place at the sudden reversal of instructions regarding his master's pet. Amalia had to reach out and take his wrist to get him to snap out of it. "Come on, it's okay. Let's just... get you away from them," she said, leading him over to the corner. Figuring he'd be more comfortable if they were on the same level, she eschewed the chair in favor of sitting them both down on the floor. 

"Just breathe, okay? You're perfectly safe."

"I... I just... I can't..."

"It's just a panic attack, it'll pass. It just takes time." Unsure what to do to help him, she decided to make an attempt at distraction. "Okay, I know he put us in the corner, but he also instructed me to help you calm down, so I don't think he'll mind if we go to the window to look out," she said, taking his wrist again and leading him away. He followed her like a lost lamb, still gasping for air.

The conference rooms were on the ground floor of the fortress, and the windows afforded a view of a small courtyard, illuminated by torches held in sconces. Flowerbeds lined the walls, and Amalia saw an opportunity. "He said you're a gardener... do you know anything about the flowers out there?" She asked.

"Ah, uh... yes. Flowers. I know 'em. Those are- Those are roses, there," he began, pausing to gulp and make an attempt at taking a deep breath. "Them's moonflowers, vinin' up the tree. Special bred, they're... they're usually white. Those are blue. Have to keep the courtyard warm for those... Magery, of course."

"Does it get very cold here?"

"Oh, yes, Miss," he replied, seeming as if he was finally starting to calm somewhat. "Winter's upon us soon enough, you'll see."

"Will there be snow?"

"Yes, lots of snow hereabouts," he nodded. "The, uh... the storms stop all the travelin'. Lots of work to do to stock up... once the snows come, can't always get supplies from elsewhere. Always runnin' out of fruit and sugar, by time it all melts, which is a shame 'cause that's good with bread..."

She surmised he was referring to things like jam or jelly. "It's good to have them for a little while, at least."

He nodded. "Yes, quite good. There are... there are good cooks here. I'm sure he's feedin' you the best," he said.

"It's been good, yeah, I'm not gonna lie," she replied, smiling slightly. "Certainly can't complain, either."

Vance had up until now refused to look at her, but here he paused to meet her eyes, cocking his head somewhat. "You... you talk different. Not that it's bad!" he added quickly. "Just... never heard your accent, is all. Must have dragged you here from a hell of a ways away, Miss," he said, shaking his head in apparent pity.

"Yeah... you could say that," she agreed, eyes shifting to the side. "I'm happy here, though. He's good to me."

"Ah, he's good to all of us, really. Could be worse, so much worse. I shouldn't speak their names, Miss, but his brothers..."

"I know, they're... not very pleasant, from what I hear."

"Rahab's not bad," he said, lowering his voice to a whisper so as not to be overheard talking about the other Lieutenants. "He nearly ran smack into me once... thought I was done for. Thought he'd kill me right there where I stood for makin' him break stride, but he didn't even growl at me, just huffed and stepped around. He can't be as bad as the others, often as he's here. Our Lord wouldn't tolerate him elsewise."

"Rahab's a little... overbearing," she replied, as diplomatically as she could manage. "No respect for personal space."

Vance looked aghast. "He took no liberties, surely?" he asked, looking her up and down. "Lord Raziel would beat him half to death, he would."

"No, not that kind of liberty," she huffed. "Just... sat me in his lap and petted my hair a lot. And made me eat grapes." And suggested I be forcibly impregnated, and offered to help his brother whip me, she thought bitterly, but she wasn't about to bring that up.

This actually got a slight smile from him. "Huh. Could be worse, I suppose."

Opting to take a slight risk in giving the servants some juicy gossip, she decided to tell him about what had happened immediately prior to the meeting. "I got to watch him beat Zephon up earlier," she whispered conspiratorially, smirking maliciously. 

Vance's eyebrows shot up as his hand flew to his mouth. "Lucky broad you are!" he whispered back, laughing softly. "That'll account for all the vampire's blood on the floor outside the other room, then."

"Yep. Served him right; he's a creep."

"Shh," Vance urged. "Don't let 'em hear you say it, true as it is. None likes him here, but their kind don't take kindly to us disparagin' em, even if they agree with us."

"What do you think about how he found out about the cupboard?" she ventured, wondering if he'd be able to remember anything now that he was calmer.

"Honestly don't know, Miss. That cupboard ain't anything special to any of us, so it don't exactly come up in conversation often... ever, really. Scares me, to think there might be a turncoat among us."

"Might not be a traitor, might be a plant. Apparently Zephon's thing is spying."

"Aye, but until this very night there's been no new servants for years, save for those born among us. If he's spyin', it ain't one of us. It'll be one of them, but I'm not about to suggest it."

"I don't think you'll have to, he seems to already be leaning toward that conclusion."

They then fell silent and turned their attention to the interrogation taking place, eager for more information. 

"This particular guard," Raziel began, addressing one of the gathered servants. "You say you often see him posted near the entrance to the servants' quarters?"

"Aye, Lord, though I doubt it means much. Just thought it strange, since usually we don't see the same ones come back quite so often."

"Yes, and there's a reason for that; it encourages familiarity and fraternization. Does this guard speak to any of you?"

The servant glanced around at her peers, expression blank. "No, Lord, I don't think he's ever spoken to any of us," she said, eliciting nods from all but one.

"Stella, have you something to contribute?" Raziel asked, eyebrow raised. Perhaps they were getting somewhere.

"Well, Lord... I can't be certain it's the same guard... Many of you look very much alike, especially outfitted for duty, if you'll forgive my saying so. But the one posted at the landing just above the stairs leading to our door did engage me the other day."

Raziel exchanged glances with his advisors. "Is that so? What did he say to you?"

"Well, nothing out of the ordinary, if not for the fact that he was speaking to one of us instead of one of you. He said hello, and I stopped right where I was because I was so surprised, and then he asked how the day's work was going," she replied, looking vaguely disturbed.

"And did you answer him?"

Stella winced, knowing he likely wouldn't be happy with her answer. "I... I did, Lord. I was so surprised, I just... answered him, without really thinking. Said 'hello' back, and then I said 'fine, thank you', and then I got right down the stairs with my basket of laundry because I was so unnerved by it."

"Why didn't you say anything to someone? You know the rules about fraternization between guards and servants, particularly when both are on duty," Raziel admonished.

"I'm sorry, my Lord, I just... I guess I convinced myself it wasn't a big deal. I thought maybe he was new, and hadn't taken the rules to heart yet. I didn't think anyone would really care if I spoke of it, if I'm being honest, considering how everything's gone crazy this past week. There's just been so much going on. So I went back to work, and once it was out of mind, it didn't come back again until just now."

Raziel dragged his palm down his face. "Well, at the very least we've got a guard who's gotten it in his foolish head that he might find an opportunity to bed a servant on the sly. At worst, he's working for Zephon and hanging around hoping to overhear any interesting chatter among those who are constantly in and out of nearly every area in the fortress."

"Wonder who took those traps up," Vance whispered to Amalia. "The ones Mistress put out, I mean. Someone must have gotten rid of the dead mice. Might have said where they took 'em from, eh? Under Lord Raziel's locked cabinet? Innocent comment, but if somebody's earwiggin' in on our idle talk..."

"We should tell him," Amalia said. "I can do it, if you'd rather not."

"Tell me what, exactly?" Raziel asked, eliciting a soft gasp from Vance. When Amalia looked up, everyone's attention was on them, and she immediately lowered her gaze.

"The mouse traps, Master. Vance was just wondering who might have collected them. If whoever it was mentioned offhand that the mice were caught under a locked cabinet in the armory..."

"Hmm..." Raziel scratched his chin as he thought. "Nearly impossible to pin down who might have overheard, even if we find out who collected the traps."

"My Lord," Lorrelin piped up from near the wall, "If I may... any traps with dead things in them are taken directly out to the refuse cart to be emptied, and then we wash the traps and leave them in the sun for several days. It's entirely possible that whoever collected them made a comment about where the mice were caught within the earshot of whoever was scheduled to mind the cart that day. It's always a member of the guard who does it, because none of us are authorized to drive a cart outside our walls."

"The Master of the Guard ought to be summoned, then, Lord. We'll need to have a look at her records to find out who was tasked with garbage duty that day," suggested one of the advisors.

Raziel nodded at Tantallon, who had gotten to his feet the moment the sentence had been finished. "Everyone sit tight. Once we know who our garbage man is, we'll see if any of you recognize him as the one who's been getting friendly."

The Master of the Guard was a gruff suffer-no-fools type, and did not seem at all pleased to be marching a guard to a council meeting. She wordlessly shoved the man roughly through the door and stepped aside to wait to be dismissed. Raziel noticed something off about him immediately. Eyes narrowed, he approached the trembling guard, pacing around him in silence as he sized him up. Finally, he spoke.

"Who sired you?"

"Uh... s-sired, Lord?"

"Yes, imbecile, sired," Raziel snapped. "What is the name of the vampire who turned you?" he demanded.

"Ah! Uh, well, she lives in Freeport, you see," he stammered. "Her name is... is..."

"You are one of mine, aren't you?"

"Y-yes, Lord! I am Razielim!"

Quick as a flash, Raziel had him by the throat. A quick taste of the blood welling up from the wounds he'd inflicted confirmed his suspicions. "I don't know what offends me more," he hissed. "That you think so highly of yourself that you believed you could weave magic as well as you needed to in order to pull this off, or that you think so poorly of me that you expected me not to see through your disguise. You may have fooled the others, but I see you, spy. Your skill with glamours is lacking. You smell like a Zephonim, you taste like a Zephonim, and you lie like a Zephonim!" 

With that, he snapped the guard's neck.

Silence reigned for a moment after the body hit the floor, then Raziel slowly turned toward the Master of the Guard, who was now looking decidedly nervous herself. "Tell me, Fiarra," he began, "How many other Zephonim are posing as guards right under our noses?"

"I-"

"Get out!" he snarled before she could respond. "I want every single guard in this fortress assembled out on the parade ground in one hour for me to personally inspect. Every spy I find will earn you a dozen lashes in addition to what's already in store for you. Tantallon, take Amalia, Stella, and Vance up to my quarters. The rest of you are dismissed."

The room emptied rapidly, as no one wanted to hang around with Raziel's mood as volatile as it currently was. He followed the last of his advisors out, leaving Tantallon behind to shepherd the remaining humans.

Chapter Text

"Fucking yikes," Amalia whispered as she watched the others step over the spy's body and file out of the room. She didn't have long to dwell on what had just transpired, however, because Vance was becoming frightened again.

"You're not the one in trouble, dummy," Stella whispered to him. "I'm the one who didn't report him when he stepped out of line."

"Hush, all of you, and come along," Tantallon ordered, and they both fell silent apart from Vance's heavy breathing as he once again fought to remain calm.

"I don't think he's mad at you," Amalia said. "He's mad at that other lady." Stella steadfastly ignored her, and it was then that she remembered that she hadn't been given permission to speak to her. "I really wish he hadn't made that rule," she huffed. To her shock, Tantallon turned and gave her a sharp growl. 

"What did I just say?" he hissed, looming over her and looking for all the world like he'd backhand her if she so much as made another peep.

Deep down, she knew Tantallon was only maintaining appearances, but the vehemence of his reprimand had caught her completely off guard and frightened the absolute daylights out of her. Tears welled in her eyes immediately, and she spent the rest of the trip home fighting every bit as hard as Vance to maintain her composure. Tantallon either didn't notice, didn't care, or was doing a bang-up job of pretending not to care, and Amalia slunk past him and followed the pair of servants to the parlor, where the three of them proceeded to slump sullenly onto the couch. She turned a moment and glanced over the back toward the entryway, hoping to receive some sort of silent reassurance from him that he wasn't really angry, that he didn't mean it... but he'd already left.

Once the door had thumped shut, Vance leaned forward past his sister. "Alright, Miss?" he whispered to Amalia in a shaky voice. Stella immediately elbowed him, and to Amalia's surprise he immediately elbowed her back, twice as sharply. "Fuck off, will yeh? He said it was okay for me to talk to her!" he snapped, seeming to forget his fear almost instantly as his ire at his sister's attitude boiled over.

"Fine!" Stella huffed. "If you want to risk pushing your luck with it with the mood he's in, it's your own peril!"

"I'm fine," Amalia insisted, sniffling and wiping her eyes. "I just didn't expect to get snapped at like that."

"Tantallon's not usually so prickly," said Vance. "He must be upset about the spy. Don't take it personal, Miss Amalia. He didn't mean nothin' by it."

The doors suddenly opened again, and both Tantallon and Raziel strode in. "The absolute unmitigated gall," Raziel snarled as he stalked into the parlor and began to pace.

"Oh, come on," Tantallon began. "We both suspected he had at least one spy around here. It's all a big game to him. I don't know why you're so surprised."

"I'm not surprised!" Raziel barked. "It's as you said; this is exactly what we expected from him. I should have been more vigilant. Right under our noses, for weeks! You yourself must have walked right past him many times without discerning that he wasn't one of us!"

"Oh, you're blaming me, now?"

"No, Tantallon, that's not what I meant! Even I had to study him well to confirm it. Zephon's brood is becoming far too skilled in these arts for my liking."

"The war is won, Sire, and the abundance of idle time is likely becoming stagnant for them. We might want to start taking into account that they have a lot more time and resources these days to dedicate to refining their skills with whatever they see fit to study."

"Yes, and I doubt it's only Zephon and his ugly brood that's taking advantage of the opportunity afforded by being left to their own devices. Well, two can play this game. We'll see who can outspy who," Raziel groused as he strode around to stand in front of the fireplace before the unhappy humans. "Hmmph. Nearly forgot about you two," he huffed as he regarded his frightened servants, ignoring Amalia for the time being. "Stella, the next time a member of the guard attempts to strike up a casual chat, you are to report it immediately. I don't care how crazy things are; the rule is there for a reason. Understood?"

"Yes, Lord. My apologies. It won't happen again."

"See that it doesn't. I'll make sure that Lorrelin finds extra work for you for the next three days to help you remember," he replied curtly as Stella wilted under the admonishment.

"As for you, Vance, your prudent thinking on the matter of the mouse traps led to a much quicker resolution to this problem than might have been otherwise. As a reward, I will grant you a request. Whatever you'd like, within reason. Is there something you want? A special meal, perhaps? An article of clothing or a pretty bauble all your own? Something to amuse yourself with that you won't have to share with anyone?"

Vance sat frozen, staring wide-eyed at the ground a moment, before he finally managed to squeak out a reply. "Lord, it really wasn't nothin' special... A-anyone could have thought of it, really..."

"Perhaps. But you, a human in the midst of a room full of my own advisors, were the first to think of it," Raziel replied. "That's worthy of recognition, in my opinion. Surely there must be something you'd like? Even some time off would be acceptable, now that we've got reinforcements in the servant ranks."

"What about a book, Vance?" Amalia ventured, hoping to ease the poor man's discomfort at being put on the spot. It wasn't as if there were any shortage of those up here.

"He cannot read, Amalia," Raziel pointed out. "You are a rarity in this regard."

Amalia very nearly responded with a casual 'So teach him then, duh', but caught herself. "With respect, Master... perhaps he'd like to learn? Then he could read books on gardening."

Vance blinked, surprised. Truth be told, this had never even crossed his mind, mostly because the idea of any vampire taking the time to teach a lowly human servant to read was ludicrous... much less Lord Raziel himself. He had to admit, however, that having access to a wealth of knowledge on a subject he was passionate about would be... But his Lord had said 'within reason', so he'd never agree to it, and Vance wasn't entirely certain he wanted to spend enough time in a vampire's company to be taught anything. In fact, he was quite certain he didn't, under any circumstances.

"We could... try," Raziel replied skeptically, as if he doubted that his servant had enough brains to even memorize the alphabet, much less learn to string words made of it into coherent thoughts. "If you can grasp the basics, there might be a book or two on gardening that are simple enough to understand." Amalia fought the urge to roll her eyes. Was he not rewarding Vance for his insight at this very moment? His arrogance really could be obnoxious, she was realizing. 

"Do it, Vance," Stella whispered to him. "Do you realize what a gift he's offering?"

Fearing that his master would feel insulted if he rejected the 'gift' and dreading that outcome more than anything else, Vance resigned himself to the experience and nodded silently. He was beginning to wish that he'd kept his comments on the mouse traps to himself, rather than end up 'rewarded' for them by having to spend significant amounts of time trapped alone in a room with Lord Raziel.

Raziel glanced at Amalia, regarding her. Vance clearly felt far more at ease with his own kind, and she did know how to read... But leaving a male in his bride's company long enough for her to teach him would lead to far more intimacy between them than he cared to allow. He didn't expect that he would ever muster up the courage to try to initiate a physical affair, but the last thing he needed was for Vance to fall in love with Amalia the way he had. "We cannot begin straight away; I have this mess to deal with first. The two of you might as well go about your duties here for now. Tantallon, take Amalia upstairs and get her settled in to nap for a while, and then join me on the parade ground."

"Yes, Sire," Tantallon replied. "Come along, Amalia."

She slunk past him again and made for the stairs. They weren't halfway up before she felt his talons on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Amalia," he whispered, feeling a pang of guilt at the way she flinched away from him. "I laid it on a bit thick earlier trying to keep up appearances."

"I'll say you did," she grumbled at him, still feeling sulky. "Vance noticed and even commented on it being out of character for you. And you scared the shit out of me."

Tantallon winced. "I didn't mean to! I'm not used to such deception!"

"Forget it, it's not that big a deal," she said, though her tone implied lingering resentment. She was beginning to think she'd had enough of vampires for the time being, and was all too happy to go and have the room all to herself. Thankfully, Tantallon didn't push her to interact further, and simply closed the bedroom door behind her once she was through it and went back downstairs as she flung herself down on the bed.

It became apparent within half an hour that she wasn't tired enough to sleep, and she huffed as boredom began to creep up on her. Glancing over at the table on Raziel's side of the bed, she was momentarily elated to find the book that he had been reading earlier lying there abandoned, only to groan and toss it right back upon finding it written in an unrecognizable language. She didn't dare go back downstairs to the library with the servants still around just in case they found it odd that she'd take it upon herself to do so after being put to bed, so after another ten minutes spent trying to will herself to sleep she finally got up and went out to see if the parade ground happened to be visible from the balcony. It wasn't, of course, and there were no books lying around out here despite the comfortable lounge off to one side that she had no doubt her husband brought out here for the express purpose of reading on it. Defeated, she stood staring dejectedly at the flowers on the railing. At least those were pretty to look at, she supposed.

Her first thought upon seeing a set of talons appear on the ledge below the railing was how irritating it was that Rahab was back again despite being desperate enough to avoid people that he'd climb straight up the fucking wall to sneak in through the balcony. Her second thought, which arrived a split second later, was that the talons she was looking at weren't slender and webbed. In fact, they looked just like Raziel's, albeit a bit smaller and daintier. A jolt of fear seized her as she realized that it wasn't Rahab that had climbed the wall and crawled across a near horizontal surface to reach the balcony's edge, and outright terror overcame her when Zephon's head appeared between the fancy stone columns that made up the railing. She stood frozen as he perched nimbly atop the rail a moment before hopping down and extending his hand.

"Come, Amalia, quickly. I've come to get you out of here," he said, with the same kind, earnest expression he'd displayed earlier. "I can carry you down on my back, but we've got to hurry! The diversion won't keep him occupied for long."

Diversion? What was he talking about? All she could do was shake her head slightly, her wide eyes fixed on his own, which softened immediately as he took a step forward. 

"Oh, sweetling, you needn't fear me," he soothed. "I simply cannot bear to allow him to treat you the way he does. Your beauty has pierced me in a way I never expected. Come, and you will remain by my side as my equal. You'll never wear a collar again, I swear it."

Holy fuck, was he trying to convince her that he'd fallen in love with her? Her momentary indignation jolted her out of her panic, and though she was unwilling to take her eyes off him for even a moment, she shook her head again. "I... I am loyal to my master, Lord. I can't come with you."

His demeanor changed immediately. He drew himself up to his full height and began to advance on her, abandoning the ruse as his gaze hardened. "Can't? Or won't?" he asked, an edge to his voice. "I thought we could do this the easy way. Apparently not. You can either come quietly, or I can disembowel you where you stand and leave you for him to find once he's done removing his entire guard from their posts like the arrogant imbecile he is. It makes little difference to-"

His eyes had shifted to look over her shoulder, and a low growl sounded from behind her. Amalia didn't care who it was who'd come to her rescue, she simply began to back toward the sound until Tantallon stepped in front of her, towering over her would-be kidnapper even though Zephon was still standing at full height.

"How dare you trespass here," he hissed, baring his fangs.

Zephon responded with a growl of his own, and his talons flexed in outrage. "I see that you've become just as haughty as your sire, whelp. I ought to kill you this instant for even glancing in my direction. Put those fangs away before I bring my own out to play. His grief at the loss of his beloved firstborn will devastate him, and that's a far more satisfying outcome than taking her from him."

Tantallon's lips dropped fractionally to partially hide his fangs in a moment's hesitation, almost as if he were about to give in and submit, but he shook it off in the next instant and refused to back down.

"Raziel is outdoors, well within Whispering range, and I've already called him. Humanity is conquered and the Empire thrives, fifthborn," he growled, emphasizing Zephon's low place in the Lieutanant hierarchy. "You've outlived your usefulness. Thus, if your brother tears you apart and tosses the scraps of your carcass into the kennels for the dogs to devour, the Master won't even bat an eye at your loss and will more than likely celebrate the end of your incessant troublemaking. Your entire clan will quickly follow you to the gates of Hell; of that you can rest assured."

Despite his seething rage at being addressed this way by a lesser vampire, Zephon knew it was all over now that Raziel was no doubt racing to his quarters to intercept him. With a snarl of frustration, he turned and leapt to the fortress wall, vaulting skillfully from one to another as Amalia and Tantallon stared after him, dumbfounded. Within mere seconds he was gone, and Tantallon had no doubt that this newfound talent of his would ensure his escape. He'd make it safely back to his own stronghold, beef up security, and Raziel would have a hell of a time exacting vengeance.

"Gods above, he's going to be pissed," he said, his voice grave. "Are you alright, Amalia? Did he touch you?"

Amalia was still frozen to the spot, and shook her head again. "Uh-uh," she breathed. "He tried to get me to leave with him. I wouldn't, and then he threatened to gut me."

"Then I got here just in time. The clan library is in that building there," he responded, pointing. "One of the record keepers saw him from the window and caught me as I passed the door. I didn't believe him when he said he was clambering nearly upside down up the underside of the balcony like a fly on the ceiling!"

Raziel burst through the door then, and Tantallon immediately put himself between him and Amalia, raising his hands in supplication. "She's okay, Sire! She's okay! Easy," he soothed.

A single glance told him that was true at least, and his mind charged ahead to the next issue. "Where is he?" he demanded.

"He ran. Well, jumped, actually..."

"Jumped? To the ground? From this height?" If that were the case, his brother would be lying in a jumbled heap of shattered bones below... and Raziel would be happy to let him suffer there a while before killing him. Tantallon's response stopped him in his tracks as he strode to the balcony's edge to look.

"No! Between the fortress's buildings, straight that way, kicking off of each wall as he made contact and leaping to the opposite. He made five jumps before he got to that rooftop there and disappeared. I've never seen anything like it, even among the most nimble of our kind. It's like he can grip the walls somehow!"

Raziel didn't even know what to make of this event. How foolish he was, how stupidly overconfident, to have called his guard away and left the fortress unprotected, knowing that Zephon had been growing bolder as of late! He would never have even gotten close to the fortress, much less made it inside and all the way up to his quarters, had he left even a few of them behind to keep watch. And for all he knew, Stella and Vance were lying dead somewhere to boot... he doubted very much that Zephon wouldn't spare a moment to slaughter them on his way up to the bedroom if he came across them. But no, he must not have, because he hadn't smelled blood when he charged into his home, and Amalia and Tantallon were okay, and...

He could handle this. It was an embarrassing setback, nothing more. He'd learn from his mistake, and-

"He came up from under the balcony, Raz! That fucker can climb, holy shit," Amalia blurted, beginning to pace. She was quickly becoming hysterical. "Tantallon's not exaggerating; he can cling to surfaces and he's apparently a goddamn parkour master!" she exclaimed, gesturing wildly at the buildings he'd performed his little stunt on. "I'm going to die here! Nowhere is safe if I'm not safe up here! I've been here what, a few days? And I've been moments away from my own death twice now! I want to go home! I don't care that I can't remember fuck all about it; at least there aren't any of you there putting invisible death traps on ordinary doors and slaughtering us left and right!"

With that, she stormed back inside, leaving Raziel and Tantallon staring at the door.

"She didn't mean it, Sire," Tantallon said after a moment. "She didn't mean it. She loves you. She'll come around, you'll see-"

"Not if she's dead," Raziel said, his voice flat. "She's right. I cannot protect her from him. And now that he knows he can't fool her, he'll stop at nothing to kill her."

"We can protect her. You're not alone in this. And if it makes you feel any better, he said he'd really rather kill me than her," he added, rather flippantly.
 
Raziel turned to stare at him. "...How is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"I don't know!" Tantallon exclaimed, throwing up his hands in exasperation. "He's a clanlord and I ignored his direct command and threatened him to boot; perhaps he's so insulted he'll forget her entirely! And if he decides to target me instead of her, do you really think he can overpower me? He's fifth in line; he's always been a weakling! Just because he's higher up the social food chain doesn't mean he's capable of harming me."

"Until now we didn't expect he could disguise his spawn well enough to infiltrate the fortress for weeks on end, and we certainly didn't expect him to learn to adhere to walls like some sort of loathsome insect," Raziel gritted, dragging his palm down his face.

This brought to mind the the strange word Amalia had used before storming off, and Tantallon paused a moment. "I wonder what 'parkour' is?"

"Something she's remembered from her old life, no doubt. And the more she remembers the more unhappy she'll become. She already wants to leave..."

"I mean... she can't," Tantallon pointed out with a shrug. "She's stuck here whether she likes it or not."

Raziel rounded on him. "You are failing stupendously at consoling me today," he growled. "I wanted a bride, not a prisoner!"

"I'm just trying to help!"

"She was my bride," he moaned, suddenly collapsing back against the wall and sliding down to sit on the floor, as if he hadn't the strength to stay upright.

Tantallon threw up his hands again. "What do you mean, 'was'?! Get ahold of yourself! It was an outburst born of fear and anger; it meant nothing. She's still your bride!"

"This is precisely why I've guarded my heart so carefully all these years. Love just isn't worth it. Not when it ends like this..."

"Oh my god," Tantallon groaned, covering his face with his hands in exasperation. Completely fed up, he yanked open the door, strode to the bed, tore the covers off a weeping Amalia and pointed back toward the balcony. "Go and talk to him!" he ordered sternly, ignoring her tears. "You've made him believe you want to leave him, and he's overcome with despair! We need to restore order quickly and he's not likely to dispense with the melodrama as long as he's convinced that you no longer love him! Like it or not, Amalia, you are part of this family now, and this is your home. You entered this marriage willingly, and as his bride, you are responsible for looking after him as much as he is you. You are not going to turn tail and hide like a coward while everything falls apart around you! Both of you need to pull your heads out of your asses; we have a crisis on our hands!"

Amalia had already begun to regret her words before Tantallon had come to chew her out, which is why she'd started crying in the first place. Immediately upon hearing that Raziel had actually taken them seriously she scrambled out of bed and ran to the balcony, where she found him huddled against the wall, arms folded across his knees with his face buried in them.

"I'm sorry!" she said, rushing to his side and dropping to her own knees beside him. "I didn't mean it. I don't want to leave you. I'm just scared!" He immediately lifted his head and wrapped his arms around her.

"It's my fault you've come so close to death. Both times, it was my fault. Kain trusted me to look after you, and through my own stupidity-"

"Raz, I'm still alive. I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere."

"You'll be going straight to the underworld if my performance the last several days is any indication."

Unbeknownst to either of them, Tantallon had followed Amalia and was standing in the doorway. "We don't have time for this, Sire. Word is no doubt already spreading throughout the fortress that this entire thing was a ruse, and that it worked. I expect everyone in the library flocked to the windows to look up at the balcony once the alarm sounded, so the place will soon be buzzing with gossip about Zephon's unsettling new ability. We need to reassure everyone that you've regained control and will maintain it."

"How am I supposed to face them after this blunder?"

"You know you cannot simply hide up here forever and abandon your role as our patriarch. There are clearly extenuating circumstances at play here; Zephon has gained abilities that none of us could have expected him to gain. It's not as if he caught you sleeping, and it's not as if it's even the first time you've assembled the entire guard on the parade ground! We're at peace; we do it every time you have reason to address them all at once, and nothing has ever gone awry as a result," said Tantallon as he stepped around Amalia to kneel down before his sire. "Our clan looks to you to lead them. You need to reassure them that this was the result of completely unexpected events and that you are on the alert to thwart any further attempts. They need to know that he's not going to win again, and you are the only one who can convince them. It can't come from me; it has to be you."

"And what if I'm not even convinced of it myself? You want me to stand before them and give them empty platitudes while I endure their scorn at my failure?"

"Yes, you idiot," Tantallon hissed from between clenched teeth. "What has gotten into you? Since when is lying down and admitting defeat an option you're willing to even entertain? I ask again, Sire, who are you?"

Amalia pulled away from Raziel's embrace and gave his shoulder a gentle shove. "Look, you're gonna have to eat crow on this one; there's no avoiding it. I'm sorry I made you feel like I didn't want to stay by your side. I really didn't mean it," she said softly, scrubbing at her eyes.

With a heavy sigh, Raziel let his head fall back against the wall. "We'll need my advisors back again. See if someone can catch Isaac and Esmerelda before they head back home, if they're not already halfway there. Summon the Elders who live in town and the military elite to court," he said wearily to Tantallon, "While I try to come up with some platitudes."

"Fuck platitudes; tell them the truth. The Master's will is that Amalia be kept safe, and if anything happens to her, your neck is on the line and the hammer might just fall on the rest of us as well. Kain's orders are motivation enough on their own; between that and the inevitable righteous indignation at Zephon's bald-faced disrespect they'll quickly overlook this mistake and jump to defend our stronghold from further intrusion. The clan is loyal, Sire, and they will remain so despite these unfortunate circumstances. You've just got to swallow your pride and do what needs to be done, and all will be well again."

"I don't know what I'd do without you, Tantallon," Raziel replied with a shake of his head and a wan smile.

"Oh, fret not, I love pulling you out of your emotional nosedives. It's my favorite. That's what I wanted out of my evening," Tantallon remarked sarcastically as he turned toward the door.

"Okay, I'm sorry," Raziel sighed. "It was a bit over-the-top, I admit it!"

"No, it's fine!" Tantallon replied as he turned and spread his arms in a gesture of mock graciousness, leaving the door open as he took a few steps backward through the bedroom. "Didn't you hear me? That's what I wanted!" he snarked before turning and striding toward the door to the hallway, glaring over his shoulder the entire way.

"Alright, wiseass, you've made your damned point," Raziel snapped as Amalia snorted with laughter. She couldn't say she felt a whole lot better about her likelihood to survive, but at least Raziel was done being a sadsack and ready to take charge again. Maybe Tantallon was right; maybe with the entire clan rallied and on the alert, she'd be alright. They got to their feet, and as soon as Amalia took a step toward the door Raziel caught her by the wrist, pulled her to his chest, and kissed her deeply.

She returned the kiss with more fervor than he expected, considering all that had just happened. He wasn't really even sure he was in the mood himself, with all that was on his mind. This night had turned out to be a complete disaster, and there was so much left to face, so many problems to solve. What was he going to tell his clan? He tried to think back to what Tantallon had said, but Amalia was making it damned difficult, tugging at the laces of his pants as she was. She'd ended the kiss and dropped to her knees a second ago, and-

...Oh. Well, alright then.

He fell back against the wall once more as she took him into her mouth, and she quickly scooted forward to stop him inadvertently pulling himself free of her. Although, now that she thought of it... On the one hand, she could release him and tease him a while. On the other, she could simply go hard until his eyes rolled back in his head. Either way, his mind would be off his troubles, at least for the moment. It was really a matter of which option seemed like more fun for her.

He ended up making the decision for her by gently pushing her head away. "Inside," he commanded. "We're far too exposed out here for these games."

"Don't wanna pull a Turel?" she asked mischievously.

"It would be rather hypocritical of me," he replied as he swept her up in his arms and unceremoniously dumped her onto the bed. "You frightened me," he told her as he crawled over her.

"I'm sorry, Raziel. I never meant to make you feel so awful, I really didn't. I was just running my mouth, as usual."

"You don't want to go home, then?"

"Are you kidding me? I don't even remember where I lived. That car I told you I own? Can't remember what kind it is, or what color. I have no idea how I made a living, or if I even went to college. And that thing I was just about to do? Don't even remember how; I was just gonna wing it down there and hope for the best."

That got a soft laugh out of him at least. "It's not a difficult skill to pick up, darling."

"You've slept with men before?"

He nodded. "I generally prefer the company of women, but on occasion, my appetite wanders a bit. And back in the beginning, when it was only me and Kain..."

"You loved him, didn't you?" she asked, reaching up to brush his long fringe behind his tapered ear.

"Well, he's my sire, of course I loved him. I still love him in that regard. But yes, at one time I loved him the way I love you. But the dawn of the Empire was at hand, and with every new fledge he showed up with he became more distant until it became clear that the Empire had moved into his heart and I had moved out. That's why I never married, Amalia. I never wanted to go through such heartbreak again."

"God, no wonder you got so upset. I feel awful."

"Oh, please. Even I know that I was being absolutely ridiculous," he replied as he shuffled his pants down his legs and dropped them to the floor. "Tantallon ought to have slapped me silly."

"I'm surprised he didn't. He looked like he was about ready to."

"He would never. Let us speak no more of it. I've got a better use for that mouth of yours, after all."

Amalia snorted, grasping his hips as he crawled over her again, leaving his half-hard cock inches from her face. "You talk like it was your idea." She took him in hand and stroked, relishing the way his breath hitched as his hips jerked forward. The position was a bit too awkward for her to use her mouth, so after wringing a few more little gasps from him and bringing him to full arousal, she began to scoot backward out from under him. He took the hint and rolled onto his back, stroking her hair as she took him into her mouth once more.

"I thought-" he began, pausing to gasp softly and tilt his head back into the pillows, "I thought you said you didn't know what you were doing when it came to this?"

She only shrugged and kept going, and he was forced to resist the urge to tighten his grip on the back of her head. "Oh, god, there," he gasped as she ran her tongue over the spot on the underside where the head met the shaft, right where the velvety skin that usually protected it gathered when he was erect. In retrospect, it would probably have been better not to encourage her to focus her attention there, because he'd just decided he'd rather be fucking her only to promptly cheat himself out of the opportunity by unexpectedly exploding into her mouth. "Fuck," he growled, unable to even warn her before his hips bucked upward, causing her to gag and pull away. To her credit, she still managed to swallow some of what he gave her, and was still eager enough to attempt to go back for the rest.

"No," he gasped, stopping her before she made contact again. "Too much," he laughed breathlessly. "I can't... I can't take anymore. It's far too sensitive afterward."

"...Did I just screw myself out of getting screwed?" she asked, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand as she stared in dismay at his cock, which she knew wouldn't remain hard for much longer.

This caused him to laugh outright, and he sat up just enough to wrap his arms around her and pull her down onto his chest. "I'm afraid you did. You're better than you think you are at that particular task. I can't remember the last time I came that quickly."

"You did say it was easy. I suppose we don't have time to wait for you to be ready for another round?"

"I'm afraid not, darling. I've already tarried too long here. I'll have to make it up to you when I return."

Before he could make her move aside so that he could get up, she leaned in to kiss him briefly. "I love you," she whispered.

He buried his nose in her hair, breathing in her scent with a deep purr. "I love you too, cyar'ika. And I will keep you safe, if it's the last thing I do."

Chapter Text

It was just as well that Amalia had kept her clothes on, because Raziel made the obvious decision to post guards at not only the doors to his home, but both on and underneath his balcony as well. Worried for the pair of servants who she knew had been there during all the excitement, she quickly darted down the stairs and ran into the library to see if they were alright. As it turned out, they'd been busy enough within to not even have heard Raziel's dramatic entrance and mad dash up to his bedchamber, and were both completely flabbergasted when she told them what had happened.

"I told you, Stella!" exclaimed Vance. "I told her, Miss, I said, 'Not sure it's a good idea to take all the guards away at a time like this,' but I wasn't about to question Lord Raziel, now was I?"

"Yes, but I wouldn't have expected that Zephon could have got back in after being escorted outside the walls!"

"No one expected it," Amalia replied. "But he's got guards on their way, we'll be safe until-"

At that moment the library door burst open and one of the guards stepped in. "Here she is," he called to another in the parlor, before waving Amalia over. "Upstairs, you. Lord Raziel's orders. Come with us."

"Bye," she whispered to the servants as she quickly moved to obey. The guard waiting in the parlor joined them as they made their way upstairs to the bedchamber. 

"Balcony's through here, Lord Raziel said. Careful not to touch anything or scuff up his floors; you know how prickly he is about his chambers," said the guard who had taken hold of Amalia's arm to move her along.

"Never thought I'd see the inside," the other muttered, though he offered no opinion on his surroundings, probably fearing that Amalia would promptly parrot back whatever he said to Raziel. Once she'd been shooed off toward the bed, the pair split up with one on the inside of the door, and one outside on the balcony. This left Amalia stuck in a room with an unfamiliar vampire, which did not help to settle her nerves in the slightest. Wordlessly, she slunk under the covers and curled up on her side facing away from him, thankful that he at least seemed to have been given orders not to interact with her any further than it took to make sure she was where she was supposed to be. Unfortunately, it seemed that she was now right back to being bored. Huffing a sigh, she settled in to wait for Raziel's return, idly wondering what she did back home when boredom overtook her.

She wasn't sure how long she'd been there twiddling her thumbs before the door opened to reveal a haggard Raziel, expression grave and shoulders drooping. "Dismissed," he said, wearily waving a hand at the guard, who promptly opened the balcony door to retrieve his companion and slunk to the exit without asking questions. Raziel stepped aside to let the guards out, and then Tantallon stepped in, wiping tears from his eyes.

"Tantallon!" cried Amalia, leaping out of bed. "Raziel, what happened? Is he okay?" Raziel only shook his head sadly.

"They're dead!" gritted Tantallon as he began to pace about the room. "My entire harem! Zephon got to them and slaughtered them all, right in my own home!"

She stopped dead in her tracks, covering her mouth with her hand in shock.

"They never hurt anyone! They'd done nothing wrong; they were innocent, and he killed them all! To punish me, for my insolence!" The shock was wearing off and rapidly giving way to pure rage. "I'll kill him. I'll fucking kill him dead, they were innocent!" he snarled.

"I'm sorry, my son," Raziel said, softly. "It's my fault, if the guards hadn't been-"

"No, stop saying that!" Tantallon exploded, rounding on his sire and causing him to visibly wince. "It isn't your fault! It isn't the guards' fault, it isn't my fault, and it wasn't their fault! Zephon alone is responsible for this! When is the last time you even saw guards posted at my doors? I have wards for that purpose, same as you! He got in through the goddamned balcony, just like he did here! He decided he'd get back at me on his way out, and he climbed in through the balcony and killed them one by one!"

Raziel wilted a bit at his eldest's outburst. "Clearly that spy of his was feeding him more than idle gossip from the lips of the servants," he sighed after a moment. "He couldn't have known which balcony to climb to otherwise, in either of our cases."

"Raziel, where's Lorrelin?" Amalia asked, a chill running down her spine. If Zephon knew that Lorrelin was important to Raziel... she'd be a target, too.

"She's here, Amalia," he replied. "She's safe in the library with Stella and Vance. The rest of the servants are holed up in their quarters with guards posted at the doors. Every inch of the fortress is being swept, and the alarm bells have been ringing nonstop since word got around that Zephon had been spotted within our walls unescorted by guards. Look after Tantallon for now, will you? This situation is even more dire than we thought and I've got to get back out there. I'll try to return within the hour, but cannot make any promises. Don't go anywhere, either of you."

Amalia had thought she'd heard bells ringing when the guard had opened the balcony door to slip through it earlier, but hadn't been certain until now. She slowly approached Tantallon, who had fallen to his knees and was now sobbing on the floor, and joined him there. "I'm sorry, Tantallon," she began. "I know you must have cared for them." She wasn't sure whether he loved them romantically or not, but this level of distress certainly implied strong attachment at the very least.

"Took care of them," he replied after a moment, hiccupping. "Always took care of them. They looked to me to provide for them, and I did! I always did..."

"I know you did," she soothed, leaning against him and wrapping an arm around his back as he continued to sob. What else could she say? What could possibly be said or done to fix this?

"And he'll get away with it!" he cried, pounding his fist on the floor. "The Master will give him a thrashing, which he will survive. Kain might be furious at his actions, but he won't allow open warfare between the clans! Otherwise I'd be leading an army toward his gates right this second, and when we got there we'd tear him and his clan out root and stem and then bury them all in the rubble of his stronghold!"

Amalia wasn't entirely sure how to respond. She had to guess that there were innocent citizens within Zephon's own walls, just like there were here, but knew now wasn't the time to point their lack of involvement out.

It was quite some time until his tears were spent, but Amalia stayed with him there on the floor until finally she glanced over to see him calmly thousand-yard staring into the far wall. Perhaps now would be a good time to see if she could get him up and into bed. Wrapping her fingers around his talons, she stood and gently tugged, bidding him to get to his feet. "Come on, Tantallon. Let's lie down. The bed is nice, and soft, and familiar, and warm," she urged. "It'll be better than sitting on the floor." He didn't fight her, and once she had him settled, she turned her back to him and let him curl himself around her.

"I miss my sister," he eventually whispered, and suddenly Amalia found herself fighting tears. Tantallon was over three hundred years old. His life as a vampire had made him fierce and strong, brave and loyal, capable and tireless. But right now, lying there behind her, he sounded like nothing more than the human barely-adult he'd been when Raziel had found him dying and given him his new purpose. "I don't know if he told you..."

"He did," she replied, swallowing hard.

"I never wanted to feel like that again. So helpless, so... ineffective. I couldn't protect her any more than I was able to protect my concubines. And no, I may not have loved them the way Raziel loves you, but..."

"You didn't need to, from the sounds of it. It sounded like they were happy living with you."

"They were... and I was happy with them. Firstborn fledges often don't have fledglings of their own; they're generally too wrapped up in their relationship with their dam or sire, and I'm no exception. So it was... it was nice to have a family to look after. Adults, who I didn't have to watch every minute to keep out of trouble. Concubines, so I wasn't obligated to grant them status that none of them wanted anyway. They were all so... They all hated the idea of having to go to social functions, to perform the role an official bride would be expected to perform. They were a lot like Rahab... just wanted to be left alone, for the most part, and not have to keep up any appearances. So, yes... they were all quite happy with our arrangement. I ensured that they lived in luxury and gave them whatever they wanted. And they helped to satisfy my quite frankly voracious sexual appetite. At least... it was..."

"I'm sure your sex drive will recover eventually," she said reassuringly. 

"I hope not. I'll have no one to reach for," he replied, softly.

Amalia didn't know how to respond to that either, so she simply wound her slender fingers around his talons once more, and they fell silent.

The next several days were harrowing. Tantallon couldn't bear to go back to his own quarters yet and in fact insisted that he'd never be able to return at all, and every time Raziel came home he ended up battling him to stay put and allow himself time to mourn. It lasted all of two days before Amalia pointed out that caging him up with nothing to do was no doubt making things far worse than if he'd just let him get back to work. They were both in and out constantly after that, and she more or less resolved to fade into the background for the time being and allow them to focus their attention where it was most needed to deal with the crisis Zephon had caused. Lorrelin saw to her needs in the meantime, and whenever one or both of the two vampires would inevitably fall exhausted into bed, she was always right there to offer whatever support she could. Tantallon had been right, after all. This was her family now. Kain and the Raziel in the Reaver had been pushed firmly to the back of her mind and this world was all she knew for the time being.

One evening shortly after dusk, Raziel entered the library where Amalia was curled up asleep in the cubby. "My brethren and I meet at midnight. I'll need to leave for the Sanctuary within the hour," she heard him say as she wriggled upright, shaking her hand to dispel the pins and needles that had resulted from falling asleep in an awkward position.

"I still don't see why I can't come! We both know Zephon won't show his cowardly face at this meeting; you can't be worried I'll lose control and attack him!"

"Zephon was not extended an invitation to this Council meeting. He wouldn't have come anyway and hopefully will feel insulted by the slight," said Raziel.

"Then let me come! The Council needs to understand-"

"Tantallon, we have been over this," Raziel interjected. "You badly disrespected a Lieutenant and cannot hide either your lack of regret or your contempt for him. Understandable though that may be, they will still no doubt expect me to punish you for your insolence, not bring you along to stand there looking righteously angry. You know how most of them are. It's not that they won't sympathize to some extent; we're all tired of Zephon's nonsense, it's just that-"

"Rahab would want me there," groused Tantallon, sulking. "He'll be on my side."

Raziel had no doubt of that. Rahab had been furious to hear about what Zephon had done, and he cared little for the hierarchy established when Kain had sired them and given a smaller portion of his soul to each in turn. That Zephon was a Lieutenant didn't matter to him one bit; the simple reality was that their brother had overstepped badly and deserved far more than the harsh words and dire threats he'd received. "He'll come visit soon; in fact he may opt to simply accompany me home after the meeting. He was supposed to be here yesterday for his brewing lesson, but obviously circumstances don't allow for such distractions at present."

"He'll be here. You know what day tomorrow is."

"I know, Tantallon," Raziel said, gently.

For once, Amalia couldn't complain about Rahab visiting. She knew that he and Tantallon were close and that they shared profound grief over the loss of Lenore. Rahab could support Tantallon in a way that no other could, and she'd never begrudge him that support. Plus, in all likelihood, with his attention firmly on Tantallon she'd be able to fly under the radar and avoid him entirely, which suited her just fine. Popping her head out of the cubby as Raziel turned and left, she wordlessly extended her hand to Tantallon to invite him in with her, and he clambered through the opening with a growl of irritation.

"Bunch of imbeciles," he huffed as he arranged himself among the cushions. "That cowardly little worm slaughters six defenseless women in their own home, and they're more concerned with a lack of deference on my part."

Hoping to distract him, Amalia offered to read to him, but instead he climbed right back out of the cubby and extended his own hand. "I've got a better idea. Come and watch me take my frustrations out on some straw dummies in one of the training yards." This was a new experience, and she wasn't about to say no to anything that would break up the recent stretch of monotony. She took his hand, and he hauled her out and led her off.

Raziel, for his part, had left the stronghold alongside his retinue on his favorite courser, and they were making good time toward the Sanctuary of the Clans. He had been hoping that the next time he and his brothers gathered there he'd be able to sneak in ahead of time to trap Turel's favorite tryst room, but present circumstances didn't allow for that distraction, either. Unless...

No. No, now was not the time. Perhaps he'd simply send two of the men accompanying him to guard the door. At least that way Turel wouldn't be able to repeat the offense and go unpunished for it. That outcome was simply unacceptable. His decision made, he urged his horse onward. The Sanctuary wasn't far, and he wanted to be the first to arrive.

He expected to have to do quite a bit of damage control for Tantallon's disrespect, but was quite surprised to find the other Lieutenants significantly more sympathetic than he thought they would be.

"Zephon's got to be reined in, it's as simple as that," shrugged Dumah. "Tantallon's disrespect pales in comparison to the transgression that inspired it, and his retaliation for that disrespect is wildly out of line."

"I simply don't like the precedent it sets, brother," Turel replied. "Dear Raziel here has always let that boy get away with far more than he should... Like father, like son I suppose. However, in this case I admit that I must agree; it's not what we need to focus on. Zephon's behavior is beyond concerning. It's disturbing."

Raziel decided to simply ignore Turel's jab at his parenting. "Agreed. This type of brashness is not like him; he's always been sneaky and subtle and usually sends others to do his dirty work rather than put himself at risk. This, to me, seems like rather a drastic shift in personality, to say nothing of his unsettling new ability."

"And with no evolution to account for either change," drawled Melchiah. "Zephon hasn't evolved in decades, nor do I expect him to for several more."

"Yes, it would seem Rahab's most recent... gift... is the last to be bestowed upon our kind," sneered Turel, eyeing Rahab's webbed talons.

Rahab shot him a look, but otherwise ignored the remark. "The sudden development of that kind of ability suggests magery. Strong magery. Possibly strong enough to be addling his brain."

Turel was skeptical. "Magery has never been Zephon's strong suit."

Dumah shrugged again. "No, but like the rest of us, he's got a lot of free time these days, and he hates being at any sort of disadvantage. He's been practicing, I'll bet, though I doubt any amount of practice will make up for his lack of power. He's always been a weakling."

"Yes, and since his skill is lacking as well, it's entirely likely that whatever he's doing, he's going about it the wrong way," added Rahab. "Furthermore, he might be supplementing his spellwork with potions, which are far more likely to have adverse effects on the mind. The use of wormwood, in particular, tends to reduce impulse control, which would account for his sudden disregard for any and all caution. If his first dalliance with it wasn't precisely controlled, he'd have used too much or mixed it with the wrong reagent and the resulting mental volatility would have promptly snowballed. I can think of no other explanation for any of this."

"As usual," Turel commented, "The resident know-it-all knows it all."

"Better to be a know-it-all than a know-nothing," Rahab retorted, knowing that Raziel would intervene if Turel decided to take a swipe at him with his claws for his insolence. He wasn't about to let on to what his real suspicion was. He'd long ago confirmed his theory that the repeated use of certain types of spells could eventually cause their effects to become interwoven with every fiber of the caster's being, granting permanent abilities. This was the key to directing the course of one's own evolution, and the last thing he wanted was for the others to start doing what he'd been doing. That Zephon might have come up with the same idea independently, or worse, stolen it through his thrice-damned spy network, distressed him intensely. That was supposed to be his discovery, and the advantage gained was to be his alone.

"He seemed perfectly fine when he I spoke to him earlier that day," said Raziel as he stepped between Turel and Rahab, anticipating the violence that usually followed whenever Rahab dared open his mouth in defense of himself. Turel growled, but stayed put. "Wasn't acting strangely at all."

"That he showed up at your gates unannounced is in and of itself a risk he'd not usually take, so his behavior in fact wasn't entirely normal," replied Rahab. "You said you gave him a bit of a thrashing and threw him out. Perhaps the residual effects of his most recent round of magical experimentation drove him to seek revenge rather than just go home and seethe in silence, and to facilitate this he either cast another spell or used another potion... or worse, both. The effect on his mind would have been as immediate as the ability it granted, so he'd promptly throw caution to the wind and allow his rage to guide his actions."

"And you think it addled him so badly that he thought depriving Raziel of his little pet would be a good enough way to get back at him?" asked Turel.

"It's not just the pet," replied Raziel, rather testily. "He knows I value my privacy, and that sneaking into my home would upset me just as much."

"I believe you said the pet is under your protection as ordered by our Master?" Dumah asked. "That would be reason enough to harm it. He'd love to see you in trouble for once."

"You speak as if I've never caught a beating before," snapped Raziel.

"Killing his firstborn's brides is an issue that needs to be addressed, I think," said Melchiah, hoping to steer the conversation back on course. He didn't particularly care to be involved in any of this petty drama and was mostly concerned with going home at a reasonable hour.

"Concubines," Rahab corrected. "Tantallon never married. But regardless, Melchiah is right; he needs to be punished. It is absolutely outrageous that he would dare to repay a few flippant comments with the murder of six women who were at home minding their own damned business. Tantallon has suffered enough loss, he did not deserve this."

"Ah, right, that bride of yours that the hunters got was his sister, wasn't she?," Turel commented with a malicious grin, knowing perfectly well who Lenore was and how devastating her death had been to his brother.

Raziel immediately stepped between them again as Rahab bared his fangs in a snarl. "Enough! Mind your disrespectful tongue, Turel, before I remove it from your mouth and save us all the headache of listening to you wag it!"

Dumah piped up as if nothing had happened. "Well, we can't attack him, or the Master will have all our hides... even Melchiah's," he observed, eyeing the patchwork skin which covered Melchiah's bloated body with distaste. "Can't lay siege to him, either, for the same reason. But we can sanction him."

"My brood needs his cattle for both their bodies and their blood," Melchiah snapped, offended. "The rest of you can do as you like, but I'll not be disrupting trade between our clans, and I'll not stand here to be insulted, either." 

Dumah briefly considered suggesting that Melchiah go stand somewhere else and he'd insult him there instead, but ultimately decided that if Raziel or Rahab hadn't come up with the jibe first then it probably wasn't funny enough to bother, and Melchiah was already halfway to the door by time he thought of it anyhow.

It was thus decided between the four remaining brothers that trade would be immediately cut off from Zephon until he took action to make amends for his transgression. With any luck, he'd realize how much trouble he'd gotten himself into and stop fooling around with magic he wasn't powerful enough to use properly. It wasn't even close to what he deserved, not by a long shot, but it would have to do until Kain returned and punished him further.

"By the way..." Raziel began, ready to move on now that the matter of Zephon had been dealt with. "About that dragon north of Coorhagen..."

Neither Amalia nor Tantallon were in any way surprised to see Rahab follow Raziel in the door when it finally opened an hour before dawn, but they certainly weren't expecting Dumah to be there as well. Tantallon quickly stood and offered a stiff bow.

"Lord Dumah, what a pleasant surprise."

"Ah, Tantallon, it's been a while. You have my sympathy for your loss. Rest assured that Zephon will be punished for his audacity," he replied, his gaze shifting to Amalia. She'd been staring at Dumah since he'd walked in, partly out of surprise at coming face to face with yet another of Raziel's brethren and partly because as it turned out, this one was hot, too. She immediately dropped her eyes to the floor, wondering if Zephon was the only one of them who wasn't dashingly handsome.

"There's no punishment that any of us can give him that would fit this crime, unfortunately."

"Agreed," Dumah sighed, nodding. "We'd all like to dismember the little rat and scatter his parts to all four corners of Nosgoth. As it is, we'll have to make do with depriving him of any and all trade for a while and wait for the Master to deal with him."

Dumah had begun to advance on Amalia, and Raziel was immediately alarmed. "We've much to discuss, Dumah," he began, hoping to usher him along into the library where they could hash out the details of the dragon expedition.

"This the pet you're supposed to be looking after?" he asked instead, causing Raziel to grit his teeth and Amalia to gasp softly and begin to tremble. She thought he'd said that Dumah would ignore her if he ever saw her!

"Yes, that's the pet. She's easily frightened, as you can see, so if you don't mind..."

"She's really quite skittish, yes," Rahab confirmed, and frightened or no, Amalia found herself fighting the urge to throw the novel she'd been reading at him. 

Dumah only shrugged, petting Amalia's hair once. Fortunately, this seemed to satisfy him, and he turned back to Raziel. "Still have that up, do you?" he asked, nodding toward the portrait above the mantel as he followed his brother to the library.

"Shut your mouth and get in here so we can figure this out," Raziel snapped as he stepped through the door, leaving Rahab behind to visit with Tantallon.

"Tantallon, I'm so sorry," he sighed, shooing Amalia off the couch so he could sit next to Tantallon but otherwise ignoring her, to her relief. She quickly grabbed her book and slid over to the hearth, where she settled down right on the warm stones in front to wait out the vampire family reunion.

"It wasn't your fault," Tantallon replied.

"Neither was it yours. I hope you know that."

"I know," Tantallon sighed. "But you know how it feels..."

"I do, yes..." Rahab trailed off a moment, as if lost in thought. "But I'm here now. I'll stay a few days, so you're not cooped up all alone in here." Amalia very nearly blurted out 'Oh, come on!', but managed to keep her mouth shut. It would be good for Tantallon, after all. She could deal with the inconvenience.

"Oh, he let me get back to it after a couple of days. I couldn't stand just sitting here. I've been out on the yard with a weapon of some sort whenever I'm not helping him get things back under control. Which they basically are by now, really."

"Are you sleeping well?" Rahab asked, knowing how badly sleep could suffer after such a traumatic event.

"Yes, when I finally exhaust myself enough that I'm forced to. Amalia's always there in bed waiting for either of us," he replied. She struggled to keep her eyes on her book, because she knew if she looked up she wouldn't be able to refrain from glaring at him for bringing her into the conversation.

"Ah, the return of your libido can be a good sign," Rahab commented, completely misunderstanding what Tantallon had meant. "So long as you don't go too far in that direction and begin using it as an escape, the way I did." He had indeed gone completely overboard in his desperation to distract himself from his grief when Lenore had been murdered. They had never been strictly monogamous, after all, and while Lenore was in most cases far too shy to engage with new partners there was never any shortage of eager volunteers willing to fling themselves into their bed. It probably didn't help that waking up to such a drastically changed appearance had rattled his confidence, too. Though he was nowhere near as vain as his eldest brother, the validation that he was still attractive after his unique evolution was as intoxicating as the diversion.

"Oh, I didn't mean that," Tantallon corrected with a shake of his head. "I'm still far too restless for my libido to have regained a foothold. She's just there to lie next to so we aren't sleeping alone. Lorrelin's been looking after her otherwise, but she's unfortunately not getting much attention lately." 

God dammit, Tantallon, Amalia thought to herself, her grip on the book tightening. Shut up before you have him stuffing grapes into my mouth again!

"Oh, she'll live," Rahab said breezily, and fortunately he did not engage further.

This did not mean she did not have to deal with him at all over the next few days. Dumah had been happy to find his own accommodations in town, but Rahab wasn't going anywhere, and Raziel couldn't exactly force him to sleep on the couch in the spare room when the option to boot Amalia out was available. He was thus forced to apologetically lead her down the hall to the spare room with a pillow and a soft blanket when it was time for bed that morning.

"I'm sorry, my love," he whispered as he tucked her in. "He's fussing over Tantallon like a mother hen, and tomorrow is the anniversary of Lenore's death as well. He always spends it here."

Yikes. Tomorrow would be difficult for Tantallon as well, then. "It's fine, I get it. I know this is gonna blow over eventually."

He leaned down to kiss her upon the forehead, grateful for her understanding. "It will. I will make it up to you. You've been an anchor to us in all this chaos."

The couch was comfortable, at least, and she slept just as well there as she did in their bed. Upon awakening the next evening to find the place empty, Amalia ate her breakfast and, with little else to do, opted to go into the library to continue her novel... only to find Rahab in the stupid cubby. She had assumed that he'd left alongside Raziel and Tantallon and would have been hard pressed to hide her irritation if not for the fact that he looked absolutely desolate. He was curled on his side, head resting on the elbow of one arm, eyes squeezed closed and face wet with tears. He let out a shuddering breath and sniffled, and for a moment Amalia could not imagine what could possibly have him so upset... until she remembered what Raziel had told her today was before he put her to bed. Had he and Tantallon just... left him here to fend for himself?

God, she hated Rahab... his frequent visits were bad enough and now his presence was constant and had completely disrupted her entire life. But seeing him there, lying all by himself, broken with grief for his lost bride... 

God dammit. Groaning inwardly, she took a step forward. This sort of thing had always been her weakness.

His head turned and his blue eyes met hers, and for a moment he looked just as surprised to find her there as she had been to find him. Then he closed them and lay his head back down. "Leave me."

Welp. That solves that. "Yes, Lord," she whispered before turning to walk back toward the door. Maybe Raziel could talk to him when he returned. She wouldn't know where to even begin trying to comfort him. Consoling Tantallon had been one thing, especially since he had only broken down and cried that one time and had since mostly just been varying degrees of angry or exhausted. She wasn't sure there would ever really be any comfort to be had after such a loss as Rahab's. No, he'd probably just have to lie there alone with his own thoughts, replaying his last interaction with her, sorting through every scrap of guilt or regret that he wasn't there to save her. For a moment she imagined Raziel tied to a stake with terror in his eyes as someone approached with a torch, and her heart squeezed painfully. Rahab probably imagined what happened to Lenore a lot, too, and when he wasn't thinking of it while he was awake he probably had nightmares about it when he slept. 

...God dammit. Stopping mid-step, gritting her teeth, she put her foot down and turned back to face him. "My Lord... is... is there something I can do to help?"

Rahab once again raised his head and met her eyes, bewildered. "What?"

"I... I'm sorry, I only wanted to... Yep, I'm gonna go." she stammered, taking a step backward and jabbing her thumb over her shoulder.

"Wait, Amalia... Come back," he commanded, his voice subdued, and she gulped. Now she'd done it.

"...Yes, Lord?" she asked cautiously. He didn't sound like he was angry at her for not immediately leaving like he told her to, but if he was, she had no idea what sort of leeway he felt he had as far as disciplining her. She was already well aware that he considered flogging a perfectly acceptable thing to inflict on a misbehaving human, so it was really only a matter of what he believed Raziel would allow him to do to her.

He stayed put until she had stepped up to the cubby's entrance, at which point he reached out, took hold of her wrist, and dragged her into it with him, rearranging himself so that his back was to her and she had little choice but to rest her chin on his upper arm unless she wanted her neck to begin to ache within minutes.

God fucking dammit.

"I haven't kept a pet in decades. So, I'm going to take a page from Tantallon's book and borrow my brother's for a while," was all he said, and they fell silent for several long moments before he spoke again. "My last pet was a female. Dotty, we called her... And I say 'we', because..." He sighed softly. "Did your master tell you that I was married?"

"Yes, he did. To Tantallon's twin sister. He... told me about the hunters."

He was silent a moment. "Did he tell you what they did to her?"

"...He did, yes," Amalia said, rather hesitantly. The subject was obviously an emotionally charged one, and she wasn't sure exactly how Rahab wanted her to react, or what he'd do if she misstepped.

"Did he tell you what we did to them?" There was an edge to his voice that implied nothing short of absolute carnage.

"No... He said you and Tantallon killed them. He didn't say how." Please don't tell me how, she thought. The details were probably stomach-turning.

Rahab snorted softly. "Probably for the best, really. You don't need those images in your head. Suffice to say that they all died screaming."

Well, so had Lenore, so Amalia really couldn't dredge up much sympathy for them. "Frankly... it sounds like they deserved whatever they got." she replied. She was trying to remain formal, to not to let her personality bleed too much into her responses, but she couldn't help but make the remark.

He snorted again. "Today is..." he began, then trailed off, swallowing hard before continuing. "It was seventy years ago today."

Amalia hadn't realized that it had been that long. If anything happened to her, would Raziel still be mourning her seventy years from now? She expected he would. "He told me she was very kind," she ventured, unsure if getting him to talk about her would help or simply make things worse.

"She was. She was the kindest person I've ever met. Couldn't stand to hear Tantallon and I talk about the hunts we went on; certainly never joined in. I was a lot less... considerate of my prey's suffering before she came along. Sometimes when I would return she'd ask 'Did you make it quick, at least?', and since I couldn't bear to lie to her... Ever since, I've been more careful. Even now. Even the humans who fell to me in battle, I strove to kill quickly once I'd bested them. Raziel approved, even if none of the others did anything but sneer. I try to honor her memory..." he trailed off, voice shaking.

"I don't see the point in senseless cruelty, either, for what it's worth. Though, as I said... I think the hunters got what they deserved."

Rahab's brow furrowed, as if he hadn't expected her to have formed any sort of opinion on anything he was telling her. She supposed it would stand to reason that he'd expect to be talking at a human pet rather than to one. "Honestly," he sighed, "She would have wanted me to let them live. But I couldn't, I just couldn't let it go... it was selfish of us to slaughter them the way we did, knowing she wouldn't have wanted it."

"They'd have just kept burning others alive if you let them live. Killing them kept them from turning any more of you into widows and widowers. All you did was spare others from going through what you're going through."

Again his brow furrowed, and this time he turned his head and made eye contact. "You are... unexpectedly insightful for a human."

"Thank you...?" she said questioningly after a brief pause, her eyes shifting to the side and back again, eyebrow cocked.

Perhaps under any other circumstances, he'd have laughed. As things were, he just closed his eyes and lay his head back down. "Don't know where he keeps finding the smart ones," he muttered.

Amalia swallowed down her snappy response and simply resigned herself to laying there against his back, irritated at having to continue the physical contact. For such savage killers, vampires sure did seem to be awful cuddly, and she did not want to be cuddling this one. She'd talked to him, and it seemed to have helped. That was good enough; she'd done her good deed, she shouldn't have to stay here any longer. Suppressing a huff of annoyance, she stared out of the cubby into the library, able to do nothing but wait for Raziel or Tantallon to return and rescue her from her situation. Hopefully after today, things would return to normal.

Chapter Text

As it turned out, Raziel and Tantallon hadn't simply abandoned Rahab to wallow in his grief. When the door to the library opened and startled Amalia out of her thoughts, Tantallon stepped through holding a flat rectangular object wrapped in brown paper, which he set down on Raziel's desk as he crossed the room to approach. Bending down to peer into the cubby, he met her gaze, blinking in surprise to find her there curled around Rahab. The look on her face told him all he needed to know about whether or not she was there by choice, and he quickly reached in and laid his talons on the sleeping vampire's shoulder.

Rahab's eyes popped open and his head jerked up immediately. "Tantallon?" he asked groggily.

"We're back, yes," Tantallon replied.

"Where did you go? No one was there when I woke up," said Rahab, his voice sad and subdued.

"I know, and I'm sorry. We had hoped our errand wouldn't take this long. Come on out of there; let me explain."

Amalia opted to simply stay in the cubby after Rahab had vacated it, happy to finally have it to herself. Once she'd stretched her limbs a bit, she curled up like a cat and rested her chin on the cushioned edge of the entrance, watching as Tantallon led Rahab to the desk and picked up the package he'd brought. "We honestly would have been back sooner had I not... I thought I could..." After a soft sigh, he started over. "We went back to my quarters. I wanted to look for a portrait of Lenore that I knew I had stored away somewhere. But I still couldn't bring myself to go in, so Raziel had to go look for it. It took him a while to find it, but..."

Torn, Rahab gingerly took the wrapped frame from Tantallon and ran his claws along one edge. "Can either of us even bear to look, Tantallon?" he asked after a moment.

Tantallon only shrugged, shaking his head. "I don't know. Maybe this wasn't as good an idea as I thought it was. The whole reason I had it put in storage was because I couldn't bear to look at it every time I walked down the hallway I had it hung in. If you'd rather not, we can just-"

"No! No, we should. Well... I want to, at least."

It was but the work of a moment to tear through the paper and let it drop to the floor. Tantallon pulled Raziel's desk chair out to set the painting on, and they both took a step back and stood staring in silence at the beautiful vampire woman it portrayed. She wore a blue velvet gown embroidered with silver thread, and the intricate sapphire studded silver diadem which sat lightly atop her head was complimented by a matching necklace and set of earrings, all of which Rahab had commissioned shortly after the war on humanity began. The resemblance to Tantallon was striking indeed; unlike her husband and sire, Lenore retained the usual vampire form, having died before she could inherit Rahab's features in her next evolution. Amalia couldn't help but wonder what color their hair and eyes had been when they'd been human. Perhaps she'd ask Tantallon the next time they conversed, if he seemed up to talking about it.

"I remember giving her those jewels," said Rahab, voice strained. "I knew what I was to be once the Empire was raised, and thus I knew what she was to be as my bride. She was to be my queen, and I wanted her to look the part."

"She did, Rahab. Even when she wasn't wearing all those things... you elevated her far beyond what she was as a human. We were nothing but poor farmers, and we'd have died as poor farmers had you and Raziel not found us when you did."

"I only gave her what she deserved," said Rahab, reaching out to run the side of a claw down Lenore's cheek before huffing a soft laugh. "She did not want to sit for this portrait to be made; I remember her complaining about it before she left," he said as he dropped to the floor to sit before it.

"No, she did not. She only agreed to it because I insisted on having it once the two of you moved away to your own stronghold," replied Tantallon as he settled down next to Rahab.

"And then once we did, I made her do it all over again so that I could have that big one made. The peg is still in the wall where it hung, even after all these years. I don't think I'll ever be able to put it back up."

The door opened then, and Raziel slipped in and wordlessly made his way to the pair.

"I'm sorry, Raziel, we should have waited for you," said Rahab.

"You needn't apologize, brother," Raziel replied as he joined him on the floor and threw an arm around his shoulder. "I only hope you weren't too upset when you woke up alone in bed. We wanted to be back before you even knew we'd left."

"Tantallon explained," Rahab sighed with a shrug. "I had just assumed that with everything that's been going on, you'd been pulled away for something critical, so I came down here. Amalia found me when she got up and refused to leave my side. We were both dozing in the cubby until just now."

This prompted an immediate raised eyebrow from Raziel, which Amalia pointedly dismissed by shuffling backward into the cushioned shadows with a huff and a baleful glare. Rahab was making it sound like it had been her idea to get cozy, and it absolutely wasn't. And she hadn't been asleep, thank you very much. 

"Well, that was rather kind of her. I'm sure she was able to infer why you were so upset."

"She certainly is more intuitive than the average human. She'd be a sweet little thing if she weren't a biter."

This was enough to cause Amalia's already thin patience to snap. "I'm right fucking here," she growled to herself, forgetting entirely just how good their hearing was compared to her own.

"Amalia," Raziel snapped as Rahab craned his neck around to look toward the cubby with eyebrow raised. "Mind your tongue! Come out of there right now."

"Such language," Rahab laughed, amused, as she clambered through the opening and slunk to Raziel's side.

Glad I could brighten your day, jackass, she thought bitterly as she waited for the inevitable lecture, eyes downcast and sullen. Rather than lecture or admonish her, however, he simply pointed toward the door. "If you can't be civil," he began, "Then you can go upstairs and sit by yourself. We will discuss your attitude-"

"Ah, leave her be, Raziel. This day is miserable enough, there's no need to upset her, too," Rahab interjected with a wave of his hand, much to Amalia's surprise. "I'm willing to overlook the remark, after her earlier show of compassion."

Eager to smooth things over and get Amalia out of dodge, Tantallon got to his feet and started toward her. "Why don't I take her upstairs, Sire? Maybe she's just cranky because she needs a nap."

"Fine, take her and go. Do not tolerate any further insolence from her, however."

Amalia left the library ahead of Tantallon, who immediately strode to the fireplace as soon as he was out the door behind her. "Here, I brought this up from the kitchens since it's been such a rough week for you." he said, reaching for a small plate he'd set on the stones in front earlier. "Apples are in season right now. Will this cheer you up?"

She expected to find nothing more than a few raw slices on the plate, which she honestly would have been more than happy to have. To her delight, he had actually brought her a rather large slice of pie, which had been warmed through by the heat of the hearth during the time it had sat there.

"Oh man," she began, forgetting the encounter with Rahab entirely. She eagerly took the plate from him and separated off a bite with the fork lying alongside the pie. "This is why you're my favorite, Tantallon."

He snorted. "Are you suggesting that I've bumped Raziel from first place simply by bringing you a treat?"

"Have you tasted this shit?" she asked, offering him the fork.

"You know I can't," he said softly, waving her away. "Not anymore."

"Even a little taste?" she asked, dismayed at the reminder that he could no longer enjoy such things without dire consequences.

"Nope. Never again," he replied. "I learned my lesson. It's all yours."

The first bite triggered a cascade of memories, and Amalia stopped dead in her tracks halfway up the stairs.

"What's wrong? Is it not to your liking?"

"No, it's... it's great," she replied, shaking her head and starting to climb again. "It... just made me remember a bunch of stuff."

Tantallon opened the bedroom door and allowed her to step in, closing it behind them before following her to the bed. "Show me," he urged, waiting for her to get comfortable before flopping down next to her atop the covers and prodding her mind. She let him in immediately, flooding him with rapidly shifting images and swirling colors of red, gold, orange, and brown. "Slow down, Amalia! One at a time. Focus on just one," he admonished, blinking up at the fabric of the canopy as her thoughts slowed and the memories became clear.

A steaming amber liquid in a large white mug sat on a countertop with tile lining the wall behind it and cabinets above. Faces and pictures carved into large orange gourds of a type he'd never seen sat outside large, elaborate manor houses with manicured landscaping, while children dressed in ridiculous costumes walked past carrying bags. Fuzzy stockings on a pair of feet that stuck out from under a thick, plush blanket. Bright moving images on the far wall which depicted three garishly dressed women near a large cauldron, one of which was caressing a leather-bound book with a single human eye on the cover.

"That's... creepy," he stated, mildly disturbed.

"It's supposed to be. There's a holiday in the autumn where I'm from that's all about creepy, scary things. That's a movie about three witches; the book is a spellbook."

"Moo-vie?" he asked, turning his head to raise an eyebrow. "You forget I don't know the meanings to a lot of the words you use."

"A kind of entertainment. We can record images using machines and play them back... well, also using machines. People dress up and act out parts to tell stories. The finished thing is called a movie."

"Oh, so like a theatre performance."

"Well, yeah, exactly... except recorded so you can watch it again and again. A lot of our holidays have movies that are made with them in mind. I'd watch this one every year."

"Remarkable," he replied. "We had harvest festivals, with carnival games and minstrels and lavish feasting when I was growing up as a human."

"Yeah, we do those too, and lots of private parties as well. Some things are apparently just universal," she said, lifting another forkful of pie to her mouth. They fell silent a while as she ate, until Tantallon glanced over to see her licking the empty plate.

"You'd better not let Raziel see you do that," he laughed.

"Why? What's he gonna do, send me to finishing school?" she snarked as she set the plate down on the bedside table, and he laughed harder.

"You wouldn't make it a day without a taste of the cane and they'd throw you out on your backside within the next two," he replied, still chuckling.

"You really think he'd let anyone else use a cane on me?"

"That's a fair point, I suppose. That is kind of his thing, as I'm sure you've deduced by now,"

"He's only had it out with me once, the last time we had sex."

Tantallon blinked in surprise, glancing over to where she'd settled onto her back. "The day I brought your meal because Lorrelin was seeing to a broken ankle? It's been that long?"

"Yeah, man. I mean... this last week hasn't exactly been conducive to intimacy. He actually owes me one, since the last time we did anything he had to leave before he could repay the little favor I did him."

"He's left you hanging that long, has he? How are you not crawling up the walls in frustration by now?" he asked, amused.

"Bold of you to assume I'm not."

"Well, my interest in such activity is recovering," he remarked casually. "And we're alone and likely to remain so a while."

She turned her head and stared at him. "Are you... What exactly are you suggesting here?"

He stared right back, mildly confused. "...Is it not obvious? I'm suggesting I relieve you of your frustration."

This was the moment in which it became clearly apparent that, at least to the vampires Amalia knew personally, asking someone to engage in sexual activity was approached with the same sort of casual joviality as asking someone if they felt like going bowling tonight. 

"I already told you he's given me leave to bed you. We've often shared partners in the past, actually," he continued, shrugging. "I only didn't want to at first because I hadn't quite warmed up to you yet. Obviously, that's changed."

Amalia was surprised at how genuinely torn she was. There was no doubt that Tantallon was attractive. Hell, he was every bit as beautiful as Raziel, if she were being honest with herself. She knew she'd be sleeping on the couch for at least the next day, possibly the next two, and even though things had settled down somewhat as far as clan business went, her husband was going to be busy ironing out the fine details of the whole thing with Dumah and the dragon for who knew how long. For all she knew, this could be her only chance to get laid anytime soon.

Before she could think any further, he sat up and turned to lean down over her. "Let me help you," he whispered, gently brushing his lips against hers. Arousal rippled down her spine, causing her breath to hitch... but she could not bring herself to kiss him back. Sensing her hesitation, he pulled away. "...or we can look past the fact that you're positively squirming right now and I can go and tell Raziel the real reason you've been cranky and suggest he come and see to your needs." he suggested with a smirk.

"I'm sorry, Tantallon, it's not necessarily that I don't want to, I just-"

"Woah, hey," he began, cutting her off with a wave of his hand. "You don't need to justify it, for fuck's sake," he laughed. "And you certainly needn't apologize."

She continued to justify it anyway. "I just... I need to hear from him that he's okay with it. And even then, I don't know if I am. I don't know what's normal where I'm from. I don't know what's normal, period."

"Forgive me, Amalia; I didn't mean to make you so uncomfortable. I can only assume you're accustomed to monogamy, based on your reaction. That's how it is for the humans here, too," he said, pausing to wrinkle his nose. "Well... they try, anyway. Or pretend to, rather. Infidelity runs amok, regardless of the airs they put on."

"That does sound like us," she replied with a brief smile. "But I'm not uncomfortable because of you. I'm just still coming to terms with the fact that I don't even know what my own sexuality is like because I can't remember anything about my own experiences."

"You might be overthinking it," he suggested with a tilt of his head, still leaning over her. "You can make new experiences. Just do what feels right. If waiting to hear directly from him is what you need to feel comfortable, then that's what needs to happen. If you'd simply rather not, that's fine too. I've got other options, once I actually feel like putting forth the effort required to exercise them. I'm just not quite ready for strangers yet, I suppose."

Raziel chose that moment to walk in, and to Amalia's elation, he came alone. "Rahab is back in the cubby with a book to distract himself with for now," he stated as he made his way to his side of the bed. "He said he'd join us at mealtime later."

"I'm glad he's doing okay," said Tantallon as he turned to lie on his back again and stretched out his legs. "I thought tonight would be a lot worse for both of us, honestly."

"Night's not over yet, Tantallon," he replied as he stripped off his shirt. "Pay mind to your emotional state and seek comfort when you need it. That's what we're all here for." He down next to Amalia, who could not help but reach out and run her fingers over his skin, causing him to shiver.

"You," he began, turning to lean over her in exactly the same way Tantallon had, "Need to learn to control that mouth of yours."

"You weren't complaining about my mouth a few days ago," Amalia replied with a smirk.

"And shame on you, Sire, for leaving her unsatisfied this entire time," teased Tantallon.

"You chide me, having not offered your own services?" Raziel teased right back.

"Yes, and I'll chide you further for making assumptions. We were discussing that very possibility a moment ago, in fact."

Raziel broke out into a fiendish grin. "Is that so? And yet, I note that the two of you both still have your clothes on."

By now, Amalia was blushing furiously under his gaze. "I wasn't sure you'd be okay with it," she mumbled.

He only rolled his eyes. "You humans and your hangups with sex," he said. "It's just sex. It's enjoyable, it strengthens bonds between those who engage in it, and it can be a great comfort at a time like this, provided you feel up to it. Restricting it to one person for your entire life is asinine. If you want him to bed you, then let him bed you. So long as you can still meet my needs, I don't particularly care."

*  *  *

"Perhaps she needs you to get her going, Sire."

"You're feeling adventurous tonight, I see," Raziel replied, eyebrow raised. "It's been some time since we shared an encounter."

"I'm game if you two are. You don't think Rahab will feel left out, though, do you?"

Amalia immediately balked. "Wait, now suddenly we're talking about group sex? Also, I am not doing anything with Rahab."

Raziel laughed. "Rahab specifically asked to be left alone a while; that's why I came up here. He's content knowing we're nearby if he needs us."

"You guys have all done this together before?" Amalia asked, still unsettled by the entire situation. "I thought you weren't into men, Tantallon?"

"I'm not. I'm interested only in the women we share when we play these games, and to be honest we've only done it a few times. Once I pulled together a harem... Well, I only have so much stamina," he shrugged. "They've both helped themselves to a few of my women once or twice, but we never shared them at the same time."

"I don't think we've ever had all three of us in on it at once, have we?"

"Oh, yes we did, at the raucous party Dumah threw when his fortress was completed. Though it wasn't all three of us for long; you'd had far more to drink than the rest of us and ended up passing out in the middle of being pleasured orally," said Tantallon, causing Amalia to burst into laughter. "And shortly afterward, Lenore sauntered up to Rahab all drunk and giggly with clear intent to engage, at which point I promptly went to look for my clothes. Rahab then proceeded to have a very enjoyable night with three women all to himself."

"Ah... yes," Raziel acknowledged as he recalled the hazy details of the evening. "That... was not my finest moment."

"We had a good laugh at your expense before I left. Lenore was looking for something with which to paint inappropriate things on your face while you slept, but Rahab forbade it, as funny as he found the idea."

This was news to Raziel, and he glowered at his firstborn. "Whereas you encouraged it, no doubt."

Tantallon shrugged disarmingly. "What use is a twin sister if you can't get her into trouble every once in a while?" he said with a grin.

Raziel rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to Amalia. "Darling, it seems as if you're not entirely comfortable with this idea. If you'd like, I can leave the two of you to it, or I can kick him out and take care of you myself. What I do not want is for you to remain unsatisfied or to do something you'd rather not."

"I mean... you do owe me one," she replied, smirking up at him. "But I don't want Tantallon to feel left out, either..."

Tantallon rolled to his side, squirming his way over to lie alongside her and throwing an arm over her middle as he leaned in to speak into her ear, his voice low and seductive. "Well, now... that's very kind of you, now isn't it?" he asked, noting with satisfaction how she shivered head to toe.

"Easy, Tantallon. Don't escalate until we're sure she's responding well."

"Seems like she's responding just fine to me," he replied, snickering softly. 

To Amalia's chagrin, she absolutely was responding, and she knew there was no point in trying to hide or deny it. "You guys are absolutely terrible influences," she huffed.

That got a laugh out of both of them, and she squirmed slightly at the way Tantallon's breath hit her temple as he nuzzled her. "What's your record, Amalia?"

She blinked, confused. "My record?"

"How many orgasms have you had in the course of... let's say, one single night. Sundown to sunup."

"You expect me to remember that sort of detail?" Amalia laughed. "Sorry to thwart your devious little plot, but I don't."

Raziel had caught on, and he liked where this was going. "I suppose we'll just have to choose a number arbitrarily, then, and beat it by one."

"Oh, at least one, absolutely."

"What the fuck, are you two serious?" she laughed, equal parts intrigued, daunted and excited.

"How many have you wrung out of her at once so far?" asked Tantallon.

"Only two, but I wasn't exactly wringing. Not intentionally."

"Five seems a good number to start with, then."

"Wait, what?!" Amalia interjected.

"Well, if we're beating the number we choose," Raziel replied, smirking maliciously down at his bride, "That means six."

"...Dude."

"Safewords, Sire?"

"I get no input on the number? Really?"

Raziel didn't feel like explaining the traffic light concept entirely, so he kept it simple. "Yellow if she needs us to ease off, red if she's totally done."

"Oh my god."

"That'll work," replied Tantallon, mirroring Raziel's smirk a moment before pressing his lips to Amalia's neck, eliciting a soft whimper. 

Raziel leaned down to nuzzle the other side of her head. "You need only say the word, my love, and we will stop immediately... but if you are inclined to indulge, do not be ashamed to allow yourself to enjoy it." With that, he planted a kiss on the side of her jaw and moved to sit on his heels, reaching for the hem of her gown.

Amalia gulped hard as his talons found their way underneath it to the plain cotton underwear she'd been given with her clothes. He left her covered by the gown as he slid them down her legs, tossing them to the floor and studying her for any sign of fear or reluctance. She certainly looked a bit nervous, but he trusted her to let them know if anything was truly too much.

Tantallon left his hand resting lightly on her belly as he kissed her neck, not wanting to move too quickly for fear of spooking her. He gave her a reassuring purr as Raziel slid one hand up the inside of her thigh, noticing the way she immediately tensed. "Relax, Amalia," he soothed.

Would she be able to relax into this, though? Amalia had no idea if she'd ever done anything like this before, and having never engaged with Tantallon, she was unsure if the jitters were due to the new experience or the new partner. Could she stand to be this vulnerable, even with people she trusted?

She jolted as if she'd been shot when Raziel's claws brushed her folds, an unexpected giggle erupting from her lips. "I'm sorry, I'm trying, I just... I don't know, I feel ridiculous."

"Ridiculously horny, perhaps," teased Tantallon as he flexed his claws just enough to tickle her, hoping to get her laughing in earnest, knowing how disarming levity could be in this situation. The tactic worked, and after a short giggle fit, Amalia finally relaxed enough to allow herself to be touched. Sensing that her tension had dissipated, he slowly pulled the gown up to her hips, revealing the soft patch of red hair that covered her mound.

The sight of it unlocked yet another memory, briefly taking her out of the moment. "That's not usually there," she blurted, reaching down to run her fingers through it.

Raziel raised an eyebrow, puzzled. "I've never seen an adult without it, unless they'd deliberately removed it."

"That's what I mean," she replied. "I used to shave it. I always thought it felt better being touched without it there."

"Ah," he responded, understanding. "If that's how you prefer it, I can easily mix up a potion for next time that will remove it without irritating your skin the way shaving likely would."

"Is that why you've got practically no hair anywhere but on your head?" she asked.

"No," Tantallon answered, running his talons lightly through her curls. "We naturally have very sparse body hair. You've seen that it exists in the same places on him as on a human, just not nearly as thick. It's much the same with me."

Raziel was suddenly pushing her legs apart to make room for himself between them, and Amalia took a deep breath to steady herself. "Boy, just gonna dive right in, huh?" she asked, voice shaky.

"Will you relax already?" Tantallon laughed, intensely amused. "Do you want to come, or not?"

"I'm trying!" she cried, devolving into another round of giggles which was cut short as Raziel's tongue found its mark.

"There you go," he breathed into her ear as she moaned. Amalia couldn't help but wonder if there was a difference between the tongues of humans and vampires. She couldn't remember what it felt like to have a human do this, so she had no basis for comparison, but she couldn't imagine it could possibly be as good. The surface of Raziel's tongue had a sort of soft roughness to it, and the texture combined with the sheer heat of his mouth was enough to have her at the edge within seconds.

Despite this, Tantallon seemed determined to talk shit. "Oh come now, Sire, you're going about it all the wrong way," he teased. "You'll never get her there if..." he trailed off as she sailed straight over the edge, arching up off the bed with ragged gasps.

Raziel glanced up at his firstborn from between her legs once she'd stilled. "You were saying, Tantallon?" he challenged.

"Beginner's luck," Tantallon grinned, earning himself an exaggerated eyeroll at the sheer ridiculousness of such a statement. "That's one, by the way. You've got another five to go."

"Oh my god, I don't know if... I'm not sure I can handle that many," said Amalia, still breathing quite hard.

"You can," he whispered as Raziel cast the spell to blunt his claws.

Numbers two and three were achieved relatively easily, with Raziel doing the work and Tantallon whispering plenty of filthy encouragement into her ear. Four was a stretch, five was a slog, and Amalia knew for a fact that six was not going to happen. "Yellow," she whimpered the instant she came down from the fifth, and Raziel immediately pulled away.

"You did so well, my love," he praised, leaning down to kiss her upon the forehead.

"But you wanted me to have six..."

"Nah, we knew six wasn't likely to happen. Hell, I didn't think you'd get past four," Tantallon said with a smirk.

"Oh, eat shit," she sniped, though with significantly less fervor than usual. "One of you better be ready to fuck me after all that."

Raziel snickered. "I'll let you have this one, Tantallon. It'll be good for you," he said, sliding off the edge of the bed. He glanced over his shoulder when he reached the bedroom door, noting with satisfaction that Amalia was fully engaged and that both were enjoying themselves. Then he opened the door and left to go and check on Rahab. Soon enough their meals would arrive; until then he'd go and join his brother in the cubby. If the rest of the night went this well, it would be a welcome departure from the usual misery of the anniversary of Lenore's murder. 

Chapter Text

Things improved after that night. Rahab went home and wouldn't return for another week. Raziel was able to give her plenty of attention, and though Dumah came once more to discuss the dragon, this time he did completely ignore her. Raziel even allowed her to stay in the cubby and listen in on their planning, though a good part of it was spent with her husband patiently explaining to his brother multiple times exactly why information was far more valuable than a stupid trophy.

"You speak of value? Think of the value a dragon's parts would have in that alchemy lab of yours, Raziel!"

"I agree that is a good point," Raziel replied diplomatically, even though it absolutely wasn't seeing as they didn't even know if dragons were particularly magical. "But it's something we'll have to investigate after we know what we're up against. I'm not saying no trophies ever, Dumah. I'm saying no trophies this time." Eventually he managed to convince him, and the conversation moved on to keeping tabs on what the humans were up to and what supplies and provisions needed to be gathered and kept ready to go at a moment's notice the instant they had confirmation that a hunting party was ready to make a move.

A few stray memories flitted back into Amalia's mind over the week, though nothing particularly interesting, and the time she spent with Raziel and Tantallon was very pleasant indeed. Tantallon was easily as good a lover as his sire, though he wasn't quite as aggressive with her. Much of their spare time was spent in Raziel's bed, whether the three of them were snuggled up asleep, taking pleasure in one another, or just sharing Amalia's mind as she thought of her music. 

Little did she know that her music was about to get her into trouble. The evening that Rahab was due to return for his next alchemy lesson, she was home alone and bored. He had taken the novel she'd been reading home with him when he'd left last time, much to her irritation, and she'd finally gotten tired of endlessly perusing the library shelves. Thinking she had at least an hour before she needed to make herself scarce in order to avoid dealing with him, she sat in the parlor singing to occupy herself. Unfortunately, Rahab was just as bored as she was that night, and he'd left quite early to make the journey there. He stole silently through Raziel's doors, knowing that he was likely to draw his brother's ire by showing up ahead of schedule. Amalia's singing stopped him short.

"She lives with a broken man
A cracked polystyrene man
Who just crumbles and burns
He used to do surgery
For girls in the eighties
But gravity always wins

It wears him out, it wears him out..."

Rahab blinked, startled. Gods above, her voice was beautiful, but whatever she was singing, it sounded... foreign. Incredibly foreign. Like no song he'd ever heard before, in fact, even among what was played by minstrels who'd been wandering back and forth across Nosgoth for decades. Even some of the words were completely unfamiliar, and he couldn't piece together from context what any of it meant. Did Raziel know she knew such music? Did he even know she could sing? His insatiable curiosity piqued, he began to push into her mind as gently and subtly as he could, not wanting to reveal his presence or startle her. The cacophony he heard blasting through her head left him stunned. His first impression was that it was nothing but noise, but as he listened, he realized that whatever instruments were in use, they... actually sort of worked rather well together.

"She looks like the real thing
She tastes like the real thing
My fake plastic love
But I can't help the feeling
I could blow through the ceiling
If I just turn and run

And it wears me out, it wears me out
It wears me out, it wears me out..."

The song had suddenly quieted as the last two lines were sung, and he realized that the singer he was hearing over Amalia's own voice was male. "Radiohead," she thought, her internal monologue cutting in as her mind suddenly became tinged with melancholy. "That's who's song it is. Finally, I remember. Fake Plastic Trees, by Radiohead... I wonder if I'll eventually forget what it sounded like... I'll never hear it again..."

Rahab could sense that she did not feel like singing any longer, and he left her mind as quietly as he had found his way in, stepping back further into the shadows to think. Amalia's coloration was rare, but not unheard of in Nosgoth. He had never heard anyone with her accent, however, and the sounds she was generating in her head... 

She was from a very, very long ways away. She had to be. Her private thoughts only backed this up, in his opinion. Why would she not be able to hear the song again, unless she was far enough from where she learned it to be cut off from accessing it? And now it sounded as if she'd started crying, as if she'd made herself homesick. 

Raziel needed to know about this. Rahab would talk to him about it once he returned. But what to do with himself for now? Raziel was protective of this pet, and he wasn't entirely sure that questioning her wouldn't upset her further. Causing her any sort of distress was risky when his brother could walk in on them at any moment. But on the other hand, it was an hour at least until the time they'd agreed upon for the lesson... What if he didn't come back until then? Was he just supposed to sit in the lab and wait for answers, when the answers could be had immediately?  

No. No, that simply wouldn't do. Rahab had never had a lot of self control when it came to learning, to finding out, and he was now desperate to find out everything there was to know about Amalia's background. He stepped out into the parlor, intentionally scuffing his foot on the floor to make noise. Amalia turned, gasped, and immediately stood with her tearful eyes cast down at the floor.

"Lord Rahab," she greeted, voice shaky. "I didn't know you'd be here so soon."

"I am a bit early, I suppose. You have a beautiful voice."

She stiffened, immediately appearing nervous. "Thank you," she replied, eyes fixed on the floor. "I... didn't realize you'd heard me."

"The song you were singing was... interesting," he said, studying her intensely as she grew even more uncomfortable. "Whoever 'Ray-dio Head' is," he continued, watching the color drain from her face, "I'd certainly love to see him perform... if only to aid me in making sense of what the hell I just heard spilling out of your head." Why was she so frightened all of a sudden? If he didn't know any better, he'd think she was hiding something.

The door opened then, and in walked Raziel. His eyes narrowed the instant they settled on Rahab. "A bit early, aren't we?"

"Are you at all aware that your pet has incredibly strange music that plays in her head as she sings?" 

Raziel's startled reaction to this question only made Rahab believe they were both hiding something, and the fact that he immediately became defensive confirmed it. "I fail to see how that's any business of yours," he snapped. 

"Where is she from, Raziel?"

"I don't know! Kain didn't say where he found her!"

Rahab rolled his eyes, turning immediately to Amalia. "Where are you from, Amalia?"

Amalia only stared wide-eyed at Raziel, looking for guidance, clearly unwilling to answer the question without his approval, so he moved on. "Did the Master tell you why he wanted her kept safe?"

"No, he didn't! But he does want her kept safe, and the more everybody goes poking around where they don't belong, the more likely they are to invite disaster! So please, Rahab... let it rest. I don't want to lose another pet, and I certainly don't want to fail the Master."

Rahab regarded the pair a moment. Sure, he wanted to respect his brother's wishes, especially since he seemed genuinely frightened by the possibility of whatever secret they were holding getting out... But finding out secrets was his favorite. 

Seeming to realize the inevitability of him working it out for himself and probably drawing even more attention to them while doing it, Raziel finally snarled in frustration. "If I tell you... you've got to keep your mouth shut, because you'd better believe I'll tell Kain who blabbed if she ends up dead, which she will if it gets out. She's already in enough danger as it is. Understand?"

"I wouldn't betray you, Raziel," Rahab snapped, hurt. "You and Tantallon are all I've got, do you not realize that? Whatever the secret is, it's safe with me."

With a heavy sigh, Raziel went to sit in his chair, directing Amalia to take her place at his feet and Rahab to the empty chair across from him.

"She's not from Nosgoth."

"What do you mean, not from...? Where else is there but Nosgoth? No one has ever found a pass through any of the mountains surrounding our land, so unless she was brought in on the first ship to ever survive the journey to our southern shore..."

"We don't know how she got here. We don't even know where she's from, only that it's another world entirely separate from this one. Her memory has been all but annihilated by whatever warped her here, and it's only returning in bits and pieces. Whatever world she comes from is devoid of any sapient life forms save for humans. Highly intelligent, technologically advanced humans."

Rahab laughed, waving his hand. "Be serious, Raziel. If you don't want to tell me-"

"I am serious, Rahab! Amalia, what song were you singing when he so rudely intruded into your mind? Which, by the way," he added, pointing at Rahab, "Had better not happen again."

"Fake Plastic Trees, by Radiohead," she replied, eyeing Raziel as his brow furrowed.

"Have I heard that one?"

"Yes, Master. I couldn't remember the name or the artist until just a bit ago, so I couldn't have told you what it was. It's one of the two I sang yesterday for you... Apparently you like Radiohead." The thought would amuse her if she didn't feel like she were up to her neck in shit.

Raziel laughed softly. "Ah, perfect. Tell me, Rahab, did you recognize any of the sounds you heard? Can you pair those sounds with any musical instruments that you're aware of?"

"Sing another, Amalia. Something just as strange," Rahab commanded, disregarding his questions. "Because thus far I'm not convinced." Raziel only shrugged and gestured for her to go ahead when she glanced at him for permission, so with a gulp, she began to sort through her mental library. 

"Master, are you... are you certain you want me to blow his mind here?"

"Oh, yes," Raziel responded with a malicious grin. His love of proving himself right and someone else wrong had clearly overtaken his concern over Rahab finding out about any of this. "I want to see the look on his face. And when you're done with that, perhaps we can get into some of your other memories, because that should be even more entertaining."

Remembering the spiteful hope she'd had when she'd played through Fineshrine in her head for Kain, she briefly considered simply thinking through one of Prodigy's techno monstrosities on the off chance the shock would kill Rahab on the spot. Who knows, maybe it would work this time? But she'd been ordered to sing, and lots of those didn't really have lyrics as much as they had brief samples from other songs. She didn't dare do Fineshrine again, because Raziel's expression upon hearing it might betray his feelings for her. What else was there?

"How about the one that Tantallon liked so much, what was it called? That ought to convince him," Raziel suggested, watching a brief expression of hurt pass over Rahab's features. Well, surely he couldn't begrudge Tantallon for not telling him; he had to know that he'd have been sworn to secrecy on the matter.

"Bittersweet Symphony?"

"That's the one! She won't even make it past the song's introduction before your jaw drops and your eyes pop right out of your head, I'll wager," Raziel said, smugly confident.

This time Rahab didn't try to mask his intrusion into Amalia's mind, and the pressure made her squeeze her eyes shut and shake her head a bit as she began to think of the song. 

"These are stringed instruments, Raziel, nothing particularly special..." he began, trailing off before cocking his head to the side, brow furrowed. "Although... I will grant that it's quite possibly the most beautiful performance I've ever heard in my life."

"Give it a moment..." Raziel replied, studying his face intently, waiting for the moment when the percussion hit. Rahab reacted exactly as he expected him to. "Ha! See?! What did I tell you?" he cried, clapping his hands once and pointing at his brother. 

"Okay, but those are drums, and we have those too! She's a musical genius, that's all," said Rahab, knowing full well that he'd never heard drums that sounded the way these sounded, nor had he ever met a human who was a genius at anything. "That's all it is! She's invented these sounds in her head-"

Amalia chose that moment to think of Chicago's skyline once more, and he barely had time to recognize it as a city before he was assaulted with all manner of bewildering visions. Brightly colored moving pictures flashed across some sort of upright flat object, portraying stylized animals conversing like people. Next came memories of her home; her living area bathed in bright sunlight, a bedroom with a closet full of odd clothing, and a kitchen with a sink full of dishes. Then he was in a dark building surrounded by drunk humans dancing to loud, pounding, bewildering music as lights flashed overhead. This faded into a memory of the sky blue Subaru Forester she drove.

"My car! I remember my car!" she blurted, imagining herself putting it into reverse so that she could pull out of a parking space. Rahab withdrew from her mind with a sudden, violent *CRACK*, causing her to wince.

"She's insane! She's got to be! She's clearly invented these things in her head, Raziel, can you not see that? Give her some paints and brushes; she'll produce some of the finest art ever seen, no doubt! Maybe then you can finally replace that monstrosity over your mantel!"

Raziel laughed again, far too amused to care about yet another jab at his portrait. "Amalia, go and put on the clothes you were wearing when Kain delivered you. They're folded up and hidden in the very back of the middle wardrobe upstairs. Don't forget the shoes."

"Yes, Master," she replied, unable to hide the smirk on her face. 

Ultimately, it was the clothes that finally convinced him. She came down the stairs and stood before Rahab, unable to stop herself from crossing her arms and looking up at him expectantly as she waited for his reaction. He blinked, mouth hanging open as he circled her, completely incredulous and hardly noticing her lack of deference until he hooked a claw in the waistband of her pants and pulled, revealing her underwear.

"Hey!" she snapped, pulling away from him with a glare as he bared his fangs at her. Raziel intervened immediately.

"Be still, Amalia, and mind your attitude," he warned. "As for you, Rahab, I'll thank you to refrain from attempting to undress her!"

"You do it, then!" said Rahab. "What's she got binding her breasts? I can see the outline through the fabric of the shirt she's wearing, even with that vibrant green practically blinding me."

"It's a simple brassiere, not much unlike those we have here, except for the material used." Knowing that Amalia would be furious with him if he forced her to remove her shirt completely, he opted to turn her around and pull up the back to reveal the clasp. "Look only. Do not touch her," he warned his brother.

Rahab dropped his hand with a huff, moving his gaze to her shoes as Raziel let go of her shirt.

"Remove those so I can look at them," he commanded her, and she slowly raised her eyes to Raziel's. The fun of messing with Rahab's head had worn off almost immediately, and she was now having a very difficult time keeping her anger in check. Fortunately, Raziel stepped in.

"Belay that, Amalia; keep them on," he growled, glaring at his brother. "If he wants a closer look at your shoes, he can come over and sit on the floor with you on the couch and look at them there."

Rahab's curiosity far outweighed his indignation at the idea of sitting on the floor at the feet of a human, and so Amalia was forced to endure his inspection of her shoes. Knowing that Raziel was watching, he kept his touch gentle as he lifted her ankle with one hand and ran the tips of his webbed claws over the treads at the bottom of the hiking boots she'd been wearing when she-

She blinked. Holy shit, she'd been hiking when she got zapped here. No... not hiking. Camping? Blurry images of a campfire and a hammock strung between two trees popped into her head and gradually became clearer. Unable to recall any images of a tent, she wondered if instead of camping she'd actually been backpacking... but no, because she had all sorts of unnecessarily weighty things in her backpack, like her laptop and a solar charger. Nobody hauled stuff like that up and down trails for weeks on end, nor did they dress the way she was dressed for such an endeavor. She had to have gone camping and planned to stay long enough to want bring those things along.

Wait. Her backpack... She had been wearing it when she... 

Her first impulse was to tell Raziel. There was no doubt in her mind that he'd want to go and retrieve it. But no, she couldn't ask him to go and look for it. She hadn't left it here, after all... she'd left it there. Then. She'd wriggled out of it when the light flashed and forgot it even existed as she crawled through the leaf litter in the forest for who knew how long, dazed and confused. She'd have to wait, she knew. She'd have to wait and ask Kain if he could take her back in time for it.

Glancing down at Rahab, who had untied the laces to the boot he was examining and was now tugging on the tongue as his intense gaze shifted to the sock she had on, she sighed inwardly. Yes, it would definitely have to wait. Even if they were to go and retrieve it now, if this idiot could be so spellbound by the sight of a pair of modern shoes, she'd never get anything as fascinating as a laptop computer back from him. And even Raziel would probably hog her devices, she realized. He'd want to read every last Kindle book she had and would no doubt be playing her games for hours. There were several she just knew he'd become obsessed with once he understood how to play them.

"This little tag tells what it's made of, it looks like," said Rahab, snapping her out of her thoughts. "The material is foreign, of course. What the hell is poly..."

"Polyester. It's a synthetic fabric. I... honestly couldn't tell you how it's made, or even what it's made out of. These sorts of clothes are mass produced and sold in stores all over the place."

"So it's cheap to produce, then," Rahab observed. Amalia only shrugged. "Are there other tags?"

Suppressing an exasperated sigh, she nodded. "There's one on the back of my shirt, if you want to look at that. Which I assume you do," she added, her tone betraying her annoyance.

"Mind your tongue, human," he snapped. "You may have been free wherever you came from, judging by your memories, but here in Nosgoth, we own you, and you own nothing."

Tears immediately welled in Amalia's eyes, and she promptly began to cry. Constantly having to allow herself to be treated this way was taking its toll. How long could she really keep this up?

"Now you've gone and upset her!" Raziel growled, grabbing his brother up off the floor by the collar of his shirt and roughly shoving him away. "She knows what she's lost, Rahab, you needn't point it out. Surely you can manage to dredge up at least a little sympathy, since you know perfectly well what it's like to have your entire life turned upside down in an instant!"

Rahab winced as if struck at his brother's chastisement, guilt seizing him for a moment. It was clear from what he'd seen in the girl's memories that she had been happy where she was. Unlike most of Nosgoth's humans these days, she actually knew what it was like to have a life of her own, and she'd apparently been quite wealthy if that contraption she'd climbed into and driven away to who knows where were something she could afford. If it had been him... if he had lived free in such an advanced society only to end up a slave stuck in a place where indoor plumbing was viewed as a luxury...

"Forgive me, brother... you're right. She must be miserable here, even if she adores you. I certainly would be," he admitted. "How did you learn to read, Amalia?" he asked, his voice gentle.

She didn't dare comment on how he ought to be apologizing to her, not Raziel. "School," she said, sniffling and wiping her eyes. "We're taught the alphabet practically as soon as we learn to talk. We start school at the age of... I don't know, six maybe? I can't remember my own school, or when I started. Most of us are reading at least simple things within a few years of that. Then we learn how to write, how to do basic math-"

"Math?"

She thought a moment. "Arithmetic. Adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing, fractions, geometry, algebra... All of it," she explained as his eyes widened. "We're in grade school until we're 18 or 19 and then most of us go on to higher education."

"And did you go on to higher education, then?"

She shrugged, dejected and still on the verge of tears. "I can't remember. I probably will at some point, but I don't right now."

Rahab moved on to his next question. "When you say 'we'... what do you mean by that?"

She shrugged again. "We. Us. Everybody. Taxes pay for the schools... well, the first round, anyway. I'm not sure college is free to attend. I don't think it is. But the first 12 years are compulsory. You have to go."

This was news to even Raziel, and he sat down next to her on the couch. "...Are you saying that your entire society, rich and poor alike... they're all formally educated beginning in early childhood?"

"Pretty sure we are, yeah."

He and Rahab exchanged glances.

"I want to go," Rahab blurted. "I want to see it for myself. How did she get here, Raziel?"

"We don't know! She only remembers a flash of light. She's absolutely certain that there's no magery involved in any way, however. Her world lacks magic entirely; I confirmed this by tasting a drop of her blood. Nothing."

That stopped him short. "Wha... If there's no magic there, then... How?" he asked, gesturing broadly at her.

"We just don't know, Rahab," Raziel replied with a shake of his head. "And unless she remembers something, we likely won't ever know."

"There's got to be a portal or something. Something that originated here. How the hell do we keep the rest of them out?! They'll overrun us, judging by the numbers cities of that size imply!"

"We think it was just a fluke, a one-off occurrence. At least, we'd better hope so, because the advanced weapons they have at their disposal could annihilate our entire race within the span of a single day. Handheld contraptions which rapidly fire deadly projectiles at a truly phenomenal rate, bombs dropped from flying machines which can level entire cities, great warships the likes of which we have never seen, metal boats which sail stealthily under the sea and fire guided explosives through the water to sink those warships... We'd be extinct, Rahab. Wiped from this world like excrement from a boot. By a bunch of humans."

Rahab couldn't believe what he was hearing. "How could any of this be accomplished without sorcery? I mean, flying machines? Boats that sail underwater? Metal boats, even? We couldn't do it with magic!"

"None of it is magic. It's all technology. They've gained an understanding of the world that even we do not possess."

Rahab turned to Amalia. "Does the earth move around the sun, or does the sun move around the earth?"

She'd stopped crying and gone right back to being irritated. "The earth moves around the sun; and no, it's not flat either," she replied, rather flippantly. "Water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit, although you probably don't use that scale here. It'd be zero Celsius. Boils at 212 and 100, respectively. I can also tell you why weather happens, what causes the seasons to change, and exactly how babies are made, although I don't have any way to prove that last bit unless you have a microscope... which you don't."

The horror that dawned on his face as she spoke was immensely satisfying, though she knew she'd probably catch hell for it from Raziel later.

"Gods above... We need to tell the Master of this."

"I plan to, when he returns. He'll know what to do. Until then, there's little sense in tearing ourselves up over it."

"No, wait..." Rahab began, pausing a moment to think. "He already knows. He must. Does he know, Amalia? What did you tell him?"

Fuck. "I... don't remember. There was the flash, and then... he was there, and I was with him, and then he brought me here and left me with him. I didn't tell him anything because I remembered absolutely nothing at that point."

Rahab shook his head. "Well, I think he knows. Perhaps wherever he went, it was to deal with this potential link with her world. He must know how dangerous it is if it still exists."

"Let us hope so. Are you quite certain you can keep these revelations to yourself? This went quite a bit further than I had expected it would. Even I'm a bit surprised at some of these new memories of hers."

"Yes, yes," said Rahab with a wave of his hand. "I'll be fine... although..." He turned to Amalia again. "What is a... that thing you mentioned regarding babies a moment ago?"

"A microscope. It's an instrument which magnifies images so that you can see things that would be too small to see otherwise. You'd be able to see that we're made up of tiny bits called 'cells' which all work together to form our bodies. Specialized cells from each parent combine inside the mother's body to make a baby," she replied, giving Raziel an appraising glance. "Though... if vampires are sterile, I'm not sure if you produce those cells, or if the ones you produce just aren't viable. You'd have to look at a drop of semen under a microscope to find out."

Rahab stared at her a moment, then shook his head. "I want to laugh," he began, throwing his hands up and starting to pace. "I do! It's so ridiculous I want to laugh. But I can't, because I suspect she's actually telling the truth. This is mind-boggling."

"That's enough revelation for today, Amalia," Raziel stated. "We've got business in the lab."

"Can't we spare a moment for another song?" Rahab asked hopefully.

Raziel could tell from the look on her face that she absolutely did not want to put her talent on display for Rahab again, but knew better than to grant her any more leeway after the attitude she'd been showing. He was already acting far differently than he usually did toward her with his brother around. He waved his hand with a sigh. "Fine."

Amalia huffed a sigh of her own, realizing that she wasn't off the hook yet. "What kind of song do you want?"

"A love song," Rahab replied without hesitation. 

This stopped her short, and she glanced up into his eyes briefly, unsure how he might react to such a song, given the circumstances surrounding the loss of his bride. "Um... are you sure?"

"You dare to question me?" he snapped.

Gritting her teeth, she forced down her anger, which by now was close to boiling over. "My apologies. I simply didn't want to risk upsetting you." But since you fucking asked for it, she thought, spitefully searching her mental library for something that would be absolutely certain to upset him.

Raziel had an inkling of what she was thinking, and he quashed it immediately. "No. No love songs. Choose something comforting."

Unfortunately for Rahab, the first seemingly "comforting" song that came to mind wasn't as uplifting as it sounded at first, and she was dead set on getting back at him for every wrong he'd done her that evening. With a shrug, she cleared her throat, straightened up, and started singing, not even waiting for them to lean into her mind to hear the accompanying music.

"Just stop your crying, it's a sign of the times
Welcome to the final show
Hope you're wearing your best clothes..."

Raziel held his hand up to stop her, and she was certain he was about to tell her to sing something else. Instead, he told her to continue thinking of the song without singing so that he could focus on the male singer's voice.

"Uh... okay?"

You can't bribe the door on your way to the sky
You look pretty good down here
But you ain't really good

"It's just that... Rahab, the original singer. Doesn't he-"

"Sound exactly like Tantallon? Yes. Yes, he does. It's uncanny."

"What's the singer's name, Amalia?"

Amalia only shrugged, unable to remember, though she was amused at the idea that Tantallon could possibly have been famous had he been born in her world. In fact, if their voices were as similar as they were claiming, then Raziel's description of Tantallon as 'quite the singer' did him absolutely no justice at all. "Sorry, Master. I'll let you know as soon as it comes back to me," she replied. He only grunted and waved his hand, and she began to sing again.

"We never learn, we been here before
Why are we always stuck and running from
The bullets? The bullets?
We never learn, we been here before
Why are we always stuck and running from
Your bullets? Your bullets?"

She looked toward Rahab only to see him exchanging a glance with Raziel, probably to ask him using their Whisper ability what the hell a bullet was, judging by the way his expression went from confused to disturbed. Whatever, it was time to go for the throat.

"Just stop your crying, have the time of your life
Breaking through the atmosphere
And things are pretty good from here
Remember everything will be alright
We can meet again somewhere
Somewhere far away from here

Just stop your crying, it's a sign of the times
We gotta get away from here
We gotta get away from here
Stop your crying, baby, it'll be alright-"

"Stop... Stop, please..."

Instant regret. When she glanced up Rahab was covering his mouth with his hand, and tears had welled in his eyes and were spilling over onto his cheeks. He wordlessly stood and strode into the lab.

"Shit! I didn't mean to-"

"Didn't you?" Raziel snapped as he jumped up to follow his brother. "This is exactly the reaction you were hoping for, is it not?" 

"I'm sorry! I feel awful, I-"

"You disappoint me," he said over his shoulder as he slammed the lab's door behind him.

Overwhelmed with guilt, Amalia curled up into a ball, feeling absolutely disgusted with herself and knowing that she deserved to feel the way she did. After crying quietly for a while, she finally hauled herself up and went into the spare room to huddle miserably on the couch, afraid that Raziel wouldn't allow her to sleep in bed with him, as upset as he was with her. She wouldn't, if she were him.

If only she could take it back.

Chapter Text

"You've no idea how disappointed in you I am."

Amalia lay miserably on the couch, shivering from several hours spent in the chilly spare room. She didn't dare ask Raziel to light the stove for her. "I know," was all she said.

"You weaponized his grief. Used Lenore's memory to attack him, to deliberately hurt him! You knew the words to that song would strike directly at his heart."

She'd realized that before she'd even dragged herself in here, of course, but knew she deserved the lecture, and thus remained silent, unwilling to try to defend herself.

"I honestly think it best that the two of you simply don't interact from here on out, but unfortunately that is not an option. One, because I don't wish to reward your deplorable behavior, and two, because he doesn't even realize you did it on purpose," he hissed. "He asked me not to punish you for upsetting him because he thinks it's not your fault, that you were only doing what he asked, and seeing as I cannot separate you without explaining why..." he trailed off, glowering down at his guilty bride.

Amalia didn't think she could possibly have felt worse, but she was wrong.

"Have you nothing to say for yourself?"

"No," she replied, barely a whisper.

Raziel only scoffed. "Pathetic."

"Sire, enough. Can't you see she's remorseful enough already?" said Tantallon from the doorway as Amalia began to sob.

"I didn't ask your opinion, fledgling," Raziel spat.

"Well, you're getting it anyway! You're being every bit as cruel as she was!" Tantallon fired back as he stepped in and lit the stove with a wave of his hand. "And I'm hardly a fledgling anymore, so don't give me that shit. You're being completely hypocritical because you're angry and you know it."

"You're willing to simply excuse her for-"

"Can we discuss this elsewhere?" he interjected, gesturing toward the door with an exaggerated nod.

The moment they were in the hall with the door shut, Tantallon threw his hands up. "What are you doing? You were terrified not very long ago about her wanting to leave, were you not? You need to tread carefully here, Sire. The return of her memories is progressing quickly, and she is at great risk of sinking into deep depression as the stark contrast between her past situation and her current one becomes more and more apparent. Is that what you want? Is this misstep of hers really what you ought to be harping on right now?"

Raziel's ire was drowned in an instant by the truth of his firstborn's words, and he collapsed back against the wall, covering his face with his hands. "You're right. What have I done? This situation is spiraling further and further beyond my control and I just don't know what to do. Rahab knows too much, their conflict is only likely to become more and more problematic the more time they spend together, and I can't just keep them apart."

"One thing at a time, Sire. Forget Rahab for now; he won't be back for a week. We can sort out a solution to their issues with one another later. You need to patch things up with Amalia before any further damage is done, and then we need to come up with a different approach toward her care and keeping. Listen, The harvest is upon us and the servants' feast is less than a week away. I think she ought to be allowed to go. It'll get her mind off things and allow her some social interaction. She's bored to death sitting up here alone half the time."

"Tantallon, she's in more danger than ever! The truth of her origin is a hair's breadth from getting out. The moment Rahab feels it in his best interest to-"

"You don't have nearly enough faith in Rahab, Sire. Why would he betray his only ally? Who else does he have but us?"

Rahab had in fact made the exact same point himself earlier, but Raziel was still unconvinced. "It's not a matter of betrayal, Tantallon, it's simple self-preservation!"

"He would see it as betraying you, and he won't. I think you're worrying over nothing when it comes to this."

"Well regardless, she won't be sitting alone anymore, because she's not leaving my side from now on. Any time I walk out the front doors, where I go, she goes. She's not going to the feast without me, and Lorrelin will be spitting nails if I show up."

Tantallon didn't want to risk causing a complete breakdown by pointing out that dragging her with him everywhere and forcing her to stay in 'pet' mode constantly from here on out was only going to worsen things. There was no good solution to be had, so he kept it to himself. One thing at a time. "I'll take her, then. The servants don't fear me the way they do you, and if they do seem nervous I'll simply disappear into the shadows and keep an eye on her from there. You know she's as safe with me as she is you."

"I'll think about it," Raziel conceded. "I need to talk to her. Go and make sure Rahab has left for good. He is spending entirely too much time here."

Unfortunately for Raziel, apologizing did little to salvage the situation. Amalia simply lay listlessly on the couch, staring at the wall, barely responding at all.

"Tantallon was right, I was being cruel because I was angry, and I'm sorry for speaking to you the way I did," he said, brushing her hair out of her tearstained face. 

"It's okay," she murmured.

"But are you?"

She only shrugged. "I'll be fine."

His anxiety spiked considerably, and he began to wrack his brain for something, anything, that would pull her out of the state she was in without mentioning Tantallon's feast idea, which he wasn't entirely sold on. "Amalia... we haven't spent much time together outside our home. Why don't we go for a walk outside soon? I'll take you into town. There's a park with flowers and benches and winding paths... I'll read to you a while." It could be risky, but he didn't know what else to do.

She drew in a deep breath. "I dunno," she replied. "I just... Look, please don't be nice to me right now."

"Amalia, you are clearly sorry for what you've done. You needn't spare another thought about the matter. I am truly sorry for berating you the way I did, it was unnecessary and unbecoming of me."

She only closed her eyes, and he dragged his palm down his face. "What punishment do you think you deserve for this transgression? If you were to pay for it somehow, would that ease your guilt?"

"I don't see why it ought to be up to me," she shrugged, confirming his suspicions. The first time he was willing to let Tantallon off the hook for a fuckup of this magnitude, it quickly became apparent that his guilt over it was not so easily forgotten. Unfortunately, he wasn't sure he'd be able to go about solving the issue the usual way with Amalia, regardless of what he'd threatened her with when they'd first met. Taking a belt to Tantallon's backside was one thing; it had happened on several occasions early on, when his firstborn was young, impetuous, and reckless. Doing it to his human bride was another matter entirely. 

"Darling... I told you I did not want to have to discipline you physically, and that is even more the case now that we have been together for some time. If it will make you feel better... then I suppose I will," he sighed. "But I would much rather not."

"Then don't," she replied, though the insolent tone he'd usually expect from such a response wasn't there.

More anxiety. "Let's just... let's go for a walk at nightfall tomorrow, please? If you still feel this badly afterward, then..."

"Okay," was all she said.

"Come to bed, my love. It's already after dawn, and the sun rises late and sets early this time of year. We've less time to sleep." he offered as he got to his feet, hoping that maybe wrapping her up in the blankets and holding her a while would improve things... it would certainly make him feel better. She began to get up, but then stopped, dropping her gaze to the floor. Raziel sighed again. "How about I deem your punishment to be sleeping alone in here for the night?"

She shrugged, but laid back down. He promptly put the fire out. "How about now?"

Amalia did not like being cold, and the fact that she knew she'd be uncomfortable the whole day through was enough to placate her. "Yeah, that'll do," she mumbled. Raziel nodded and stepped toward the door, promising to return for her before dusk, and she curled up into a ball to preserve what warmth she could, feeling slightly better about herself now that she felt like she was actually seeing some tangible consequences. Eventually, she managed to get to sleep.

When Raziel returned for her that evening, he was immensely relieved to find her more or less her usual self save for somewhat more frequent comfort-seeking behavior, such as leaning into his side or taking hold of his hand as they prepared for their evening outing. He got her dressed as soon as she'd eaten, handed her a small bag containing a folded blanket, a book, and some snacks, and led her out the doors, eager to show her around and hopefully get her mind off things. Since it was so early, few Razielim were out and about aside from the guards at their posts, and the ones who were merely dropped to one knee the moment they saw who was approaching. They made their way through the stronghold, Raziel stopping occasionally to point down hallways or at large, ornate doors.

"The armory is down that way," he said, gesturing to a large corridor they were approaching. "Our smiths make fine weaponry and armor, though as I mentioned before, it's more Dumah's forte than ours. Outside the armory is a training yard. Tantallon can often be found there, either drilling a regiment of soldiers or improving his own skills."

"It's odd, imagining Tantallon fighting," Amalia said. "He seems like he's more prone to verbal attacks than physical."

"Hah! Don't let that fool you," Raziel replied. "Tantallon is deadly with a blade and even deadlier with a bow. I once tasked him with dispatching a band of vampire hunters that our scouts had reported. I followed him at a distance, just to watch him work. He sniped all of them in rapid succession from up in a tree, putting arrows straight through their throats, one after another. They hardly had time to take up their own weapons before they were defeated." He sighed with a smile, placing his hand over his chest. "I was so proud."

He pointed out the doors to the clan's library as they passed them, where copies of all important records were stored along with thousands of books. (He insisted that he had all the good ones in his personal library, of course.) Then came the dining hall, the barracks, an entire wing devoted to various alchemy labs and spellwork, and finally, the throne room and adjacent ballroom.

"You have a throne? Really?" Amalia asked, laughing.

Raziel bristled. "Of course I do. And why shouldn't I? I am the patriarch of this clan, my dear little human."

"Can I see it?" she asked, still grinning.

"No, you may not. You don't get to disparage it and then be taken to look upon it," he sniffed. "Perhaps when you're less disdainful of the idea."

She shrugged. "You probably wouldn't have let me sit in it anyway."

He cast a jaundiced eye at her, but was secretly relieved to see her usual sense of humor on display.

Before long, they were well outside the stronghold and heading down the main street of the Razielim town which lay between the stronghold and the surrounding walls. Shops and stalls lined the street on either side, offering various wares ranging from fancy weaponry to fine clothing to housewares to jewelry to alchemical supplies. Raziel was not exaggerating when he had told her his clan's specialty was craftsmanship and magic. None were open yet, although she could see through windows that some of the owners were in the process of preparing for the night's business.

Raziel led her to a side street, and they soon arrived at the well lit park. Amalia had hardly been listening when he'd described it to her before, so she was awestruck at the beauty that surrounded her as they walked down paths which wound through flower gardens lined with manicured trees. Benches made of wrought iron and wood sat in the grass nearby, and at the center was a large square paved with flagstone containing an ornate fountain along with the most elaborate displays of flowers.

"The fountain is turned off on days that are particularly windy," he said as he led her to a bench under a tree. "Otherwise the spray ends up burning everyone that approaches the square."

"This is amazing. You must have a lot of talented gardeners besides just Vance," Amalia replied, gently touching the soft petals of a rose as they passed it.

"Magic helps," he said with a smirk. "Come, let's sit. Remember that people will soon be out and about once the sun sets." She spread the blanket on the ground at his feet as he settled on the bench, and was soon munching on a mix of salted nuts and some strange dried fruit that she could not identify. Raziel took the book with the animal spiral from the sack and opened it.

"What book did you bring?"

"'Tales as Old as Time'," he responded, showing her the familiar cover. "We never even got around to reading the best stories. There's one about the king of the tortoises, who wanted to rule the rivers and lakes rather than the land, and thus became a turtle," he said, looking through the index. "And one about a trickster fox who convinced a farmer that he was a dog that specialized in protecting hens. That one always seemed to me to be more a case of a stupid farmer than a clever fox," he commented, and she laughed. Eventually, she settled on one about a lizard named Aubrexis who fell in love with an eagle, and leaned against his legs as he read to her, enjoying his measured cadence and the sound of his voice. 

"Aubrexis, having convinced himself that the eagle was as kind as she was beautiful, was devastated at the foul names she had called him when he confessed his love to her. He stopped alongside a pond once he had climbed back down from the tree, unable to summon the strength to crawl the rest of the way home, and fell down upon a stone to weep. There he remained until morning's light, and it was then that the goddess Arta appeared. She had seen his bitter tears and took pity on him, and stopped to ask him what was wrong. 

'I have fallen in love with the eagle who makes her home in the largest oak in the forest. I climbed all the way up to court her, thinking she would be impressed at the feat, only to earn her scorn,' he said. 

'That eagle!' Arta replied. 'I've grown tired of her haughtiness. She seems to believe she's better than everyone in this forest, and I do believe that includes me. Perhaps it's time I took her down a peg or two.' 

Aubrexis still loved the eagle, however, and did not wish to see her harmed. 'Please, my goddess, spare her life. I don't wish any ill on her. I will simply go home and try to forget her,' he begged. But Arta shook her head.

 'No, little lizard, she must be given cause to reevaluate her worth. But I will not harm her, if you do not wish it. Instead, I shall make you greater than she could ever hope to be, and she will despair at having ever scorned you.' 

And the goddess bent down to kiss him atop his head. When he opened his eyes, he found that he had changed. His smooth skin had grown hard, shiny scales. He towered above everyone on four strong legs instead of scurrying on his belly over the ground. And he had been given vast wings that could carry him to heights the eagle could only dream of. Thus Aubrexis became the father of dragons, and no longer did he weep for the eagle, for he was now a god."

It was fully dark by time he had finished, and other vampires could be seen strolling through the park, though none approached where the two of them sat. Amalia could see them casting glances their way and whispering among themselves, and suddenly felt very exposed. "They're talking about us," she said, clutching at the leg of his pants.

"Yes, they are," Raziel replied. "I come to this park often to relax, but I haven't been seen with a pet in decades. It'll be the talk of the town for a while, particularly since everyone knows that you're the reason for the extra security. Come, let's move along."

Once Amalia had folded the blanket and packed everything back into the sack, he led her off along the path that wound around the entire park in a loop. Once they made it to the entrance on the opposite side from where they'd come in, they took the back roads toward the stronghold.

"Where are the farms?" Amalia asked. "I saw a few big gardens but no fields."

"They lie outside the walls," Raziel replied. "We rarely have trouble from humans these days since our presence is so strong here, so it's generally not an issue for them to be unprotected. There are patrols, of course."

"Can we go along the top of the wall to see them?"

Raziel shook his head, antsy to get her back within the safety of the fortress. "Not tonight, we can't. The town is well-lit, but the fields will be dark, and you lack the night-vision that my kind possess. We're going home. I'll take you to see the farms some other night."

Amalia deflated a bit, not wanting to go back indoors. The temperature outside was perfect, and the town itself, being that it was Raziel's, was full of beautiful architecture, fountains, and statues to look at.  She knew she'd be able to see the farms because the stars and moon were out, but decided not to point that out for fear of sounding petulant, figuring she'd caused enough trouble lately. Knowing that she wanted to linger and aware that he was walking a fine line in regards to her mental health, Raziel decided it couldn't hurt to take a slightly more indirect path home. A little-used road stretched out alongside one wall, and it ran past a flight of stairs near the rear of the stronghold where she could at least catch a glimpse of the walltops. Once they reached it, she stopped at each landing to look out over the town, climbing progressively higher until they reached the top of the wall where they could enter the fortress through a guard tower. The door to the walltop was to their left, opposite the door that led inside, and it stood open with the walltop clearly visible on the other side. Amalia's eyes nearly bugged out of her head at the sight of the gigantic scorpions that sat along the edge.

Raziel noticed her lingering in the tower, and realizing that she was absolutely transfixed by the formidable weapons that lined the walls, suddenly had an idea.

"Do you want to see me fire one?"

"I have never wanted anything more," she replied, never taking her eyes off the weapons.

"Come along, then," he chuckled. The outing had gone better than he'd expected, and he was glad to take one more little detour if it would make her happy.

"Good evening, Lord Raziel," the nearest guard said, taking a knee before him. "Fine night for a stroll along the walls. I can't help but notice little Amalia's interest in the scorpions. I can disarm this one, if she'd like to look at it."

"Thank you, Varen, but there's no need. She's been a bit restless, being cooped up inside for her own safety for all this time. I'm going to fire it for her, if you wouldn't mind getting a target set up."

"Ah, we're ever on the alert and there's been no sign of trouble, so she's quite safe. Please, don't let me get in the way," Varen said, stepping backward toward the opposite edge of the wall and calling down for someone to get a training dummy out in the field beyond.

Raziel gestured to the nearest scorpion while they waited for the dummy to be put in place. "Well, here it is, Amalia. As you can see, it's effectively a scaled up version of a crossbow," he said, maintaining the necessary air of superiority. "The bolt is nearly as long as you are tall, and is as thick as your arm. Here, hold it," he said, picking the bolt up and placing it in her hands. 

"It's not quite as heavy as I expected," she observed as she handed it back. "They must be a lot of fun to shoot."

"Indeed they are, but these are not toys. They are weapons, and deadly ones at that. The bolts are thrown with such force that anyone being struck is more likely to be torn apart by it than he is to simply find a hole in his middle. I personally have taken men's heads off with a similar rig designed for the battlefield," he said, running his talons along one of the arms. "The ones mounted here atop the wall aren't particularly difficult to load or draw, but the bolts are really only good for one shot, since the impact from whatever they hit usually warps them out of shape, and they need to be straight in order to fly true. It would be childish and unbecoming to regularly waste them just so I could pull a trigger and watch a patch of turf explode down below, as entertaining as it is."

 "Is it easy to load?"

"Easy to load, yes, though readying it for firing takes some muscle. The bolt is laid here in this trough," he explained, laying the bolt in place, "And then the windlass here," he said as he began to haul on the winch levers, "...is used to draw the arms back. Once the proper tension has been achieved, the weapon is ready to fire and can be aimed."

Amalia watched as Raziel demonstrated how easily the scorpion swiveled in its base to point in whatever direction it needed to be fired, then looked down to the ground as he took aim at the straw dummy that was waiting below. "Then it's simply a matter of pulling the trigger."

Raziel had not been exaggerating about the sheer force behind the launch of the bolt. An instant after the ka-thunk of the arms releasing sounded, the dummy exploded in a shower of straw and dust. Amalia squealed, covering her mouth with both hands as she fought to rein in her giddy laughter. "Oh my god," she said through her fingers as she watched bits of straw float to the ground around the half buried shaft of the bolt. Overwhelmed, she completely forgot her manners and grabbed Raziel's arm, grinning up at him. "Can I try? Please?"

He jerked away from her with a growl, and her face fell as he stared her down. Shit! Cringing, she dropped her gaze and held her hands at her sides. "Forgive me, Master. In my excitement, I forgot my place."

"You'll do well to remember it," he growled. "Your complete lack of self-control ill becomes you. Perhaps I've erred in allowing you this amusement."

Amalia was immediately on the verge of tears again, though she couldn't really figure out why. She knew he wasn't really angry, and not being allowed to fire the scorpion wasn't exactly the end of the world... she'd have honestly been shocked if he'd let her even if she hadn't just grabbed his arm in public. She stared miserably at the ground, her giddy exuberance thoroughly quashed. "I didn't mean to," she whispered.

Raziel sighed heavily, turning his eyes dramatically skyward. "You see what I'm dealing with, Varen? I literally just told her they aren't to be played with."

"They certainly are... excitable, aren't they?" Varen replied. "Still, I have to admit I can't help but feel sorry for the poor thing. She's obviously bonded quite strongly with you as her owner and holds you in the highest regard. Otherwise I suspect she wouldn't be so upset that you're angry with her. Perhaps with a little time and patience, she'll learn to control herself. And, to be fair... the bolts do little more than sit and collect dust these days."

Amalia got the distinct impression that Varen did not entirely approve of Raziel's harsh reprimand, but knew better than to think he'd defend her any further.

Raziel crossed his arms. "I certainly hope so. And I suppose you're right... perhaps I ought to be a bit more patient with her. I've not even had her a month, but she's been quite well behaved for the most part. Apparently these things just make her lose her head. She nearly didn't follow me back inside once she saw them, which she knows would have earned her a solid lashing." He stepped forward and put his hand on her shoulder as she sniffled. "Come now, Amalia, I won't have you slipping into melancholy simply because you made a mistake. All is forgiven. Would you still like to give it a try? Varen has a point; we can spare one more bolt, seeing as they're not getting a whole lot of use anyhow." She only shook her head, trying to avoid completely breaking down. He sighed again. "Perhaps another time, then. What do you say to Varen for getting the target for us before we go, hmm?"

"Thank you," she whispered, wiping her eyes.

"Ah, it was nothing, little one. I was only obeying our Lord's orders. Chin up, now, your master has forgiven you."

"Come along, then," Raziel commanded, reaching for her. He ushered her back through the tower and into the stronghold, then stopped to close the door. "Well, that last bit could have gone better, but also could have gone much worse, I suppose," he said as he looked both ways down the corridor to make certain they were alone. "I'd rather you hadn't made that mistake at all, of course, but your recovery was absolutely splendid..." he trailed off as his eyes finally settled on her. "Amalia?"

She choked down a sob as she stood before him, and his heart sank as he realized that her tears were real. But why? She was clearly past the incident with Rahab and he'd pretended to speak sharply to her before to keep up appearances, so why was she so upset this time? Unwilling to risk being seen consoling her out in the open, he began to urge her along again. "Amalia, I wasn't truly angry," he whispered as they walked. "You know this is an act."

"You are a very convincing actor," she mumbled, scrubbing at her eyes as she trudged along next to him.

"I would have thought you knew that by now," he said, as gently as he could. The moment they were through his doors, he pulled her into his arms. 

"Come now, darling. Everything is all right," he said. "I didn't mean to upset you so."

"I know," she replied, pulling away from him and heading toward the parlor. "I just... I feel like I'm terrible at this! I'm going to blow our cover, get myself killed, and start an entire goddamn civil war! And then when Kain finds out, he'll probably raise me as a vampire just so he can kill me again!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands up.

Where the hell was all this coming from? Bewildered, Raziel moved to quash her emotional spiral immediately. He stopped her in her tracks as she began to pace, placing both hands on her shoulders. "Amalia, listen to me. Are you listening?" She glared at him, but fell silent. "You are catastrophizing. This is not the end of the world. There is not a single vampire in existence that would have deduced the true nature of our relationship upon witnessing that interaction. The important thing is that you did not break character and show any defiance when I rebuked you. That would have been a catastrophe." For a moment she seemed to relax, and he continued, hoping to stop this train of thought for good. "No one expects perfect behavior from a human, and that includes me." 

He regretted taking that approach almost instantly. Her gaze hardened. "Wow, thanks. That certainly makes me feel better," she snapped, turning away from him once more and heading for the spare room. Raziel stared after her as she stormed off through the parlor and disappeared down the hallway, confused beyond belief.

"Tactfully handled, my Lord," Lorrelin said from behind him, causing him to jump with a startled growl.

"I wish you wouldn't do that," he hissed, eyes narrowed.

She wrinkled her nose, side-eyeing him. "Well, you're the one who's supposed to have supernaturally enhanced senses. Perhaps I should carry some pots and pans around and bang them so you know I'm-"

"Shut up, Lorrelin," he snarled. "I am clearly not in the mood for your unique brand of nonsense. That remark I made might not have been worded tactfully, but it would usually have resulted in nothing more than an eyeroll and a snappy comeback. I don't know what's gotten into her! This was supposed to be fun," he raged, his temper flaring. "Instead, we cut the outing short because she got excited and forgot her manners, and now she's off sulking in her room, either feeling sorry for herself or angry at me! I honestly can't tell which," he said, throwing up his hands.

Lorrelin wanted to point out that it appeared to be both, but knew she was already on thin ice. "Would you like me to go and talk to her?"

Raziel snorted, crossing his arms. "Good luck. With your insolent tongue you're liable to end up with both eyes blackened and half your hair torn out of your head."

"Who's catastrophizing now?" Lorrelin snarked, quickly darting out of range of his claws when he bared his teeth and growled at her. She quietly approached the door to Amalia's room and pressed her ear to it. "Amalia, dear? Are you in there?"

"No, Lorrelin, I'm up on the roof," came the reply.

"I suppose I invited that," she muttered to herself with a roll of her eyes as she opened the door. Amalia was sitting on the couch, her head in her hands. "Is everything quite alright?" 

"She asked, without the slightest hint of irony."

Lorrelin huffed and crossed her arms. "Fine. What the hell is wrong with you? Is that better?"

To her surprise, Amalia's eyes welled up with tears. She dropped her head back into her hands and sat there quietly sobbing as Lorrelin moved in close and sat down. "Amalia, darling, talk to me. What has you so upset?"

"I don't know!" she cried. "I don't know why everything is getting to me so much right now! I got so angry at Rahab's bullshit that I exploited his grief and made him cry, I felt so guilty afterward that I wanted to throw myself off the damn balcony, and now I'm flipping out over the stupidest, most trivial shit! I know I'm acting stupid and it's only making me more frustrated!"

Lorrelin considered this a moment. Amalia was certainly sharp-tongued and just as prone to fits of temper as her husband, but this degree of melodrama seemed rather out of character for her. And whenever she found herself spiraling for no apparent reason like this... "Amalia, I'm going to ask you something very delicately," she said, eyeing her. "When did you last have your menses?"

She lifted her head, staring at the far wall in confusion a moment. "What?"

"Your menses, dear. When was the last time you bled? A smidge over three weeks, perhaps?" she asked diplomatically, holding up her thumb and forefinger. When she received only a blank stare, she inclined her head, eyebrows raised. "You do remember that women bleed each month, yes?"

Amalia blinked twice before comprehension dawned on her. Memories came rushing back, none of them pleasant. Bloodstained sheets and underwear, the annoying sensation of a pad's adhesive sticking to the inside of her thigh, an entire aisle at the grocery store of products intended for this very malady, and pain, pain, pain. She slid dramatically to the floor, once again covering her face with a loud groan. "Now I do."

Oof, Lorrelin thought to herself. "That... probably explains all this, then. It's really not uncommon to be a bit emotional a few days before it starts. I've already brought up an entire stack of cloths and extra underwear for you to use; I simply forgot to tell you about them. They're in the top drawer of Raziel's left-hand wardrobe, all the way off to the side. They'll be washed and replaced as needed, you needn't worry about running out. You may feel a bit physically unwell once it comes, but usually the moodiness goes away."

"Oh my god, I'm getting my period and I'm stuck in the middle ages," Amalia groaned, her head in her hands.

Lorrelin had no idea what she meant by that, but whatever she was talking about clearly upset her, and despite her dislike for close contact she put her arm around Amalia's shoulder and gave her a little squeeze. "It'll be alright, love. I'll look after you."

"I'm in a fortress full of vampires and I'm about to start bleeding everywhere!"

"Well, yes, but you needn't-"

"I'm never going to taste chocolate again," she cried, once again beginning to sob uncontrollably.

"Oh, dear," Lorrelin sighed. Perhaps it was time to inform Raziel of this development. "Why don't you go ahead and lie down a while? I'll check on you in a little bit." Once Amalia had crawled back up onto the couch and curled up in a miserable little ball, she crept from the room and quietly closed the door behind her.

Raziel's anger had fled by time Lorrelin emerged back into the parlor. He was slumped sullenly in his chair, and only raised an eyebrow in question when she stood in front of him. She took a deep breath. "Well, my Lord... I have good news and bad news. The good news is that I know why she's so moody. The bad news is that it's due to the onset of her menses, and she's only just now recalled what menses even are. She's..." she paused with a soft sigh. "Well, she may just need a while to cry it out. Frankly, I can't really blame her."

Raziel smacked his forehead with a groan. "Oh, hell, I'd completely forgotten about... well, that. I'm not accustomed to dealing with that sort of thing. You're the only human female I interact with in any meaningful way on a regular basis." 

"Well, you'd better get used to it, because it's going to happen every month until she's past childbearing age."

"I don't know when human women age out of the ability to bear children," he said, rather testily. "You know I don't involve myself in their breeding. I only know that pregnancy takes months and that they frequently die giving birth." He stiffened suddenly. "Wait... don't you still...?" he trailed off, and she nodded. "How old are you again!?"

Lorrelin crossed her arms. "I'm forty-two. And it could still be going a decade from now for all I know."

Raziel's eyes closed as his head fell back into the cushion of his chair. "Oh, dear god."

"To be perfectly fair, my Lord, I suspect that while she might be a bit more sensitive than usual because of this particular function... there's often something solid behind the dramatics, at least in my experience. Perhaps we should go and try to get her to talk. Maybe once she's a bit calmer we can get her to make some sense."

Amalia was still crying when they stepped into the room. Raziel immediately went and sat on the floor next to the lounge, dropping his chin onto the cushion next to where she had her face buried in the crook of her arm and softly stroking her hair. She immediately lifted her head and reached for him, and he moved to sit next to her as she sat up. It became apparent within a few moments that she wasn't about to offer any insight into her emotional state, so Raziel began to prod her.

"Lorrelin says that your menses are close at hand. Is that what's bothering you?" he asked, handing her a cloth that Lorrelin passed him. Was she in pain, perhaps? Certainly she'd have told him if she were.

After making an attempt at drying her eyes, she took a deep breath. "I only just remembered it was even a thing I have to deal with. And it's going to be difficult to deal with here."

"What makes you say that, love?" Lorrelin asked.

"How do you deal with yours, Lorrelin?"

Lorrelin shrugged. "I use the same cloth pads I've brought up for you. They fit quite neatly into the gusset of our undergarments, dear."

"And then what? You just sit on them until it stops?"

"Why... heavens no," she laughed. "If that's how we approached it, half of the human servants employed here would be out of commission for days on end on a regular basis. We haven't got time for that, love, we have work to do and we can't let our natural functions keep us from it. It's a complication to our lives, to be sure, particularly with the pain it can bring, but we manage."

"I suspect I'm going to regret asking you to do this, but can you show me how you handled it before, cyar'ika? Perhaps we can come up with something similar."

Not wanting to dump any particularly graphic imagery on him, Amalia focused on her memories of the instructional pamphlet that comes with every box of tampons, and though the diagrams made little sense owing to his lack of familiarity with internal female anatomy, he was able to piece together the basic idea. "Ah. That... seems like an infinitely better solution, actually."

"What's she showing you?" Lorrelin asked. 

"A small roll of absorbent material is inserted and kept there until it needs to be replaced, is all. The blood need never leave her body, except with the roll when it's removed. Why don't you just handle it that way? It certainly seems... less complicated," he said diplomatically, though it was obvious that by 'complicated' he meant 'disgusting'.

Lorrelin wrinkled her nose, shaking her head. "We've experimented a bit with that idea over the years. Never could get it to work very well, unfortunately, and things like that tend to invite illness."

"Yeah, it's not something I'd be willing to risk without access to modern medicine; it's a great way to end up dead. I'll just have to use the pads and hope they don't fall out of my underwear every time I get up."

Lorrelin laughed again. "They won't go anywhere, Amalia, they're tucked into a pocket within the gusset and held there, and then everything is washed thoroughly in water fresh out of the boiler. You can be up and about all you like. I'm not going to lie and suggest it's comfortable, especially if you need the thicker ones, but it works." 

"See, darling? It won't be so bad," Raziel said. "Is that all that's on your mind, then?" She began to look distinctly uncomfortable, and Lorrelin knew why.

"I believe she finds the notion of bleeding from her nethers while surrounded on all sides by vampires rather disturbing as well," she explained. "I tried to explain to her that she needn't give it any thought, but she was a little too upset to hear me out."

Now it was Raziel's turn to look uncomfortable. "I... will say nothing except that Lorrelin speaks the truth. No one here is starving; let's just leave it at that."

"There was something else, Amalia. Something about some sort of food?"

Amalia began to tear up again. "Chocolate," she choked out. 

Lorrelin and Raziel exchanged bewildered glances. "What's 'chocolate', cyar'ika?" he asked, pressing against her mind once more. He received images of a dark brown wedge of what appeared to be cake, spread thick with frosting of a similar, though somewhat lighter hue. She imagined taking a bite, and his mind exploded with a scent and taste which had an allure that rivaled that of the blood that he needed to survive. It was devastatingly good, and his heart sank as he realized what she'd lost forever. This memory was not going to help things in the slightest.

"A dessert of some sort. Rich, decadent. I'd hoped that perhaps it was something we had, but knew by another name," he explained to Lorrelin. "It isn't... and that is most unfortunate. I'm sorry, my love."

Amalia lost her composure once more. "I'm gonna forget what it even tastes like," she sobbed.

"How is it made, Amalia? Perhaps we can recreate it," Lorrelin suggested.

She only shook her head. "It's made from beans that grow on a tree that only lives in the tropics. So unless you've got a jungle or rainforest somewhere near here..."

Tropics, jungle, rainforest? None of those words were familiar to either of them. Raziel pulled her into his arms, opting to simply let her cry rather than press her any longer. There was little else either of them could do for her. Some things simply couldn't be replaced. He rested his chin on her head, his anxiety welling up once more. He was becoming just as afraid for her emotional state as he was her physical safety, and he was beginning to suspect at this point that his chances of keeping her happy were even worse than his chances of keeping her alive.

Chapter Text

When Amalia's period came a day later, she was already feeling a lot better about it. The cloth pads she'd been given were soft and flexible, and they fit snugly into her underwear just like Lorrelin had said. The cramps, unfortunately, were bad enough the first day that Raziel decided to wake his chamberlain up to make her some poppy tea, seeing as she was the only one with access to the lockbox containing the extract. This resulted in an opioid high which had her completely loopy once the pain receded, much to the intense amusement of both vampires.

"Hiiiii," she cooed at Tantallon as he approached the bed with a flat rock he'd enchanted to stay warm for a few hours.

"Boy, that stuff works fast," he observed as he lifted the arm that Amalia had allowed to fall across her middle and laid the stone there.

"Wrong spot, doofus," she snorted. "Lower."

"Keep that up and you'll be lucky if I don't knock you in the head with it," he retorted.

"Still lower."

"I don't know where the hell your... whatever it is that hurts is!"

She ended up simply moving the stone to the right place herself. "Come lay by me," she said, reaching for him, and he gave her a wry look.

"You're going to have to move over to make room," he informed her.

"Mmmmm... Don't wanna," she replied, and he threw his hands up as Raziel solved the problem by wrapping an arm around her and pulling her toward him. She didn't protest; all she did was take hold of his hand and sigh happily.

Both of them were soon absolutely cracking up laughing at her antics. Not wanting to be woken again, Lorrelin had given her quite a strong dose. She was completely out of it, alternating between making nonsensical observations and responding to their laughter with intense giggle fits of her own.

"No, look... it's so swirly!" she said with a goofy smile as she lay between them, pointing up at the velvet canopy. "Don't you see all the patterns it makes?"

"Yes, darling," Raziel laughed, wiping tears of mirth from his eyes as Tantallon lay next to her full on belly laughing. "It's very pretty," he sputtered, burying his face in his pillow as he began to laugh anew.

"We have got to give her this stuff more often," Tantallon said once he'd recovered somewhat.

"We can't," Raziel replied, once again wiping his eyes. "You know it's highly addictive."

"She is never going to live this down."

Fortunately after the first day the pain was mild enough to endure without the tea, which suited Amalia just fine because Raziel and Tantallon teased her mercilessly about her behavior while under the influence of it (not to mention the awful bitter taste, which clung to the back of her throat as if it had seeped into every soft part there.) By time she stopped bleeding the servant's feast was upon them, and she forgave them both for all the shit they'd given her over the previous few days as soon as Raziel finally agreed to let Tantallon take her.

"Have you any idea why I just caught Lorrelin about to walk in here with a pot and pan in each hand?" he asked upon returning home to collect her after taking care of some business.

"...No?" Amalia replied from the couch, eyebrow raised.

Tantallon huffed. "Well, she was clearly up to no good, judging by how quickly she hid them behind her back when I intercepted her and then muttered something about me 'always spoiling everything' when I commanded her to take them back to the kitchen."

"I have no idea," Amalia laughed. "Ready to go?"

"A moment. I need to run upstairs for something," he said, heading toward the staircase.

When they entered the bedchamber Tantallon immediately made a beeline for one of Raziel's wardrobes to find something to complement the usual loose white shirt and black leather breeches he wore. Raziel had just come in from the balcony and was headed toward the door, but he promptly abandoned whatever he was doing in order to go and offer his expertise. After one quick glance at his firstborn he immediately shook his head, reached into a different wardrobe and produced a deep red button-up shirt. "You know a collared shirt is more appropriate for a special occasion," he said as he tossed it to Tantallon, who rolled his eyes as he began to pull off the one he was wearing. 

"It's a servant's feast. I'm not exactly mingling with high society tonight."

"Doesn't mean you can't dress halfway decently. Here, try this on over top of it," Raziel replied as he produced a dark brown corduroy suit jacket from the wardrobe Tantallon had been looking through and handed it off. "Leave that unbuttoned," he admonished as he pulled open a drawer to look for a gold necklace, which hung just below Tantallon's collarbones once he'd fastened it around his neck. After another appraising glance, he retrieved a short ribbon of the same hue as the shirt and pulled Tantallon's hair back into a low ponytail similar to the one he sported, tying it in place with a neat bow.

"There, now. That's much better." He wasn't wrong. Tantallon looked positively dashing once Raziel was through with him.

"Damn, dude. Am I gonna need to take a bat along to beat off any particularly thirsty servants tonight?" Amalia asked, looking him up and down.

"Thirsty?" Tantallon asked, eyebrow raised.

"Desperately horny," she explained, and he laughed.

"No, I can manage. I actually rather enjoy the opportunity the attention brings," he grinned.

"Oh, no you don't," Raziel interjected. "The only 'beating off' that's going to happen tonight is your own, if you catch my drift," he said, nodding toward Tantallon's groin as his firstborn scoffed indignantly. "You know I don't want you bedding the servants; it invites far too much drama for my liking."

"Oh come on!" Tantallon whined. "You can't just put a blanket ban-"

Raziel turned and stared him down, and he promptly shut his mouth. "You want to try that again, fledgling?"

"Yes, Sire," he sighed, ignoring being called 'fledgling' in favor of huffily turning away to find a hairbrush for Amalia on the vanity. It just wasn't worth it this time.

"Good. And as for you, Amalia, you are not to drink tonight."

"Wait, what!? It's a feast!"

"Did that statement seem to you like an invitation to discuss the matter?" he asked, folding his arms. "I was already on the fence about you even going, and if you think I'm going to sit here and wonder whether or not you're drunkenly blabbing who knows what to the entire servant population, you've another thing coming. And there'll be several things coming to both of you if the two of you disobey me."

Amalia groaned. She was well aware of her tolerance for alcohol now that her memories of hitting the clubs had returned, and she knew that while the fine wine Rahab had forced on her was enough to get her buzzed after one drink, whatever watered-down swill they'd be giving to the servants would probably barely register after three. This was clearly not an argument that she was going to win, however, so she gave it up. "Ugh, fine. Leave it to you to kill my buzz before I can even get one," she groused as she turned away to take the brush from Tantallon, unable to resist making the remark.

* * *

WHAP!

She was not expecting the stinging pain of an impact to her behind, and she jumped with a yip, clutching at her ass. When she and Tantallon whirled around, Raziel was standing there with a riding crop in one hand and smug challenge written on his face. He held the crop up between thumb and fore-talon, silently waggling it at them as if daring either of them to step out of line.

"Where the hell did you pull that from?" she demanded, equal parts flabbergasted and offended.

"Same place I keep the cane. Do not try my patience tonight," he warned, pointing the crop at her nose.

"What happened to you not wanting to physically discipline me?" she fired back, backing toward the vanity as she brushed her hair. She wasn't about to turn her ass back toward him with that thing in his hand.

* * *

"You happened to me not wanting to physically discipline you," he retorted. It was true, though it had more to do with a plan he'd come up with than any recent escalation in misbehavior. Now that she'd revealed herself to be the type who responded better to light punishment than she did to being left to wallow in guilt, he'd begun to think that she might fare significantly better in regards to her encroaching depression with a little structure; something to direct her energy at, to focus on, to strive for. Under all her sass, he knew that ultimately she wanted to please him. This type of submissive was honestly his absolute favorite; always wanting to obey deep down... but only if made to do so. The dominant in this dynamic needed to earn their submissive's obedience, and Raziel was more than up to the challenge.

Even so, he'd taken the time to ask Lorrelin's advice on the matter, and she'd agreed that so long as he wasn't at all harsh and they all worked to keep Amalia well occupied from now on instead of leaving her twiddling her thumbs all the time, it would likely do her a lot of good. Thus, he'd brought the crop up from the stables to aid him in keeping his smart-mouthed bride in line, and though he knew he'd never be able to bring himself to use anything any heavier on her, now that he'd thought all this through he had very few reservations about raising a welt or two on her backside with something small and light. 

"This is the most effective way to deal with a brat," he informed her with a tilt of his head and a challenging stare, once again waving the crop under her nose as she jerked her head backwards with a scowl. "And you have more than proven yourself to be one."

"He's really not wrong, you know," chirped Tantallon.

"Man, shut up. Nobody asked you."

The feast, as it turned out, was far more lavish than Amalia expected. It was the one day a year when the servants were allowed as much meat as they wanted, and as Raziel's domain was in no way lacking any sort of resources plenty of hogs, fowl, and cattle had been sacrificed to the cause. Once they reached the parade ground where everything was set up, Amalia promptly ditched Tantallon and went straight for the buffet table. Once she'd piled a plate high with a roast chicken thigh and leg, mashed potatoes with gravy, yeast rolls spread thick with butter, and cooked greens flavored with bacon, she promptly sought out Vance and joined him at the end of the table he was at.

"Miss Amalia! Was hopin' we'd see you tonight!" he cried, nudging her with his elbow as she sat down. It appeared that he'd already had quite a bit of wine. "Hey lads, it's Amalia! He let her come after all!" Several men and boys smiled and waved at her from both sides of the table, but otherwise let her be, too wary to engage with her regardless of her apparent lack of vampire escort.

"Yeah, I've needed to get out of the house and this seemed as good an occasion as any. Tantallon's here somewhere to watch over me, but he's not exactly interested in the buffet, so I came to demolish this pile of food with you guys."

"Oh, it's good stuff! Some wine'll wash it down; they tapped some of the good stuff for us tonight!"

"Nah, I've been forbidden to drink, unfortunately."

"Pity, that. Well, more room for those potatoes, eh? Not often we get real gravy."

Eventually a few women joined them, and after a few more drinks the other servants began to forget their worries and warm to her. With good food, good company, and good music, Amalia found herself feeling better than she had in weeks. Upon seeing the dancing going on, more memories of her own nights out suddenly resurfaced. She'd learned to swing dance a few years back, and the instant she judged the music to be vaguely close enough to pass for the folk equivalent of Big Band she dragged Vance, who was just drunk enough to engage, to his feet to attempt to teach him the Lindy Hop. Unfortunately, drunk enough to engage meant too drunk to learn an entirely new style of dance, so she soon gave up, promising to teach him some other time. She was probably too full of food for such energetic dancing anyway, she figured.

Tantallon, for his part, mostly hung back along the wall enjoying the music. As generally disdainful as he was of humans, he did enjoy seeing theirs having so much fun together, and many of them were excellent musicians. Truth be told, they could throw a party every bit as wild as those his own kind did, and Tantallon had always appreciated a good party, even as a human himself. He was trying to judge whether or not an elder vampire walking out among them and offering to sing would permanently kill the vibe when he noticed a pair of eyes watching him from the opposite wall.

Truth be told, Tantallon had never paid all that much attention to Stella. Sure, she was pretty, but he rarely bedded anyone aside from his concubines while he had them, and when he did it was always a vampire woman. He hadn't had a tumble with a human other than Amalia for decades. Now, though... now that he only had one sex partner who was nowhere near capable of keeping him satisfied on her own (much less him and Raziel both) his appetite had started to grow, and it did not take long for him to become very interested in the way Stella was looking at him tonight.

He wasn't imagining things; of that he was certain. At first it had been shy little glances, and then they moved on to regularly making eye contact across the grounds, despite the fact that she knew she wasn't supposed to. He'd smirk at her, she'd blush and look away only to look back up at him a few minutes later. This dance went on for a good hour before he could stand it no longer. He wasn't going to try to bed her, of course... Raziel had made it quite clear that he wasn't allowed to, damn him. Nobody ever told him not to flirt, though.

She jumped when she looked over to suddenly find him casually leaning against the wall next to her.

"Master Tantallon! I... uh... Good evening!" 

"Hello, Stella," he greeted, maintaining his smirk. "Forgive me, I didn't mean to startle you." He absolutely knew that such an entrance would startle her, of course, but he was too impatient to think of another way at this point.

"Oh, you didn't! I mean... well, you did a little..." she stammered. 

Tantallon casually leaned his head back against the wall and laughed, watching from the corner of his eye the way she gulped at the reveal of his fangs, and though he was thoroughly enjoying the effect he was having on her he knew he needed to tread lightly from now on so as not to spook her any further. "You're enjoying yourself tonight, I hope?"

"Oh, yes! I look forward to this all year," she replied, clearing her throat. "It's not often that I get to eat half a chicken in one sitting."

Ha. Adorable. The remark got a grin out of him, and he pounced on the opportunity to move away from small talk and toward meaningful conversation. "Can't say I'm much for chicken these days... but I remember how much I enjoyed these feasts as a lad." 

Stella huffed a small laugh of her own. "It's difficult to imagine you as a human boy, if you'll forgive my saying so."

"Oh, I was a scrawny little thing, but I could put away food like no other. My poor mother was at her wits end when I entered my teenage years and really started growing. Always said I'd eat her out of house and home and pick my teeth with the doornails."

"That seems to be rather common with teenagers... We've at least a score among us, and they do pack it away, to the extent that they're allowed, of course. I guess I wasn't much different, really."

"Eating whole chickens rather than just half, were you?"

She giggled, shrugging lightly and brushing her hair behind her ear as she looked shyly up at him, watching his golden eyes roam over her form, biting her lip as he brought them back up to meet hers and locked her in a meaningful stare. How could he not have noticed her curves until now? The swell of her breasts under the simple cotton tunic she wore, the sway of her hips as she walked beside him, hurrying to the nearest dark alcove, used to store the barrels of wine before they'd been brought out, where they'd have a little privacy...

And oh, did she taste divine, pushing up onto her toes to meet his kiss, wrapping her arms around his shoulders as he walked her backward until she was against the far wall. She was clearly inexperienced, but followed his lead until he finally broke away to kiss along her jawline, eliciting a soft whimper. He soon began to make his way down to her neck, feeling her pulse pounding under his lips until she suddenly seized with a gasp, pulling away from him and turning her head to protect her throat. 

Whoops. "Shhh..." he soothed. "Easy, Stella... I won't harm you..."

Still nervous and flighty, Stella swallowed hard, refusing to let him return to his prior occupation. "We really shouldn't be doing this," she whispered.

"I know," he grinned as he turned his head to nuzzle into her hair, the mischief in his voice plain as day. "That just makes it extra fun."

She honestly couldn't deny the truth in his words. It was fun. Sure, she'd fumbled clumsily around with a few men, but she never expected to be fumbling with Lord Raziel's firstborn... if you could call it fumbling. He was a ridiculously good kisser and she wanted him, had wanted him for a long time, in fact. This was a dream come true for her. But could she trust a vampire to not sink his fangs into her throat, even if he didn't mean to? She had no idea how strong their predatory instincts were... what if he lost control?

"You needn't fear me," he said, gazing down at her, seeming to know which direction her thoughts had taken. "I promise I know how to manage my natural weapons."

Another gulp. "Are you... do you want to... are we going to...?"

That was when reality came crashing back, and he realized that this could go no further no matter how badly he wanted to drop to his knees, tell her she had to stay quiet so no one would hear, pull her breeches down just far enough to be able to move her underwear to the side...

God dammit.

"Regrettably, I've been forbidden from taking servants to bed, no matter how badly I want to make you come right now," he murmured into the spot just under her ear, her soft "Oh, fuck..." thrilling him to his core. She clearly hadn't been expecting to hear anything like that. 

"...Do we need to be in bed for that?" she asked after one or two heavy breaths, and he promptly pulled back, his eyes dropping downward as he wrestled with himself for several long moments. He really shouldn't; kissing her was one thing but going down on her was honestly only one step below bedding her. But she was so eager, and he was so pent up with need himself...

Ah, fuck it. He'd be remiss if he were to leave her wet and wanting, right? He didn't need much room to work, but he did need to disrobe her at least partially if he was going to get his mouth where both of them clearly wanted it. Best to check if the coast was clear. 

Unfortunately, It was not. 

He glanced over his shoulder only to find Amalia standing just outside staring at him... with a small chalice of wine in her hand. There was a beat of silence as she glanced wide-eyed down at the chalice and then back up to his eyes, and then she quickly slunk past the alcove. With his cock half hard and guilt suddenly seizing him for so flippantly toeing the line of outright disobedience to his sire, Tantallon didn't know whether he wanted to kiss her or kick her for interrupting. With a sigh of frustration, he kissed Stella on the temple by way of apology and left her to go and catch up to his wayward charge. Fortunately, she hadn't seemed to notice that he'd had a servant pinned against the wall in there. He wasn't feeling quite guilty enough to actually fess up to what he'd been doing, after all.

She had ditched the cup by time he got to her, and he quickly cut her off and stood glaring down at her with arms crossed. "What?" she demanded. "It wasn't even my cup, I swiped a nearly empty one from someone as I walked past their spot at the table. There was like, two sips in it."

He rolled his eyes. "Come on, it's time to go anyway. The party is clearly winding down and everyone is starting to pass out drunk."

Upon their return, the first thing Raziel did was to ask them if they'd behaved themselves, earning himself a scowl from Amalia for not at least asking if they'd had fun before interrogating them as to their conduct. At least she could rely on Tantallon not to squeal on her since she obviously had dirt on him as well, having seen exactly what he was up to with whoever he had against that wall.

Unfortunately for her, Tantallon was entirely ignorant of what she knew and wasn't about to lie to his sire. "She had a few sips of wine," he responded without missing a beat.

Amalia rounded on him, throwing her hands up in a clear 'What the fuck, dude?' gesture. He watched her expression morph from outraged shock to determined spite, and had just enough time for realization to become regret before she turned right back to Raziel and pointed at him.

"He kissed a servant!"

Fuck! She'd apparently seen him after all, and now they were both in trouble. "Petty," he growled out the side of his mouth as Raziel dropped his face into his palm.

"Hey, you swung first, pal."

"Both of you shut your mouths!" Raziel snapped. "Upstairs, now."

Tantallon had been through this routine before, though not for a while. He really would never disobey Raziel in a way that was truly serious, but he had long since gotten crafty enough to hide the sort of mischief he'd engaged in tonight... until he'd underestimated Amalia, of course. He glowered at her as he began to strip down, pausing when she only blinked at him instead of following suit. "First time?" he asked, though he knew perfectly well that it was. She watched Raziel reach between bed and table, her expression growing somewhat concerned. 

"I'm not sure what makes you think you get to keep your clothes on during this," Raziel stated, brandishing the crop.

"You've got to be kidding me," she scoffed, crossing her arms. Surely he wasn't actually about to-

"Undress, Amalia. I'll not tell you again."

*  *  *

The threat in his tone made everything real, and it finally sank in that she was actually about to be punished for her misbehavior. Fear rippled down her spine, thoroughly quashing her flippant attitude toward the whole ordeal. She immediately disrobed and joined Tantallon where he was sulkily bent across the edge of the bed with his head resting on his folded arms, her frightened eyes seeking his. He was still feeling a bit resentful toward her, however, and had little sympathy. As far as he was concerned, being able to witness her correction made having to endure one of his own quite worth the trouble, particularly if he was getting a riding crop rather than one of Raziel's thick leather belts. He broke eye contact and stared straight ahead, wondering whether the lecture or the crop would be worse. Probably the lecture, he figured. A few swats with a crop would be little more than symbolic, as far as corrective thrashings go.

Amalia couldn't bear the anticipation for long. She slid down off the bed to huddle next to it, cringing and protecting her behind. "I'm sorry," she squeaked.

Raziel's eyes softened a bit as he stared down at her. "I know you are," he replied. "I can see the regret in your eyes, now that you've come face to face with the fact that I wasn't joking earlier. That does not exempt you from punishment, however. You were warned. That you chose not to believe me is your own mistake. Now, back across the bed," he ordered, nodding toward it.

Amalia did as she was told, but by now was absolutely terrified. She was certain this had been done to her before, but the sight of the crop wasn't triggering any memories and she had no way of knowing how badly it would hurt. When Tantallon glanced over, he was surprised to see that she'd begun to cry. It was enough to make him forget his ire, and he reached over to lay his talons on her arm. "Hey," he urged, "It won't be so bad; it's just a riding crop."

"How would I know?"

Then it occurred to him that this wasn't just her first time being punished by Raziel. Without any memories to access it might as well have been her first time being punished at all. No wonder she was frightened. "You just have to breathe through it. It'll be over soon."

Raziel took a moment to soothe her, running his talons down her spine and briefly carding them through her hair. "You will survive this, my love," he said, his voice gentle. "And you will make better choices in the future." It actually helped calm her quite a bit, and after a deep, shuddering breath she settled down against the bed to wait.

*  *  *

"Now... the two of you were both commanded to refrain from certain activities while attending the feast. Did either of you obey those commands?"

"No," they both sighed. Tantallon wanted to point out that he'd been forbidden from fucking the servants, that nothing had been said about him kissing anybody, but he knew better than to present such a pathetically weak argument in his own defense.

"Do you suppose my orders come of ill will? Do you think I make rules to be vindictive?"

"No," they replied, rather sullenly.

"That is correct," Raziel replied, pacing behind them, slapping his palm with the crop. "Tantallon, you have countless options if you want to get your cock wet. You are physically attractive and your position as the firstborn fledgling of Kain's firstborn fledgling grants you both wealth and status. Women have always fallen all over one another to get your attention. You want to risk things getting complicated? Fine. Go and seek out literally anyone who isn't a human servant, and when you've got a hundred lovestruck vampire women pining after you and can't get a moment's peace anywhere you go, it can be your problem. Your arms-length relationship with the staff works quite well for us and the last thing we need is the drama of a bunch of servants feeling like jilted lovers. Besides that, there was alcohol being served. How long could you possibly have been there before all the women were too drunk to give any meaningful sort of consent toward fucking like a couple of rabbits in springtime? Do you think my command to you tonight unreasonable?"

"No," Tantallon sighed again, sounding even more sullen. Stella certainly hadn't been drunk, or he'd never have touched her. She'd been too busy making eye babies with him half the night to pay much attention to the alcohol, apparently.

"As for you, Amalia, you were given one restriction as well. One. You know why I did not want you to drink at the feast. Have you forgotten that we've got a spell-addled, murderous Zephon on our hands? Did it slip your mind that he had a spy here listening to everything the servants say? We've already had one close call; we do not need the details of your former life spilled to all four corners of Nosgoth in a drunken ramble, to say nothing of our marriage. You can't help but run your mouth constantly even when dead sober, do you think I'm going to risk you running it drunk?"

*  *  *

"I only had a few sips," she said feebly. "I knew I couldn't get drunk from just a few sips..."

This was a mistake, of course. Tantallon had just enough time to make a cutting gesture across his throat and mouth "No!" in silent warning at her before wincing as she cried out at the sharp sting of the crop across her backside. Ah, well. He'd had to learn it was better to keep his mouth shut the same way.

"That is not the point," Raziel stated. "The point is, I am the one who sets and enforces rules which are fair and reasonable, and you are the one who follows those rules without question, knowing that they are fair and reasonable and that you need only trust in my guidance. You don't have to think through these events, Amalia. You don't have to navigate them. It begins and ends with whatever rule applies to your current situation. Follow it. It's as simple as that. Do you think my command to you tonight unreasonable?"

"No..."

"Are you going to even bring reason into it the next time you're faced with a choice between trusting in my directives or disregarding them?"

"No..."

"Good. Let us hope this unpleasant business cements that intention."

"Sire," said Tantallon, turning to give Raziel a pleading look before he could get started. "Let me take her punishment. She's clearly learned her lesson, and I ought to have watched her more closely anyway... please?"

"A gallant sentiment," Raziel replied, "But you know it doesn't work that way."

"It's okay, Tantallon... I earned this just as much as you did. I already feel bad and getting away with it would only make me feel worse."

"Yeah," he sighed unhappily, understanding precisely what she meant. "I know..."

"I'm sorry I told on you," she whispered right before the crop landed. He grit his teeth but otherwise did not react, having grown accustomed to far harsher implements of discipline. 

All in all, they both got three on each side for a total of six. Amalia began crying in earnest after the fifth landed even though he'd gone rather light on her, so he gave her one more to drive the lesson home and considered the matter closed. 

"It's okay, Amalia," Tantallon soothed, still resting on the bed, propped on his elbows. "I cried the first time, too. The pain will soon fade."

"Easy for you to say, Mister Immortal," she sniped from the floor behind him, wiping her eyes with one hand while rubbing her sore ass with the other. She could see from where she was that Tantallon's welts had already disappeared, whereas hers were still burning and likely would be for several hours. For all her sulking, however, it really hadn't been as bad as she'd expected; her tears stemmed solely from guilt at the fact that Raziel was having to do exactly what he said he didn't want to because of a choice she'd made.

"You're done, Amalia, and you may put on one of your gowns if you like. All is forgiven," said Raziel, nodding toward the door once she'd pulled one on. "Go on downstairs and lie down on the couch. Lorrelin should already be here; she'll look after you until I'm finished with Tantallon."

Wait, what? Alarmed, Tantallon craned his neck around only to see Raziel reaching for one of the belts he had hanging on hooks on the side of the middle wardrobe. "Oh, bollocks," he groused, sulkily flopping back onto his belly upon the bed. Up until now, he'd quite frankly considered his little tryst with Stella an experience worthy of the price he was paying. That was no longer the case.

"You didn't really think you were getting off that easily, did you?"

Suppressing the urge to glower over his shoulder at his sire, he dropped his chin back down onto his arms and glared straight forward in sullen silence, moodily awaiting his fate. 

*  *  *

Lorrelin was waiting with a bowl of cold water and a cloth when Amalia emerged from the staircase.

"Come on, love, let's get those welts seen to," she said, pointing to the couch before kneeling on the floor with the bowl.

"You knew?"

"I was walking down the hall to the bedchamber when I heard the unmistakable sound of a crop landing and the subsequent cry of pain, so yes, I was quite aware that you two had somehow got yourselves into trouble after I'd left the feast. Frankly, I'm more than happy to see Tantallon getting it for once, the spoiled brat."

Amalia sulkily dropped onto her belly upon the couch as Lorrelin wrung the cloth out and lifted her gown. She didn't want to betray Tantallon again by telling anyone else what he had been up to, so she simply lay there as the cold compress was laid on her behind.

"Raziel was careful not to allow the crop to contact your nethers, I trust," Lorrelin said, using her hands to spread her just enough that she could see everything clearly, causing her to jump. "Shh, it's all right," Lorrelin soothed, satisfied that she'd suffered no injury to any parts that shouldn't have been struck. "It's nothing I haven't seen before, love."

Amalia wasn't particularly embarrassed to be inspected this way, not by Lorrelin at least; it had simply caught her off guard. "Just wasn't expecting it," she mumbled with a shrug. At least the cold cloth was chasing away the pain. "I take it you won't be doing this for Tantallon, then? Pretty sure he's getting it a lot worse than I did."

"As I said, Amalia, Tantallon had it coming and I have little sympathy. He's a vampire; he'll be good as new by time he comes down the stairs."

"Well I'll do it if he does need it, if you won't," she grumbled. "I don't know why you two dislike each other so much."

"He threw me down and bit my shoulder to the bone for sassing him shortly after I was promoted, for one. Raziel had to use two vials of potion to completely heal the wounds. He gets physical with me on a regular basis, but he's never attacked me as savagely as all that; in fact he's not drawn blood even once. Tantallon ought to have got the belt for it, but Raziel lets him get away with damn near everything."

"I didn't get away with this one, if it makes you feel any better," Tantallon mumbled as he stepped into the parlor, scrubbing at his eyes and looking every bit as sulky as Amalia. Raziel had apparently not held back.

"What'd you do to earn it? Must have been something bad if he's actually raised some welts on your hind end for once," Lorrelin growled, picking up the bowl and cloth as she stood and taking them with her as she walked to the other staircase to stay out of his reach.

"I kissed one of the servant girls," he replied smugly, watching with satisfaction as her scornful expression turned to pure outrage.

"Which servant girl?" Lorrelin hissed through clenched teeth.

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Well I hope it was worth it!" was all Lorrelin said before storming up the stairs.

"Was it?" asked Amalia once she was gone.

"Nope," he replied as he gingerly knelt down to sit on his heels. "Still hurts, and I lay there crying for a few minutes after."

"It was that bad? God, Tantallon, I'm sorry; I wish I'd have kept my mouth shut."

"Hey, fair is fair. I know you must have felt betrayed when I told him. I just can't lie to him... I hope you understand."

"Yeah, I do, which is why I feel so shitty about it. You did it out of duty; I did it out of pure spite, like I apparently do everything."

"At least we both had fun at the feast," he shrugged, reaching over to briefly run his fingers over the welts on her ass in an attempt to soothe the pain before finally tugging her gown back down to cover them. "Saw you dancing with Vance... if you could call that dancing."

"It was dancing, dickbag," she sniped. "It's called swing dancing. I took some classes a while back and suddenly remembered the steps to one of the dances I learned. Vance was way too drunk to get it, though."

"So I saw," he chuckled. "But I was really paying far more attention to his sister."

Amalia's head popped up off the couch. "Oh shit, that was Stella you had in there?" she laughed.

"Yes indeed. I am very much wishing she weren't a servant right now, because I desperately want to fuck her."

"That sucks," she replied, still laughing. "I'd offer, but I'm really not much in the mood, as you can imagine."

"It's alright, little human," said Tantallon, stroking his hand down her back. "Come, shall we go to the library cubby and read a while?"

"Might as well. Not like I need to sleep off any booze," she replied, hauling herself upright and taking his hand.

"Maybe someday you can teach me that silly dance," he commented as he led her out of the parlor.

"Yeah... that would be a lot of fun."

Chapter Text

When Lorrelin stormed into Raziel's bedchamber with a tirade already lined up and ready to be unleashed, she was surprised to find him sitting on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands.

"What's the matter with you?" she asked, huffily crossing her arms.

"I was too hard on them," he replied. "Particularly Tantallon."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, for fuck's sake. Really? That boy finally gets what's been coming to him for ages and you feel guilty about it?"

"He's a good child, Lorrelin," Raziel sighed, finally lifting his head. "You've no idea how many disasters he's headed off when I've been headed straight into them. If not for his level head-"

"Level head?" she asked, throwing her hands up. "Need I remind you of-"

"Oh, let it go already," he snapped, knowing exactly what she was referring to. "You made a tactical error in addressing him with appalling disrespect, and he corrected your behavior. Or, to phrase it the way Amalia does, you 'fucked around and found out'. Tantallon may be a bit spoiled, that I will grant. But so are you. Do you believe that your belligerence would be tolerated by any of my brothers for even a moment?"

It was a fair point, but Lorrelin wasn't about to admit it, and decided to simply change the subject. "Which servant girl did he slobber all over? He wouldn't tell me."

"I didn't ask, nor will I," he replied, causing her to groan in exasperation. "It's over and done with and the matter is closed."

"I'm honestly shocked that it's him you're feeling badly about. I'd have thought disciplining Amalia would be what got to you."

He immediately deflated, dropping his gaze to the floor. With a sigh, Lorrelin went and sat next to him. "It had to be done, my Lord. She cannot disregard your commands so flippantly because she thinks she knows better than you how to handle herself in this world."

"I know, Lorrelin. It isn't that I'm not committed to this path I've chosen to take with her, I just... she was so frightened..."

"Well, good! Perhaps next time she'll think twice before she chooses to put this entire charade at risk. She was perfectly fine once she came downstairs, if it makes you feel any better. A bit sullen, of course, but that's to be expected."

"You've always been better at doling out punishments than I am," he sighed.

That really wasn't true; the only difference between them was Lorrelin's complete and utter lack of regret afterward. "Perhaps to spare yourself the guilt you'll consider allowing me to take the next crack at Tantallon," she suggested.

He gave her a wry look. "I'd love to see you try it."

"Worth a shot," she shrugged. "Perhaps you should go find something to do that will cheer you up. Go try on some clothes or admire yourself in a mirror a while; that ought to do it."

She got nothing but side-eye in return. "Well, how about this, then?" she asked, pulling a small envelope from her apron pocket. "This is a fresh bit of juicy of gossip concerning Turel."

Raziel immediately noticed the broken wax seal and fixed her with a glare. "You opened a sealed missive and read it?"

Lorrelin's eyes darted to the side and back. "...Would you like the truth, or would you like what you want to hear?"

"This is precisely what I mean by you being just as spoiled as Tantallon! Give it here," he demanded, snatching it from her hand and continuing to glare as he unfolded the letter. His mood lifted the instant he read it. "He's got business with Dumah at the Sanctuary, has he?"

"I thought it interesting that they'd travel all the way there to meet. They're practically on one another's doorsteps, aren't they?"

"Not quite. Dumah is in the northern wilderness, but the Sanctuary is still well out of the way for both of them. My guess is that he went to seek out a biologist among Rahab's clan in preparation for his quest. I can think of no other reason why he'd want to meet there, other than that he was already down that way, and Turel probably agreed just for a shot at putting his little freak show on display again. I'm hardly interested in their dealings, however," he said with a wolfish grin. "I've got a trap to set."

He immediately abandoned Lorrelin to go and discover where his wayward fledge and bride had fled after their punishment, and was not at all surprised to find them curled up together in the library cubby. He approached and knelt in front of the opening to peer in.

"Are the two of you alright?"

Amalia squirmed forward to reach for him, and he took her hand in his own. "We're fine, yeah."

"You're not angry with me?"

Tantallon returned his gaze to his book. "Why should we be angry?" he shrugged. "We're the ones who fucked up."

Raziel breathed a small sigh of relief. "And you.. you know I still love you both, right? I should have told you before sending you down..."

"Yes," his firstborn insisted with a roll of his eyes. "Good grief, must we go through this every time?"

"I needed to be sure!"

"We're fine, Raz," said Amalia. "I promise."

"Alright, then," he replied, leaning in to ruffle his fledge's hair, earning himself an amusingly irritated growl and half-hearted swat. "I'm going to saddle my horse. I've just received word that Turel is to meet Dumah at the Sanctuary of the Clans three nights hence."

Tantallon lit up, immediately forgiving his sire for mussing his hair. "And you're going to trap his little tryst room?"

"Yes, indeed. Do me a favor. Find the biggest mirror you can while I'm away and haul it up here. I'll be back sometime around late afternoon, most likely."

"You'll be exhausted from the time in the sun, Sire."

"Indeed I will be, but it'll be well worth it. Behave while I'm gone, will you?"

Setting up the trap was easy; Raziel already had one of Turel's long black hairs in a jar in his lab just waiting for an opportunity like this. The room his brother had taken to was nothing more than a small lounge that the lieutenants used to amuse themselves playing games while waiting for Council meetings, but its position right around the corner from the entrance to the throne room meant that leaving the door open during the act would almost certainly lead to an unwilling audience. The scrying mirror on this end didn't need to be large; it was easily hidden in plain sight on a nearby shelf next to a dusty stack of board games once he'd enchanted it. He dissolved the hair in the mage's ink he'd brought along, scrawled the proper runes above the door, cast a spell to mask all traces of his scent, and promptly booked it home to wait.

The timing honestly could not have been better for Turel and Dumah's meeting. Rahab came for his brewing lesson just as Raziel finished up a combination analgesic and sedative he'd come up with for the next time Amalia needed it, and together they bottled it before moving on to the shapechanging mix, chatting all the while.

"Do you not have poppy tea for this purpose?" Rahab asked as he retrieved a box of clean vials.

"We do, but Lorrelin is the only one with the key to the lockbox and she's a pain in the ass. Amalia's menses only come once every month, but having my own supply of painkillers is still less of a hassle," replied Raziel. "Besides, I wanted to see if I could succeed with a brand new recipe on the first try. Which I did."

"I didn't realize that particular... condition... caused such intense pain. Who is Lorrelin?"

Raziel rolled his eyes. "My chamberlain, you dolt. A head shorter than me, dark brown hair and eyes?"

"Right, I forgot your chamberlain is human. Is she the one with the skittish twin brother?"

"No, that's Stella, and they're not twins; Vance is younger. You've seen them all at work a million times by now; I don't know how you still can't tell them apart."

"I don't name my servants, Raziel," shrugged Rahab. "They're not pets. I pay them no heed; if they're doing their jobs they might as well not even exist, and if they're not, I've got vampire taskmasters to sort them out."

"They name themselves," Raziel replied as he sorted through his funnels for the proper size. "And I get to know them because I need to be able to trust them. I know their names, their closest companions, their relations, and their mannerisms. Stella's actually been acting oddly despondent these last few days, but I haven't looked into it yet."

"Seems exhausting to me," Rahab commented as he began to funnel the potion into the vials.

"You're the most introverted person I know; it would be exhausting to you, I suppose."

They ended up spending more time glancing over at the oversized mirror in the lab to see if there was any action than they did actually brewing, of course. The trap finally triggered, and both of them howled with laughter as Turel flailed helplessly, screaming and scrabbling wildly to pull his wet clothing off (to no avail; it had melted to his skin). He destroyed most of the room in his desperation to escape the burning torment of the water before passing out cold on the floor, hideously disfigured. The icing on the cake was Dumah's reaction when he came to see what all the fuss was about and caught sight of the grisly scene through the door.

They sat on the couch in the parlor half an hour later, sharing a bottle of Raziel's most exquisite wine and giggling like two schoolgirls at a sleepover.

"Shame about those reagents," chuckled Rahab as he swirled his wineglass. "Allowing a cauldron to boil over like that is bit of a novice mistake, really."

"Worth it," replied Raziel, grinning ear to ear. "Those herbs are abundant and cheap. Such a perfect opportunity to make good on a threat is rare and priceless."

"Dumah's face," said Rahab as he began to laugh anew, throwing his arm over his eyes as he drunkenly leaned his head back against the couch.

"How long do you think it will take him to heal from all that?"

Rahab hummed as he swallowed another mouthful of wine, shaking his head. "With Dumah there to play nursemaid? Not long, unfortunately. He mentioned gathering supplies and no doubt cleared out every potion shop he came across on his way out of my territory, so he'd have had plenty of healing brews on hand. And he'd have eagerly pounced on the opportunity to have Turel owing him a favor. He'll have already walked out of the Sanctuary on his own two feet by now, no doubt. Not that he'll get far, as ominous as the clouds on the horizon were looking when I reached your gates at dusk."

"Yes, indeed. By now the air is thick with the smell of far-off rain; it'll fall by mid-morning, no doubt. He'd better turn right back around and return to his chambers there, unless he fancies another drenching. That enormous horse of his is quick for his size, but he'll still never make it back to his stronghold fast enough to avoid the storm," Raziel observed with smug satisfaction. "I wonder where his female companion was during all this?"

"Clearly there wasn't a companion; she'd never have just cut and run for fear of later reprisals. Lecherous beast that he is, he probably just went in there to stand in the doorway and wank himself until someone came along," said Rahab, animatedly emphasizing the accusation with some bawdy pantomiming.

This got them both laughing again, and by time the wine was finished and the fire had died, Rahab was lying in his brother's arms with his head resting on his chest, softly purring every time Raziel adjusted his hold on him and happier than he'd been in months. The camaraderie, the shared wine and laughter, the physical affection... he'd needed it all for a very long time.

It couldn't last, of course. After napping off the wine for a couple of hours, Raziel nudged his dozing brother to rouse him and began the process of untangling himself from their embrace. "I really ought to run into town to replace the ingredients we ruined. We've got more than enough time to sober the rest of the way up and continue our work, if you're willing."

Given the choice of sobering up here with his brother and sobering up on the way home with no one but his horse for company, Rahab agreed readily to returning to the lab. "Why not send Tantallon after them?"

"I haven't seen Tantallon since shortly before this past dawn; no doubt he's off dipping his wick somewhere," replied Raziel as he strode to the entrance. "His loss, really. He knew perfectly well what we had planned for tonight." He briefly considered making Amalia go with him, but didn't want to bring her downstairs past Rahab and didn't intend to be gone long anyway. Better to let her sleep another hour than risk drawing her ire by waking her and dragging her into public.

Once he'd seen his brother to the door, Rahab turned back toward the parlor. "You're really not very sneaky, Amalia," he called up the stairs to where she was lurking, no doubt listening in on their conversation and waiting for him to leave before coming down. "I'm not angry with you for the other day, you know. I never was. There's no need to hide from me." He paused outside the lab a moment to see if she'd come down and engage, then shrugged off the lack of response and disappeared through the door. 

Amalia glowered down the stairs, irate at being discovered so easily when she'd put considerable effort into remaining hidden until he was gone. Well, whatever. He would almost certainly become engrossed with whatever he was up to in there, and she was freezing. The temperature outside had dropped, the thick curtains that hung from the bedroom windows were no use in keeping out the chilly wind that had kicked up, and without kindling or magic she was incapable of lighting the stupid fireplace up there. Vance had mentioned something yesterday about changing the bedding out for something more appropriate for colder weather soon, but no one had done it yet, and the clothes she had thus far were not well suited for lower temperatures either. Her irritation only grew when she discovered nothing but embers in the hearth downstairs... but it was better than nothing. She stirred them up with the nearby poker and sat huddled on the warm stones. 

A blood curdling scream sounded from just outside a fraction of a second before the doors slammed open, startling Amalia practically out of her wits and causing her to jump to her feet with a shout. Her eyes widened in horror as she looked upon the bloodied vampire who was stepping over a dead guard to fill the doorframe. He was huge, easily a head taller than Raziel with tapered ears twice as long, and had nearly knocked one door clear off its hinges when he burst through it. There was only one vampire that Raziel had mentioned to her who fit his description. This could only be Turel... and he looked pissed.

Amalia was frozen in fear. She wanted so badly to run, to hide, but couldn't make herself move. Deep down, she knew it didn't matter anyway... there was no escape to be had. She was going to die. She was going to die, and Raziel would be left alone to grieve her devastating loss.

Turel seemed to realize who she was immediately. "Where is your master, pet? Off devising another trap for his own kin using human magic, perhaps?" he asked, taking a step toward her. She could only whimper in response. She didn't know when Raziel would be back with the ingredients he'd left to find. Unfortunately for her, it looked like he wouldn't be back soon enough, even if the wards had alerted him to a break-in. Turel had already killed at least one guard; and judging by the superficial wounds covering his body had probably fought through more than a dozen to get up here. Why, oh why, did her husband have to provoke his brother the way he had?

He lunged for her, and she screamed as he took hold of her arm, dragged her straight over the couch, and hauled her up high enough that her toes barely touched the ground. Pain tore through her shoulder like a bolt of lightning as he shook her roughly, lifting her higher, tilting his head with fangs bared, preparing to strike at her throat.

Several things happened all at once, then. Some sort of impact suddenly knocked Turel off balance, and he roared as he staggered to the side, dragging Amalia with him a few feet before she slipped from his grasp. Furious, he slashed wildly at her torso before rearing up to scrabble at the vampire who had come to her rescue.

Rahab was clinging to his monstrous brother's back, claws and fangs sunk deep into his flesh, hanging on for dear life as Turel tore at him with his own claws in an attempt to dislodge him. In a flash he was thrown to the ground, and he quickly abandoned his attack and leapt toward Amalia, yanking her well out of range of the vicious fight that was suddenly raging before her eyes. Turel was the one in danger now... because Rahab wasn't the only one here.

In truth, there were several different spells that Raziel could have chosen from to simply pin Turel to the wall or ground until more guards arrived to haul him off to the dungeon. He was easily that powerful, and was quite adept at sorcery. But he was furious; furious that Turel had spent so many years and so much energy nursing his bitterness and hatred toward him, furious that he'd somehow gained access to his home, and furious that he had the fucking audacity to lay hands on his beloved. He was going to make Turel pay for this, and he was going to do it with bare claw and fang. 

But Turel was strong. Superior in both size and weight, he had a large advantage over his brother in terms of brute strength, and the element of surprise could only get Raziel so far. They tumbled, tearing savagely at one another, biting and slashing with both talon and hoof, the terrifying sound of their battle reminiscent of two tigers fighting to the death. Turel quickly regained the advantage, and Raziel soon found himself pinned to the ground, wounded in a dozen places.

Well, it was a nice thought, anyway. Raziel managed to grit out an incantation just before Turel could twist his head and snap his neck, and his brother was thrown instantly backward, straight out the doors of his quarters. Now it was more or less a wizard's duel, and what Raziel lacked in size compared to Turel he more than made up for in terms of magical prowess. The wounds he had sustained slowed in their healing as he fired off an onslaught of destructive energy, launching spell after spell at his brother until Turel's reserves were spent from defending against them. He was finally thrown clear into the wall, cracking his skull against it and falling dazed to the floor just as a haggard looking Dumah and a very frightened Tantallon rushed down the corridor, skirted the entire mess, and ran to Rahab's side. Raziel was on his brother in a flash, and Turel soon lay gurgling and clutching at his torn throat.

Raziel staggered backward as Amalia cowered behind the three vampires, watching as her husband fell to one knee and pointed an accusing talon at Turel, not yet realizing just how badly injured she was.

"You live only because my loyalty to our master outweighs my desire to see your head on a pike outside my gates!" he snarled as Tantallon rushed forward to help him to his feet. Amalia tried to follow him, only for Rahab to reach around her middle and haul her back, gasping as he glanced downward to see bright red blood flowing over his talons.

Turel, of course, could not respond, but his eyes blazed hatred at Raziel in the instant before he lapsed into unconsciousness for the second time that night. "Drag his sorry carcass outside the gates," Raziel barked to the surviving guards, "and dump him out in the open. If he's still comatose when the rain comes, then that is his own problem. We will discuss your failure to keep him out of here soon enough!"

Dumah stepped forward, covered in wounds himself and fighting to regain his breath. "I'm sorry, Raziel, I tried to stop him, I swear!" he implored. "If he'd have stopped for a fair fight I may have bested him, but he kept spurring his horse until it dropped dead and then charged ahead on foot! I tried reasoning with him when I finally caught up to him, I leapt upon him when that failed, but he just threw me off and kept going! Why would you trap the lounge like that?! You must have known-"

"Because we're all tired of his perversion and it was high time he saw some consequences! Now get out!"

The instant Rahab realized that Amalia had been wounded, he picked her up bridal style and hauled her straight to Raziel's lab. Once he'd laid her on the table, he tore through her gown and threw the scraps aside to reveal the horrible claw wounds that were sure to kill her if he didn't act fast to stop her from bleeding out. Rushing to the potion shelf, he grabbed as many vials of the healing brew as he could fit in his slender talons and piled them onto the table, uncorking them one by one and pouring them into her wounds, watching closely as the damaged internal organs were repaired, guiding the edges of torn abdominal muscles into place with his talons as they knitted, and finally running to the ingredient shelf to retrieve a flask of pure distilled alcohol to splash into the wounds before her skin could close up completely. She screamed as the liquid hit her, and Rahab had to throw himself upon her to stop her thrashing her way right off the table in an attempt to escape the pain.

"You're alright, Amalia. You're alright. This isn't going to kill you. You must endure the pain," he soothed, speaking slowly and deliberately, falling back out of habit on words he'd spoken a thousand times to calm his clan's young fledglings as they cried while suffering the agony of their first major injury on the battlefield. "Pain strengthens us, driving our weakness from us, eroding it away just as the waves upon the shore pummel stones into countless grains of sand. This opportunity to endure is a gift which elevates you far beyond what you were. You will rise from this place where you have fallen and stand tall alongside your kin, a proud warrior of the Rahabim-"

"Amalia!" Raziel cried as he burst through the door. Heedless of all else, Raziel rushed to Amalia's side, shoving Rahab to the side and pulling her into his arms while she grit her teeth as the searing pain of alcohol applied to open wounds gave way to the furious itching of potion-restored flesh. "Are you alright, my love?"

"I think... I think so, yeah," she said faintly, turning her face into the warmth of his hand as he laid it on her cheek only to promptly jerk it away when she realized he'd just smeared vampire blood up the side of her head.

"Forgive me, my bride... I'm sorry, Dumah was right, I should have known he would be furious..."

Tantallon had first directed the nearest servant to retrieve blood to help Dumah's wounds heal before struggling a moment to get the outer doors to close properly. It was all in vain; they would need repairs to the hinges. He finally abandoned his efforts and made a beeline for the lab instead, ducking through the door and joining Raziel at Amalia's side. Looking at the talon shaped bruises that were forming on her forearm, he took hold of it and gingerly prodded it in a few places, then lifted it until she winced. "Ahhh, yeah, that hurts," she said in a rush, hissing in pain. "A lot."

"The bones in her forearm weren't crushed like I feared, but I think her arm may be dislocated, Sire," Tantallon said, helping Amalia to sit up as Raziel released her. "He must have yanked it clear out of its socket. We should..."

It seemed as if everyone suddenly remembered Rahab's presence all at once. He was standing slack-jawed a few feet away, still dripping blood as his own wounds closed, his blue eyes shifting between Raziel and Amalia. "Raziel...?" he breathed, looking extremely disturbed. It was then that Raziel realized his mistake. Now, it was out. Now, his brother knew.

It was incredible how quickly Raziel could move, even when badly injured. He lunged for Rahab the instant he'd realized what he'd accidentally revealed to him and promptly dragged him out of the lab, pinning him to the stones in front of the hearth and holding his head near the smoldering embers of the fire. 

"You will not breathe a word of this," he hissed. "Not a single word. You are the only other vampire who knows besides Tantallon, and we both know that he will not betray me. If it gets out," he snarled, angling Rahab's face closer to the coals, "I'll know it was you."

"Yes, Raziel, yes! Please! I swear it, I won't tell a soul! Please!" he pleaded.

"How did Turel get in here?" Raziel demanded.

"I don't know, I swear! I was here in the lab waiting for you to return, you know that!" Rahab cried, his usually deep voice shrill with fear. "I stopped him, Raziel! I stopped him!" He was hysterical, terrified beyond belief, and could only hope that the fact that he had been the first to attack Turel would save him from having his face burned to a crisp in his brother's fireplace.

"Did you? Because as far as I can tell," he snarled, slamming Rahab's head against the stones of the hearth, "He nearly killed her!"

"And I saved her! She'd have bled out right there in the parlor if I hadn't hauled her to the lab and dumped your entire stock of healing potions into her wounds! Please, Raziel, please, just let me go!"

Amalia had stumbled out of the lab behind them and had seen the entire display. Despite herself, she was beginning to feel sorry for Rahab. Regardless of her dislike of him, the ferocity of Raziel's attack seemed a bit over the top, and it wasn't as if he were lying. He did attack Turel of his own volition and free her from his grasp, and he had been the one to save her life after their brother tore her open. She went and dropped to her knees next to where Raziel had his terrified brother pinned, shaking his shoulder with her good hand. "Raziel, come on... that's enough! Stop!"

To her astonishment, Rahab bared his teeth at her. "Release my brother from your spell, witch, and begone!"

Her sympathy evaporated in an instant, and her concerned expression promptly turned flat as she stood. "Nevermind. Kill him." 

"No, Sire! Enough! Let him up, please! Stop hurting him!" Tantallon begged, incredibly distraught at having witnessed such a vicious altercation between the two of them. Fortunately for Rahab, the worst of his brother's rage had abated, and he let go and stood glaring down at him. Rahab did not dare get up; he rolled to his side and pushed himself into a huddled sitting position at Raziel's feet with his throat bared in submission as Tantallon dropped to the floor next to him and hugged him.

"Please, Sire," he pleaded, hoping to prevent any further violence. "Amalia is still hurt... We need to reset her arm in its joint and one of us has to hold her."

Raziel finally turned away and Rahab soon began to recover from the attack, though he remained on the floor while they went about the unpleasant task of putting Amalia's shoulder back where it belonged. "How long, Raziel?" he asked, still dumbfounded that his proud elder brother had fallen in love with, and apparently married, a human.

"Not that it's any concern of yours," Raziel growled as he took hold of his whimpering bride to keep her still. "But more or less since Kain gave her to me; she was never a pet at all. She's not a witch, you imbecile, you know she has no magical capabilities! You're covered in her blood; taste it if you don't believe me!"

"You've been putting on an act to hide your shameful affair this entire time?!"

"What the hell else was I supposed to do?" 

Rahab only shook his head. "The Master has to know, Raziel. I will not tell him," he added quickly, "But he is going to find out eventually. It will be easier on you if you don't try to hide it."

Amalia cried out in pain and began to sob as Tantallon forced her shoulder back into its place. "It's all right, cyar'ika, it's done and over with," Raziel soothed, ignoring his brother for the moment as he stroked her hair. "We'll get you something for the pain and take you upstairs to rest."

Rahab curled his lip in disgust. "For god's sake, brother. She is a human," he said.

"I know what she is, Rahab!" Raziel barked. "Do you think I had any control over this? Do you not remember what stole over you after you'd turned Lenore and spent but a single day in her company?"

Rahab looked pained for a moment. "I remember it all too well," he said quietly. "What I do not remember is ever seeing you fall in love with anyone!" he sneered. "Save for perhaps your own reflection in a mirror!"

"Your memory has clearly failed you after these long centuries," Raziel spat. "It's happened before, even if it's only happened once. Kain grew tired of it, and I grew wary of letting it happen again. And then there she was, truly unique among her kind, singing a song unlike any I'd ever heard... How could I possibly have resisted? I didn't ask for this!"

Rahab shook his head again. "The Master is going to find out."

"Rahab, will you just let the matter rest?" Raziel snapped, his voice rising. "The Master watched it happen! He was there, he saw everything. Seeing as he then slipped silently out the door and left us to it, I can only assume that for whatever reason, he approves."

Rahab slowly got to his feet, though he eyed Raziel warily and kept his distance. "What happened to that haughty pride of yours? Why didn't you just turn her the instant you realized what had happened? Why continue to debase yourself with a... a lower life form like this?"

Amalia was gritting her teeth as Tantallon helped her move her arm around to stop it immediately getting stiff. "Hey, fuck you, asshole!" she shrieked at Rahab, still in significant pain and well beyond the limit of her ability to control her temper. "I've had just about enough of your shit!"

Rahab bared his teeth at her, shocked and outraged. But Amalia was done being scared for the day, and she took a step forward, baring her own teeth right back at him. "Yeah, not so skittish now, am I?"

"Enough, Amalia!" Raziel snapped. "Regardless of your sentiment toward him, he is one of Kain's own and you will not speak to him that way!" He turned back to Rahab, who was puffed up with affront and glaring daggers at his bride. He'd noticed little things about her demeanor that hinted at an underlying willfulness lurking just beneath the surface; subtle shifts in her expression and tone, her response to being called a biter, and then there was the way she responded when he'd asked her the other day about the tags on her clothing. He had forgotten it entirely until now, but looking back, it was clearly an example of the mask slipping. How could he have been so blind?

"I have not turned her because I was expressly forbidden by Kain to do so," said Raziel. "And as far as my pride goes, I am proud enough not to give one single fuck what any of you thinks about who I love. The only reason I've kept it secret at all is to keep her safe and avoid Kain's wrath when he returns to find us all at war with one another. If I had my way, dear brother, I'd flaunt it in every single one of your faces, all day and every day, because I do whatever the fuck I want to."

"And what do you plan to do, Raziel, when your mortal bride inevitably grows old and dies?" he asked, beginning to edge toward the door. "Should I expect to find you crawling into my bed in the middle of the day, wracked with grief and nearly incoherent, the way I did yours when Lenore was taken from me? It's not a favor I ever hoped to have to return!"

"I don't have time to worry about her dying of old age, Rahab, because I am currently too busy worrying about how likely she is to even reach it so long as she remains here," he spat. "Tantallon, see to Amalia's pain, clean her up, and put her to bed. She needs to rest. Rahab, get away from that door. You're not going anywhere until I figure out what to do about this mess."

The adrenaline was rapidly wearing off, and Amalia was finding it more and more difficult to remain upright as Tantallon ducked into the lab to retrieve what he needed to get her back in shape. She downed the painkilling concoction that Raziel had made for her the instant Tantallon handed it over, and the immediate dizziness it induced did not help matters in the slightest. Realizing that she was going to fade fast as the potion took effect, Tantallon swept her up into his arms and carried her straight up the stairs as Raziel suddenly began to feel the weight of his own exhaustion. Even his minor wounds hadn't completely healed yet, and the worst of them were only barely beginning to knit. With a growl of frustration, he yanked off his ruined shirt and followed Tantallon up to their bedchamber with his brother in his wake. 

Amalia was barely conscious as Tantallon set her down and unwound the simple cloth binding she wore around her breasts when at home lounging in one of her nightgowns. She sank to the floor, unwilling to expend any more energy trying to stay on her feet. "These need to come off, too, Amalia," he said gently, reaching for the band to her underwear. "They're soaked with blood, and your skin is caked with it. We can't haul you down to the baths like this, I'll have to bathe you here with what we have." By time he even finished the sentence, she'd passed out completely, and he sighed as he gently laid her out on the rug so he could tug her underwear down her legs. It was just as well, really, because being bathed with alcohol would have caused a rather unpleasant chill were she still awake.

"Don't look at her, Rahab," Raziel growled as he strode through the door, reaching for his robe and using it to block his brother's view of his bride.

"It's nothing I haven't seen before, Raziel," Rahab said with a roll of his eyes. "I'm no blushing virgin; I know what a naked woman looks like."

"I don't care what you know; you're the last person she'd want seeing her completely unclothed, so keep your eyes off her."

"The dislike is quite mutual, at this point," he muttered.

Tantallon suddenly froze as he lifted the bloodied cloth off Amalia's scars. "Rahab..." he began. "Please tell me you used this on the wounds before they closed."

"I didn't have time to do a very good job of it, but yes, plenty of alcohol made it into her wounds before they sealed over. She should be fine," replied Rahab, to Tantallon's immense relief.

"It must have hurt her terribly," Raziel sighed, shaking his head.

"It did, as a matter of fact," Rahab replied, with great satisfaction. He regretted every word he'd wasted trying to soothe her during the process, and the only thing stopping him from wishing he'd simply let her die was the knowledge that Raziel would then spend the rest of his life suffering the way he did. It didn't matter how angry he was with his brother, he would never wish such pain on him.

"Sire, why don't you finish this up while I go and fetch you and Rahab a meal? You both must be in great pain yourselves," said Tantallon, pushing the cloth into his sire's talons as he stood.

"Cold," Amalia mumbled, beginning to wake again as the rapid evaporation of the alcohol caused her to shiver.

Raziel immediately brought the fire roaring to life with a wave of his hand. "I know, my love. It's just to get the worst of it off. We'll get you a proper bath with hot water once you've had some rest."

"Are you okay? Why aren't you healing?" she asked, eyeing his wounds.

"I will be soon, darling. My healing is only slowed because I spent so much energy hurling spells at Turel. I knew he'd tire from defending before I tired from casting," he replied as he finished picking the last remains of dried blood out of her hair before swiping the cloth over her locks. His task finished, he draped the robe over her and moved to lift her.

"Pull the covers back so I can lay her down, Rahab," he ordered, stepping to the side as his brother grudgingly did as he was told.

"Now what?" he asked, hoping that Raziel would have changed his mind about allowing him to leave.

"Now I look after her and watch for signs of infection," he replied, arranging her on the sheets and pulling the covers over her. "The scars will continue to pain her and itch until they disappear, but so long as nothing dangerous lies under them she'll pull through having only endured a bit of misery."

"Well, she certainly looks miserable," Rahab replied, though his tone was more one of satisfaction than sympathy.

Amalia squeezed her eyes shut as Tantallon slipped back through the door with two entire pitchers of blood, which he didn't even bother pouring into a chalice or goblet. He handed them off and went to sit on the edge of the bed as Raziel and Rahab started guzzling it down. She began to drift in and out of consciousness as the vampires discussed Turel's attack and what to do about it. She really wanted to complain about the fact that Rahab was still hanging around, but simply didn't have enough energy left to do it. Talons were soon carding through her hair, but she had no idea whose they were and couldn't bring herself to care. The pain had faded thanks to the potion, and all there was left to do was sleep.

The weight of what had just happened between him and Raziel soon began to overwhelm Rahab, and he wordlessly slipped out the door, headed for the library cubby. He was full on sobbing by time he crawled into it. Things had been so good, so perfect earlier this evening. He'd put himself in great danger by attacking Turel and saved Amalia's life only to be thrashed and threatened because of a horrible secret Raziel and Tantallon had been keeping from him this entire time. Had they so little faith in him? Did they really believe, even now, that he would betray them? They'd both been lying to him for weeks... he could hardly bear it.

He wouldn't be continuing his lessons, that was for certain. Raziel had probably only agreed to teach him so he could keep tabs on him in the first place; it had been more than clear that he never actually wanted to have him there. His brother was almost certainly projecting; his conviction that Rahab would betray him no doubt sprung forth from the fact that he would betray Rahab without a second thought if it benefited him. The realization brought him even lower, and he briefly considered simply getting up and going to throw himself into the Lake of the Dead. He surely would, too, if not for his deap-seated devotion to the master who hardly even knew he existed unless he wanted something from him. 

Without Lenore... without his bride... Rahab was truly alone in the world.

Chapter Text

"...Rahab?" Tantallon called from the library door.

"Go away," he snarled.

Tantallon hesitated, driven by instinct to obey a command from a higher ranking vampire but old enough by now to be able to shake it off.

"Rahab, please..." he pleaded as he knelt in front of the cubby.

"You both lied to me!"

"It couldn't be helped, Rahab! We couldn't risk it getting out; look at what's already happened with it still a secret!"

"Neither of you care about me in the slightest," said Rahab, voice cracking with emotion.

"That's not true! You know I love you to death; I have since the beginning! And Raziel cares, he just-"

"Raziel would sell me out in a single moment; I realize that now. It's more than obvious from how little he trusts me!"

"I've tried to tell him you won't betray him, Rahab. He's just so frightened... wouldn't you have done the same to protect Lenore, if that's what it took?"

"Lenore was my fledgling before she was my bride!" Rahab spat. "And she was a vampire! Not cattle!"

"I was upset about it at first too, but once I got to know her-"

"Oh, give it a rest! She's a savage little monster who's never been taught her place, and clearly never will be since my brother has put her leagues above where she belongs. I cannot even fathom this turn of events. We ought to find whatever blasted portal dumped her here and toss her through it, right back where she belongs, and Raziel can follow her for all I care. Tell him I want to leave! I don't need his stupid brewing lessons anyway!"

"Let me talk to him, Tantallon," said Raziel as he made his way past the desk.

"No! You can fuck right off. Both of you can! I can't stand the sight of either of you!"

Raziel knelt down next to Tantallon as his fledgling began to cry, placing his hand on his shoulder. "He doesn't mean it, Tantallon."

Rahab felt even more awful than he already did upon hearing Tantallon's quiet sobs, and bit his tongue before he could insist that he did mean it.

"Rahab, I am sorry. I should never have attacked you the way I did," Raziel implored. Once he had a moment to clear his head and think, he'd begun to feel genuinely awful for the way he'd treated his brother, both this night and those in the past. "I should be thanking you for what you've done to help me tonight. Tantallon is right; he's been right all along. I was wrong not to trust you. I know you care deeply for both of us."

"Fat lot of good that's done me," came Rahab's soft reply.

"You are my brother, Rahab. You're more a brother to me than any of the others have ever been. I cannot think of a single time that you've hurt me, though to my great shame I can recall countless occasions where I've hurt you." He could hear in the silence that followed that Rahab had started crying as well, and he slowly began to make his way into the cubby, pressing on even when his brother growled in warning, even when he turned and bit him with a loud snarl. Raziel only shushed him softly, curling himself around Rahab the moment he released his bite, knowing that he was powerless to keep this fight up any longer. His brother immediately settled, instinct driving his response to Raziel's attempts to soothe him.

Tantallon sat forlornly outside on the floor, hugging himself and sniffling. "Tantallon... I'm sorry," Rahab finally called from inside the cubby. "Raziel was right. I didn't mean it."

In an instant Tantallon launched his upper half through the cubby's opening, though it was in no way big enough for three full grown men to rest comfortably. He reached for Rahab, burying his face in his side as he wrapped his arms as far around him as he could get them.

"I don't expect you and Amalia to like one another, Rahab," said Raziel, "and I don't expect you to like the fact that I've married her."

"Good, because I don't. I don't know what you could possibly see in her, even if she were a vampire."

"I mean, she's not exactly your type," commented Tantallon, his lower half still hanging outside the opening with most of his weight resting on Rahab. "Her personality is diametrically opposed to Lenore's."

"Lenore had some fire in her on occasion, from what I remember," replied Raziel. "Although I suppose the only time I saw it was when she lashed out at you for annoying her as if it were your job."

"I'm her brother. It was my job."

They lay tangled up together for quite some time, lost in their own thoughts. When they finally crawled out, Rahab was feeling somewhat better, though he still wasn't sure how things could ever be the same between the three of them again. He pushed everything to the back of his head, knowing by now that going home to sit alone with his thoughts was his only other option. Better to sit here and at least have a bit of distraction. If all else failed, he'd at least enjoy sniping at Amalia to whatever extent his brother would allow.

Lorrelin was surveying the damage to the doors with her back turned when the three of them exited the library. "Well, you've certainly outdone yourself this time, my Lord. I hate to break it to you, but the smoking craters in the corridor are going to need to be seen to by a professional, and it'll take the house crew hours to get all this blood cleaned up! I don't know how you manage to invite such disaster-"

She shut her mouth instantly the moment she turned and saw Rahab, who immediately side-eyed his brother in disgust. "Speaking of having a type," he snarked. 

"And she's always like that," Tantallon commented on his way up the stairs to lie down with Amalia.

Raziel ignored them both. "Don't worry about it, Lorrelin," he said with a wave of his hand. "I'm too exhausted to even think of such trivial things."

Lorrelin couldn't resist running her mouth just a little more, seeing as she hadn't been reprimanded. "Trivial? Usually the slightest bit of disarray in here has your eye twitching. I'm shocked this hasn't sent you into fits."

Okay, that was admittedly a bit funny. Perhaps Rahab could learn to enjoy this one's company if she directed this much energy into snarking at Raziel. His brother clearly wasn't about to put a stop to it, so he might as well allow himself to be amused by it.

"Turel nearly killed Amalia," Raziel informed her, and her hands immediately flew to her mouth.

"Where is she?!"

"Sleeping upstairs; she's fine. I brewed something for pain for her earlier today, thankfully."

"You're going to need to replenish your healing potions," said Rahab. "I used every last one on her wounds."

"My god, what if they fester? She could be dead in two days from injuries inflicted by Turel's no-doubt filthy claws!"

"The wounds were cleaned with alcohol; hopefully that will suffice. We'll just have to wait and see." Raziel sounded far calmer than he actually was; internally he was barely containing a meltdown. "Go and retrieve the crew; you may as well get to work. Everything is under control at the moment."

The instant Lorrelin slid sideways through the broken door, Raziel sank down into the couch. "She's going to die," he said flatly, dropping his head into his hands.

"We don't know that," replied Rahab, plopping down next to him and resisting the urge to celebrate the possibility.

"Rahab, since she's been here she's nearly been killed by wards, by Zephon, and now by Turel. The Master charged me with keeping her safe, and with every passing day I grow more and more convinced that I can't!"

"There is always the option of turning her. If Kain wants her safe, he's not going to kill her to punish you."

"No, but he'll almost certainly take her from me, and she's made it quite clear that she doesn't want to become one of us. I know you don't understand, but our love is quite mutual. It would devastate us both if he separates us."

Rahab's first thought was that perhaps that would be for the best; perhaps then Raziel could get over it all after a few weeks of anguish... but he knew better. That kind of pain never went away. "All we can do is keep an eye on her. I assume your chamberlain knows the signs of infection; and you must have a doctor specializing in human care somewhere around here."

Raziel hadn't even thought of that. "I do indeed. I'll send him a message asking his advice immediately."

Unfortunately, none of the doctor's advice worked; a splash of alcohol wasn't near enough to properly clean such severe wounds as Amalia had suffered, and without access to intravenously administered antibiotics she quickly became ill. It started the next day with malaise and loss of appetite, and within twenty-four hours her fever skyrocketed. All Raziel could do for her at that point was give her another dose of the pain potion and let her sleep. He lay beside her until she faded, then immediately bolted to the stables with a summons for the doctor.

When Amalia woke a few hours later, it was to the sensation of cool fingers against her forehead. The only one present besides the shadowy lizards crawling up the walls was Lorrelin, who sighed as she felt how hot Amalia was. "Oh, dear," she said, wringing cold water out of a cloth and dabbing at her face with it. "Amalia, darling, are you with me?"

"Hurts," she squeaked. 

"I know it does, love," Lorrelin said sympathetically. "Here, let's have a little drink, shall we? Perhaps you can keep a bit of water down," she suggested, promptly hauling Amalia up into a sitting position. She pressed the rim of a wooden cup to her lips, and Amalia instinctively opened her mouth and let the cool water run down her throat. It actually helped clear her head a bit once she was lying back down, even if it did nothing for the intense headache.

"You got lizards in your hair," she mumbled, eyeing Lorrelin as she shook a thermometer down. 

Lorrelin's brow furrowed, but she remained otherwise unfazed. "Nevermind that, dear, let's just see how high this fever is so we have something to tell the doctor when he gets here. I'd rather spare you the indignity of having a strange man take it, wouldn't you agree?"

Amalia was already confused beyond belief, so yet another non-sensical statement made little difference to her. She did manage to pull one coherent thought together watching Lorrelin with the thermometer, though.

"Can't," she said. "Just had a drink..." Wait, had she? "...Right?" So confused. She was pretty sure drinking liquids meant you couldn't take a temperature for a while. The little salamander leaving a trail across the bedspread turned and nodded sagely at her. See? She knew it.

"I'm sure I don't know what you mean, love. On your belly for me, now. This won't take long at all." Lorrelin said, reaching for a small bottle of what appeared to be oil that she'd set on the nightstand. Amalia blinked as she finally put two and two together. 

Wait. Wait, no. Nope. No.

"No, thank you," she whimpered, shaking her head once and then wincing at the jolt of pain it caused. 

"No fussing, Amalia," Lorrelin replied as she began to roll her over. "You'll hardly feel it." 

By time she was on her belly she had already forgotten why she didn't want to be. Fortunately for her, once Lorrelin actually got around to putting the thermometer where she intended to, she was so distracted by the chameleon that was changing colors right in front of her face that it didn't even register. The rapid flashing began to make her feel nauseous again, and she closed her eyes only to find that she could still see it behind her eyelids. Unfortunately, this only underscored just how bad the situation was. Her fever had climbed to dangerous heights, and Lorrelin's heart sank as she read the thermometer. 

Raziel sat downstairs in his chair with Tantallon at his feet with his head in his lap and Rahab across from him. When Lorrelin returned from the bedchamber, her expression was grave.

"It's... not good. Cool rags aren't helping at this point. She's hallucinating, her fever is off the charts, she threw up what little bit of water I got her to drink as I stood to leave the room... and her only protest toward having her temperature taken was a polite 'No, thank you'". Raziel would have laughed at the sheer absurdity of that last bit of information if the situation weren't so dire. Instead, he silently stood and left to sit at Amalia's side, laying his hand on Lorrelin's shoulder in thanks as he passed her.

"If she only started feeling ill yesterday," Rahab asked, "How could she be this bad off already?"

"It only takes as long as required for the infection to spread to her blood and then to every part of her body," replied Tantallon as he slid upward into Raziel's now vacant chair. "Which it clearly has."

Lorrelin covered her mouth as tears welled up in her eyes. Tantallon, despite his usual disdain for her, could not help but try to console her. "Don't cry just yet, Lorrelin. She's as tough as you are. I wouldn't be entirely surprised if she recovered tomorrow through an effort springing forth out of pure spite." 

"I'm not sure how much spite she has left in her, Master Tantallon," Lorrelin said sadly, holding up the thermometer. "Can you imagine the fight she'd have put up if she wasn't delusional?"

Tantallon simply dropped his eyes to the floor, knowing she was right.

Rahab kept quiet, having nothing to contribute that wouldn't anger them both. To him, the obvious solution would be to turn her and solve two problems at once. Kain had apparently forbidden this, however, and as disgusted as he was with Raziel, he had to admit... he did not envy the choice he'd have to make if it became clear that his human bride was going to lose her fight with her illness. He could either obey Kain and suffer her loss, or turn her and suffer Kain's wrath. This could all have been avoided, of course, if Raziel had simply gotten rid of Amalia as soon as he realized his unnatural inclination toward her, instead of indulging it to the point he became so attached. Sheer stupidity, is what it was.

An uncomfortable silence fell and stretched on for a good half an hour before there was a knock at the broken door. Tantallon and Lorrelin both jumped up at the same time, but Tantallon made it to the door first. It was a guard, there to give notice of the doctor's arrival. Lorrelin thanked him while Tantallon rushed upstairs to let Raziel know.

He found his sire in tears on the floor beside the bed. Behind him lay Amalia, unconscious once more. Her breathing was rapid and shallow, and Tantallon's heart sank as he dropped to his knees next to Raziel. She was clearly dying. "Sire," Tantallon said, gently resting his talons on Raziel's shoulder. "The doctor will arrive shortly. You should come away from here before he arrives. You will not be able to hide your grief, and he may get suspicious."

"I'll pull it together as best I can," said Raziel, scrubbing his arm across his eyes. "I won't leave her like this."

The doctor was a vampire of Dumah's clan, but had clearly been turned in his elder years, probably so that his valuable knowledge and experience would not be lost. He confirmed Amalia's fate after barely a glance at her. "There is little to be done for this, even in the early stages." he said, tapping the side of his head, "There is no medicine that I know of that will cure her." Raziel had straightened himself and sat on the side of the bed, and the doctor laid his hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Lord Raziel. I know she's not the first pet of yours who has fallen to illness. Humans are... fragile things. Still, this one is old enough to survive the change if you turn her. If you want to keep her memory intact, I suggest you do so now before it's too late. She'll die by sunrise otherwise."

Raziel only sighed and thanked him, maintaining his composure as best he could. Tantallon looked at him questioningly once they were alone again.

"She will hate me if I do this to her, Tantallon. She does not want to be a vampire."

"She will not hate you," Tantallon reassured him. "She cannot hate you. Perhaps she may be angry; Kain certainly will be, but..."

"Kain will be angry either way. He wanted her kept both safe and human," he replied.

"An impossible task, when it comes to circumstances such as these. It isn't your fault."

Raziel snorted. "I'll let you know what he says when I tell him that. Once I've healed enough from the beating he gives me to be able to speak again, that is," he said bitterly. Amalia suddenly gasped, and her breathing became even more labored. Raziel squeezed his eyes shut a moment, then opened them and met Tantallon's worried gaze. He nodded once, and Tantallon was off through the door like an arrow to retrieve her first meal.

"He's decided to turn her?" Rahab asked as Tantallon rushed down the stairs into the parlor. He hurriedly nodded at Rahab as he disappeared out the door. Lorrelin began to sob, but she was of no concern to Rahab. He left her in the parlor and went to join his brother.

Raziel was just finishing the incantation as Rahab stepped through the door, and he watched as Raziel lifted her head with one hand and tore his wrist open, holding it to her lips to allow the blood to run into her mouth. It did not take long for the Gift to be passed on, and her hands suddenly flew to Raziel's wrist as her back arched, grasping it with all her might as she drank from him. She gasped when she let go, and her eyes fluttered open.

"It's all right, Amalia," he soothed, as she squeezed them shut again with a grimace. Her newly turned body, as it became immortal, was burning away the infection that had been her doom and repairing the earlier damage to her shoulder as she struggled to sit up, still gasping like a fish out of water. Once she was mostly upright, she blinked up at Raziel, who had stepped away and was staring miserably at the floor, awaiting her inevitable judgement of him. Dazed and confused, she leaned over to put her weight on one arm. "Razzzz...?"

"I'm sorry, Amalia... I know you didn't want this," he said, unable to look at her. 

Rahab stepped forward to put his hand on his shoulder. "You have elevated her, Raziel. There is nothing to apologize for."

Raziel jerked away from him. "I suppose you're happy now," he snapped.

"I do not envy that you had to make this choice, brother," Rahab replied. "But you did make the right one. When Kain returns, I will give him my opinion on this in your defense. Perhaps he will go easy on you."

Raziel sighed. He himself may get away with offering his opinions to Kain unprompted, but anyone else would likely find themselves on the receiving end of a swipe of his claws, and they both knew it. Considering how desperate his brother was for their Master's approval, willingly angering him on Raziel's behalf would be no small favor. It was yet another example of how good a brother Rahab truly was to him. Why hadn't he ever acknowledged it before? "Kain would have been furious regardless of which choice I made. Nobody wins here."

Amalia tried to stand, and Raziel caught her as she lost her balance and slid sideways down the side of the bed. When he lifted her back onto it, she wouldn't let him go. "Happened?"

Raziel stroked her hair. "You were dying," he said. "I couldn't let you. I'm sorry..."

Her brow furrowed as her head lolled forward. "Whyyyyy?" she slurred. "'Mnot... 'mnot mad,"

He lifted her chin to look into her eyes, unfocused and bleary as they were. "You didn't want this. I know you didn't," he whispered, sounding pained.

She thumped her hand against his chest. "Awazzz dyin', dummy," she said. "Stobbit."

"You see, brother? Even confused as she is from the Change, she still recognizes that you did the right thing," Rahab said. Amalia swiveled her head toward the sound of his voice. She stared at him for a moment before her eyes narrowed in recognition, and then clumsily slapped her hand down onto a plate of grapes that had been sitting uneaten next to the bed since yesterday. Raziel stopped her just as she wound up to throw a handful at him.

A soft chuckle was heard from the hallway, and when they looked up... Kain was standing in the doorway.

"I see the Change hasn't dampened her spirit any. Whatever did you do to her, Rahab, to earn such spite?" he asked, as both his sons took a knee before him. Raziel didn't give his brother a chance to respond. 

"Master... Kain, I... I'm sorry. I failed. Please, have mercy. I'll accept whatever punishment you deem fitting, just please... don't take her from me!" he pleaded.

To Rahab and Raziel's surprise, Kain dropped to his own knee and placed his hand on Raziel's shoulder. "Raziel, relax. Rahab is right, you've done nothing wrong here." With that, he left his sons to exchange bewildered glances and stood before Amalia, tilting her chin up as she leaned forward, her eyes fluttering shut. "Did you miss me, little one?" 

Amalia smacked her lips and shrugged one shoulder, and Kain snorted. "I'll take it, I suppose," he said before turning back to his sons. "Get up, you two. Who wants to tell me why this place is such a mess? Rahab?"

Raziel and Rahab both got to their feet. "Turel went on a rampage through the fortress and attacked her," said Rahab, failing to mention what they'd both done to piss him off in the first place.

Kain's eyes narrowed. "He is the one who brought this about?" he asked, gesturing to a ragdolled Amalia, who was now leaning face-forward into his side with her arms hanging limp. Raziel was fairly certain that if Kain were to step away, she'd tumble forward right onto the floor. He shook his head.

"Yes, Sire. Her wounds festered, and she became ill late yesterday. It progressed rapidly, and only moments ago she lay dying. I was on the way into town when the wards sounded the alarm, and I rushed back only to find that Rahab had thwarted his attack. He got Amalia to safety and healed her injuries with my potions while I gave Turel the thrashing he deserved."

So that was what caused the reaction that had sent him running back. When the Reaver suddenly went absolutely mad as it lay across his back, Kain knew from the way it shrieked and howled that it couldn't be in response to anything good, and he'd turned on his heel and run straight to the Chronoplast. "Serves him right, then. Well done, Rahab." he said, to Rahab's elation. "I suppose that explains the broken door, the craters out in the corridor, and the bloodstains all over the parlor walls." He turned to the door just as Lorrelin appeared, and she froze when she saw who was in the room, eyes wide as dinner plates. 

"Lor'lin," Amalia called, reaching her hand out even as she leaned into Kain's side. Kain sat her up and beckoned Lorrelin into the room before moving aside, and she slunk past him and took Amalia's hand in her own as she sat next to her on the bed. 

"Oh, Amalia," she said, brushing her hair out of her bleary eyes.

Amalia raised a finger in the air, then paused. After a deep breath, she met Lorrelin's gaze and jabbed it at her, missing her head entirely, eyes drooping and looking as if she'd gotten into a drinking contest with everyone present and drank them all right under the table. "D'joo stick a ffffuggen thermomener up my ass?" she demanded in a tone that implied significant offense. 

There was a beat of silence as Lorrelin stared at her, mouth agape. Then came a snort and her trademark cackle. "Oh, I'm sorry, dear!" She exclaimed with a shake of her head, raising one hand to Amalia's cheek and covering her laughter with the other. "It was rather terrible of me, wasn't it? After all, you were so polite when you asked me not to," she cried, slapping her knee as she devolved into hysterics. Amalia glared balefully at her, shuffling backward on the bed. "Izzznot funny," she grumbled sulkily as she curled up on her side facing away from everyone.

Lorrelin only laughed harder as she stood to leave the room, leaning on the doorjamb momentarily on her way out, and Kain's face split into a savage grin as he filed that particular bit of information away to use as ammunition later. Even Raziel huffed a laugh, though Rahab only wrinkled his nose in distaste. 

"Don't get too comfortable, darling," Raziel told her. "Tantallon will be-"

"Right here, Sire," Tantallon interjected. He had returned with another pitcher of fresh blood and was just entering the room when he froze the same way Lorrelin had upon seeing Kain himself standing at the foot of the bed. Keeping the pitcher level, he quickly dropped to one knee. "Lord Kain!" he said in surprise. "You honor us with your presence."

"At ease, Tantallon," Kain replied. "Get her fed."

"Yes, my Lord." Tantallon skirted around him and faced Amalia with the pitcher of blood in hand. "Hello, little sister," he said fondly, kneeling down to speak to her on her level and leaning one arm on the edge of the mattress. Amalia was still feeling resentful and had no qualms about directing it toward her new vampiric brother regardless of his lack of involvement in the matter. "I'll lil' you," she threatened with a scowl, and Tantallon laughed. 

"I'm not entirely sure I want to give you this, you know. You'll likely regain your full powers of speech once you've had it, and then you'll be insulting us all left and right."

She was staring miserably at the pitcher. "No. Can't," she said, shaking her head.

This fight was not uncommon in newly turned fledglings who had only minutes before been human. The idea of drinking human blood was often not fully accepted until they'd actually tasted it, at which point none of them ever looked back. Tantallon dipped the tip of his claw into the blood and looked questioningly to his sire, awaiting an order to force the issue. Kain stepped forward and knelt beside Tantallon before Raziel could answer.

"Little fledgling," he began, "What is in that pitcher is not the blood of your kind, as you are no longer human. Drink, and take your proper place among us." He stood and moved away, then paused. "This is not a debate," he added, just in case she wasn't convinced.

Something in her screamed that Kain was not to be disobeyed. It wasn't fear, because she wasn't afraid of him in the least. It was instinct; a primal urge to submit to the highest of their kind. She still hesitated a moment as she stared at the pitcher, however, and Tantallon decided to help her out by smearing the blood on his claw across her lips, making sure the tip of it went past them and touched her tongue. That was all it took. 

"I do enjoy the way their pupils dilate at the first taste," Tantallon smiled as he watched Amalia drain the pitcher. He stood and bore it away once she'd finished it, and they all waited as Amalia shook off her daze and fully adjusted to the magic that had settled within her the moment she'd been turned and was now flaring fully to life. In time, Raziel would eventually begin teaching her how to focus and direct it, but for now... for now he was just relieved that she was alive and well, and that she didn't hate him.

Chapter Text

"You were wrong," Amalia said, arms crossed and smug-faced as she stood next to the bed, Raziel alongside her. Tantallon had been right; newborn fledglings usually regained their wits within a minute of finishing their first meal, and she was no different. She was actually shocked at how amazingly good she felt; full of energy, not an ache or pain anywhere, as if she were truly invincible. She supposed at this point she was, more or less. If she'd had known just how superior vampirism was to humanity, she'd have begged Raziel to turn her the night she'd been left with him. Nothing could possibly beat feeling this physically perfect.

Kain sighed, rolling his eyes. "Yes, Amalia. I gathered as much watching Raziel's eyes boggle out of his head at the first sound of your voice."

She grinned. "Admit it."

He scowled at her. "I quite literally just did."

"Enough, Amalia," Raziel hissed, confused as to why Kain hadn't backhanded her after the first comment. Still, he wasn't about to let her continue to push her luck, even if Kain had been... strangely amiable since his return.

Rahab looked at Raziel with scorn in his eyes. "Really, Raziel? That's all it took?"

Raziel bristled. "No, damn you, it wasn't the instant she started, I..." He groaned, knowing that the truth wasn't much better.

Kain smirked at Rahab. "It's true, I was exaggerating. It took at least two full minutes, during which she backed him into a chair, leaned over him, and stroked his cheek with the back of her hand," he said, relishing the embarrassment on Raziel's face. "I don't think I've ever seen anyone fall so hard all at once before."

Rahab cringed, too awash in vicarious embarrassment himself to even enjoy watching the Master take his arrogant older brother down a notch. "Good god," he muttered, hiding his face behind his hand.

Raziel wasn't about to challenge Kain on tormenting him and simply huffed, falling into a sulk. As usual, Amalia had no such reservations.

"Quit being a dick, Kain," she said, herself bristling at his needling of his firstborn. "This whole thing was your id-"

Raziel cut her off, placing himself between her and Kain. "Master, please, she's obviously still addled from her transformation," he cried, holding his hands up placatingly. "I'm really quite certain that once she fully recovers she will be appalled at her disrespect," he gritted, the last bit spat back over his shoulder at his bride.

Kain only waved his hand. "Oh, come now, she's perfectly coherent and we both know it, Raziel. It isn't the first time she's accused me of 'being a dick'," he said, in perfect imitation of Amalia's accent, "as she so eloquently puts it, and she was right both times, really. I admire her spirit," he said with a shrug, adding a little extra sugar to his tone. He was quite enjoying watching his sons become more and more confused and uneasy at his relaxed demeanor and casual admission of wrongdoing. After all, the loss of Nupraptor's corruption could only go so far as to negate his inherent maliciousness. He was quite certain he'd never get bored of fucking with people's minds. "And," he added, placing his hand on Raziel's shoulder, "I'm sorry." He wasn't, of course, not in the least, but he was having too much fun.

They both stared at him as if he had lobsters crawling out of his ears, which was most gratifying. After a few beats of silence, Rahab suddenly snorted with laughter, and everyone turned to look at him. "Ahh... I've just realized why she tried to throw those grapes at me earlier," he said, examining his claws. "I'm recalling our first meeting from a new perspective, now that I know how ill-tempered she is." He grinned wolfishly at Amalia. "Oh, you must have been livid."

She scowled and reached for the plate again, and Raziel quickly snatched it away and threw a grape at him himself, since he knew that his brother couldn't retaliate if he did it. Rahab, still smug, swatted it easily out of the air.

"The 'pet' act certainly fooled you, Rahab. You swallowed it hook, line, and sinker."

"Yes, well, you'll have to forgive me for not immediately deducing that you had secretly wedded a human and were now passing her off as a housepet to avoid suspicion," Rahab snarked. "Of course, now that I know better, the next time I see you with a pet I'll know to skip over every reasonable conclusion and jump straight to that one."

"One of you tell me what you're talking about," said Kain.

Rahab was only too eager to answer. "I paid Raziel a little visit not too long ago, seeking his advice on what to do about Turel's disgusting exhibitionism."

"Mmm, he's still at that at this point, is he?" Kain asked, absently stroking his chin.

"Yes, he is, and we're tired of it. This is when I became aware that Raziel had a new 'pet'," he said, making air quotes with his talons. "She was in that cubby in his library, pretty as you please, and had obviously taken her instructions on how to act to heart. She was frightened nearly out of her wits at the sight of me, of course. Raziel warned her about us, no doubt," he grinned.

Amalia instinctively tried to growl, but aside from the rapid healing her body had not yet changed in form and she didn't have the necessary modifications to her vocal cords. This only made Rahab even smugger than he already was. "In any event, I crawled in with her, scooped her up like I would with any good little housepet, and sat with her in my lap, feeding her grapes and letting her share my wine as Raziel and I conversed, petting that pretty red hair the whole time."

"Yeah, and I'd have bit your fucking hand off if I thought I'd survive it," she snapped.  Next to her, Raziel facepalmed.

"You wouldn't have," Rahab sneered, though he and Raziel both knew he wouldn't dare lay a claw on her, even now.

Kain laughed out loud. "She's not joking, Rahab. One of my servants tried to beat her with a stick," he said, pausing briefly to laugh again.

"Can't imagine why," muttered Rahab, eyeing Amalia with distaste.

"...and she wasn't having it," he continued. "Actually drew quite a bit of blood with those flat little human teeth, in fact. She'll be formidable once she's fully matured, and I, for one, cannot wait to see it."

"I could have told you the little shit was a biter," he sneered.

"You're only angry because she bit you," replied Raziel.

"I'm angry that I stopped her touching that door in the first place!"

"All right, you three," Kain interrupted. Had they always bickered this way this early on? He never paid nearly enough attention to any of his children, but he'd been fairly certain that Raziel and Rahab always got along well in the early days. "That's enough sniping at one another. Raziel and Rahab, go downstairs. I want to talk to Amalia alone." He waited for them to exchange another confused glance and vacate the room, then turned to address Amalia. "What door?"

"I nearly got zapped by Raziel's stupid wards. Then Zephon climbed straight up the side of the building to come after me, and now this," said Amalia, hauling her gown up to reveal the jagged scars that remained after Turel's attack. 

Ah, so Zephon had poached Rahab's idea by now and was making his pitiful first attempts at magery. "The scars will fade in a few weeks, and your first evolution will remove them if they haven't by then," he replied, stepping forward to run his claws along them. "Perhaps choosing this particular decade to leave you in wasn't as good an idea as I thought," he mused.

"Yeah, it's been kind of a shitshow," she replied, dropping the gown and crossing her arms. "Raziel has been at his wits end trying to keep me safe; it's not his fault I ended up like this."

"He provoked Turel; I know he did, because I remember him doing it. Not that Turel didn't have it coming, of course. Remember, these events have all happened before. Your presence hasn't altered things in any meaningful way. History prevents you from acting in a way that would."

"Yeah, I'm not about to try to wrap my head around that right now. What's next? Despite everything that's happened... I don't really want to leave."

"Remaining is not an option. My former self will eventually return with no clue who you are, and if you think you were in danger before..."

"But... We can't just leave everyone behind! It isn't just Raziel I've grown attached to, and we can't just drag Raziel off and leave with no one knowing what the hell is going on! How would that not alter things in a way that history won't allow?"

"You have a bit of time yet. I have found several places where the squid has anchored himself and liberated them of his loathsome presence," he said, nodding over his shoulder to the Reaver. "He is rapidly weakening, but I still need Raziel's soul where it is for now. Have you forgotten that the Raziel you love is the one in this sword? Don't lose sight of the end goal, Amalia. This is still a work in progress."

"I love them both, thank you very much," she snapped. "So you know how to get him out, then?"

"I didn't say that."

Amalia threw up her hands. "Well if we're running out of time and you can't free him yet, what are you doing here?"

"When Turel attacked, Raziel absolutely lost his mind in there. The Reaver was practically throwing sparks by time I got it off my back. Something was clearly wrong, so I rushed back to the Chronoplast as fast as I could and had it send me here."

"The fuck is a Chronoplast?"

"It's the non-portable version of-" He cut himself off, waving his hand at her. "Nevermind, it's not important."

"Kain, there's something else. My memories are coming back. I remember what I was doing when that light flashed and I ended up here."

That got his attention, and he directed her to sit on the bed. "Tell me."

"I was hiking. I went to the woods..." She paused, covering her eyes and shaking her head as another avalanche of memories suddenly resurfaced. She sat staring at the floor a moment, then spoke, her voice subdued. "I... I went because I was grieving. My family... god, they're the worst. My parents and sister... we're estranged. I haven't spoken to them since I left at 18. My grandparents were my only escape... they were estranged from them too. I spent as much time as I could with them, but they died recently. They left me their home and property along with a boatload of money, but they lived most of the way across the country and I had to move. My whole life had just been uprooted. I replaced my old camping gear with some new stuff, packed my backpack full of useful distractions, and went to just hide out in the woods a ways away for a couple of weeks to escape from everything. Figured I'd pick up the pieces and move on with life after that."

"Go on," he urged, and she realized she hadn't actually explained a thing pertaining to how she got here.

"I went to a forest where people like to camp out for fun. I didn't go where everyone else does though, I wanted to be alone. I spent half the day hiking a trail to a remote area, set up my tent and hammock, lit a fire, and then I noticed this weird shimmery patch of air just outside the clearing I was in. I'd just picked up my backpack when I saw it, so I slung it over my shoulders instead of dropping it for whatever reason and went to check it out. That's what did it."

"You touched this anomaly?"

"Yeah. It reminded me of the way the horizon shimmers when it's hot out. Thought it was weird for that to be happening in the woods, particularly since it was winter. There wasn't snow on the ground yet, but it was cold. That's why I needed new gear; what I had wasn't made for cold weather camping."

"Wait... this... backpack that you mentioned. You were wearing it at the time?"

"Yeah, man!" she exclaimed. "It's gotta still be there, and it's full of stuff from back home. Kain, I need to get it. It's all I have of my life before. I didn't remember anything, so I couldn't have shown you, but where I'm from is really, really different from here. Honestly, that's putting it mildly. I can show you now if you look."

"You're a vampire, you can project these images yourself now. I will teach you, and then you can show me everything."

It didn't take long for Amalia to learn how to use the Whisper ability to speak, but it did take some effort to begin accurately projecting images into Kain's mind. Once she got the hang of it, though...

"It just keeps getting worse," said Kain, dragging his palm down his face. "Now I've got to worry about a portal to a world with billions of humans wielding apocalypse-inducing weaponry being open! As if the literal portal to Hell wasn't enough!"

"Who says it's still open?"

"It's not a risk I'm going to take. We will see what's there when we go back to the lake to retrieve your possessions."

Amalia was immensely relieved that Kain had immediately agreed to go back to the lake. They continued to converse while Raziel and Rahab sat slumped on the couch downstairs, trying to make sense of what was going on.

"This is bizarre, Rahab. The way he's acting is..."

"Unsettling. It's downright unsettling. I've just begun to wrap my head around you allowing her to act the way she does, and watching Kain brush it off like it's nothing is making me think I've lost my mind and I'm simply hallucinating all this." Frankly, he'd prefer it that way, if snapping out of it would make everything go back to normal.

"Something is up, and I don't like it one bit. When they come down, we'll get to the bottom of it."

"You'll get to the bottom of it, you mean. I'm keeping my mouth shut. For all we know this is some sort of trap to see how eager we are to take a mile if he gives us an inch."

Raziel was ready to take that mile even if Rahab wasn't. They sat waiting until Stella, Vance, and four others of the house crew arrived to keep working on cleaning up. Two of the servants were carrying a large rug, which had been brought up to replace the one in the entryway which had been ruined in the fight with Turel. They set their burden down along the wall and got to work, and that was about when Raziel noticed Stella wringing her hands and looking nervous. He frowned, irritated. Why was everyone acting so strangely lately?

"Stella, attend," he called to her, and she immediately obeyed, keeping her eyes fixed on the ground. Studying her face, Raziel realized she didn't look so much nervous as she did despondent.

"What's wrong?" he asked, gently. "You've been moping about the last few days; don't think I've not noticed. You're not in trouble, I'm simply concerned, is all."

"I..." she began, then her eyes shifted over to Rahab's feet and she faltered.

"You needn't worry about Rahab, he won't harm you any more than I will. Tell her, Rahab."

"Why the hell should I want to hurt her? I don't care what she's got going on."

"See? There, now, speak freely."

"I... have something to confess, Lord."

Raziel pinched the bridge of his nose. What now? "What have you done, Stella?"

"Well... I heard that Master Tantallon was punished quite severely recently for... well, for..."

"For getting overly friendly with one of you, yes," replied Raziel. He could already guess where this was going, but he was more than a little surprised that it was Stella that Tantallon had laid hands on. This was irritating as well; Stella was around all the time, and thus any drama that ensued would play out right before his eyes. So much for feeling badly about how hard he'd been on Tantallon; he almost wished he'd given it to him even worse now.

"Why the hell would you punish him for that, Raziel?" Rahab asked, bewildered. "The boy just lost his entire harem, you ought to be glad he's recovered enough for his desire to have returned."

Raziel hurriedly gestured for him to keep his voice down. "Because I don't want any of the humans here developing romantic feelings for him when that sort of relationship between them is impossible!"

Rahab shot him a look that clearly said 'Oh, it's impossible, is it?' but otherwise kept his mouth shut. Stella, on the other hand, promptly burst into tears.

Oh, gods above. Please don't tell him... He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "Stella... are you the one he kissed?" She nodded, still sobbing.

With a sigh, Raziel got to his feet. "Come into the library so we can discuss this without you becoming the subject of any more gossip," he whispered. Everyone save for her brother was pretending not to notice Stella's distress, but it was obvious that they had. Vance mustered up enough courage to actually follow them to the library door and slip through it without asking permission, and Raziel simply ignored it, not wanting to punish him for actually showing a little spine for once.

"Why would you confess to this, girl? You could have got away with it free and clear," asked Rahab.

"Because, Lord Rahab... I don't think it's fair that he got punished for it and I didn't! He shouldn't have been the only one. I knew he would stop if I said no, but I didn't want him to stop, so..."

This only confirmed what Raziel had just begun to suspect. "And now you've fallen in love with him, is that correct?"

"I don't know; I don't know what that's like! I just feel so awful, and I just couldn't stand just sitting on it and not saying anything," she sobbed.

This gave him pause a moment, and he eyed her shrewdly. Maybe this wasn't what he thought it was. "You don't happen to be expecting your menses in the next few days, by chance?"

That stopped her short. "What?" she asked, bewildered and sounding as if she were mildly offended. "No, that was... that was last week, why?"

God dammit. Raziel groaned as Rahab stood there looking as if he'd rather be anywhere else. "This is precisely why I forbade him to get involved with any of you," he sighed. "Look, I'm not going to punish you, Stella. I don't need to, because you're already suffering, and this is only the beginning. Tantallon does not feel the same way you do, and he never will." This brought poor Stella to her knees, and at this point even Rahab began to feel a bit sorry for her.

"The fuck, Stella? That's who you're moonin' over?!" Vance suddenly demanded. "Cryin' out loud, I didn't think you was that dumb!"

Rahab snorted softly, clearly suppressing laughter, but Raziel turned and scowled at him. "You're not helping, Vance. Your sister is clearly very upset."

He shrunk back at being chided. "Beggin' your pardon, Lord. Just... a bit surprisin', is all," he mumbled. "I ain't gonna act like Master Tantallon ain't a catch, but I realized a long time ago right alongside everyone else who's ever wanted 'im that he can't be caught."

Raziel blinked. "You're attracted to men?"

Vance suddenly looked distinctly uncomfortable, able to think of only one reason why Lord Raziel would take any interest in where his tastes landed. "Yes, Lord," he mumbled, his only reassurance being the fact that he knew Raziel wouldn't ever force himself on anyone should they be unwilling... because he was very much unwilling. There was a reason he was perfectly content with simply appreciating Tantallon's good looks.

"You both are giving me a headache with all these revelations," Raziel groused. This was a fine thing to find out now that Amalia was no longer human; he still needed to make good on his promise to teach him to read and if he'd have known there was no danger of Vance developing any interest in her he'd have had her start tutoring him immediately rather than let her sit around bored.

"Thought you knew everything about the house crew?" smirked Rahab.

"Oh, give it a rest," he snapped. "Stella," he continued, softening his voice and gently petting her hair, "You will survive this, I promise. It doesn't feel this way forever."

"Please don't tell him," she replied, wiping her eyes. "I don't want him to feel guilty about it, and I know him well enough to know he will..."

"Oh, you've got it bad, child," observed Rahab, shaking his head at her in pity.

Raziel shooed her toward the library cubby. "I won't say anything to him about it, and neither will Rahab," he said, giving his brother a pointed look. "You may rest in there a while to regain your composure. Vance, if you can be nice to her, you may stay with her. Make her feel better, not worse," he admonished, emphasizing his words with a point of his talon. With that, the two vampires returned to the parlor. They weren't there for five seconds before they heard Kain and Amalia coming down the stairs.

"I'm not sure how much more I can take, brother," Raziel sighed, steeling himself for a confrontation.

"I'm already exhausted just watching you deal with these humans you're so fond of. At least that brat you married is safe with the Master back home," shrugged Rahab. "No one else will dare come for her now."

"Master," Raziel began as soon as they got to the parlor, pausing to let Kain acknowledge him. 

"Hmm?"

He took a deep breath, steeling himself. "Forgive me, but I cannot help but wonder... Actually, perhaps it's Amalia I ought to be directing the question to," he said, turning to his bride. "What did you mean, Amalia, when you said that this whole thing was Kain's idea? What thing? The two of you... Forgive me, again, Master..."

"Out with it, Raziel," said Kain as he stepped around the back of the couch and leaned the Reaver against it.

"Alright, fine then," Raziel said, finally running out of patience. "Why do the two of you seem so familiar with one another? You speak to one another almost as equals, as if there's some sort of history between you, as if you've been conspiring together. And why are you," he spat, gesturing at his sire, "So... disturbingly pleasant?"

Oh, shit. Amalia looked questioningly at Kain, unsure as to whether she should say anything. She fervently hoped that he knew how to handle this, because she did not want it to become a point of contention between her and Raziel if he decided he wasn't ready to reveal anything.

"I personally would like to know when the Reaver's eyes started glowing that eerie blue," Rahab offered, finally deciding that if it was question time, he might as well get in on it too. "It's creepy."

Kain shrugged at Amalia. "Well, he's onto us. Might as well drop the charade."

"Fuck's sake, Kain, don't say it like that," she hissed. Turning to Raziel, she laid her hand on his arm. "I'm not pretending to love you. That's not the charade."

Raziel's temper was growing shorter and shorter. "Then what is going on, Amalia?" he demanded, pulling sharply away from her. "The only charade I was aware of is the one we've been putting on to keep you safe! Clearly, there has been some measure of deception here, and I cannot help but feel somewhat betrayed regardless of what you say!" He couldn't believe what he was hearing, and besides that, Rahab was right. The Reaver's eyes were creepy. Just the sight of them made his skin crawl, now that he was looking at it. All of them had always feared the Reaver to some extent, but this was unsettling in a way that Raziel could not put his talon on. And yet, now that he was staring into the glowing eyes... he found himself wanting to touch it, which only confused him even more. His patience finally snapped, and he stepped around to where Kain had left the sword, reaching for the hilt, if only to prove to himself that it was all in his head, that nothing would happen. He'd throw the damn thing across the room to vent his anger, and then he was going to get to the bottom of this 'charade'.

The next thing Raziel knew, he'd gone rigid, and then he was on the floor, his arm flopped uselessly to the side and somewhat numb. He stared up at the ceiling, ears ringing so loudly that it drowned out all sound, bewildered at what he was seeing. Was he suddenly lucid again? He'd been experiencing these random bursts of new memories for... he didn't even know. How long had it been since it started? His first moments within the Reaver had been terrifying; it was a black void of nothingness, complete sensory deprivation. All he had was his mind... and he had no idea how long his mind could endure this prison before it broke. He'd drifted in and out of lucidity for what seemed like an eternity before that first vision of Amalia standing next to Kain in his old stronghold sprung forth, clear as day. This didn't seem like any sort of delusion; it felt like a memory, but he knew that it had never happened. Amalia hadn't been around back then, after all... or had she? What if she was a figment of his imagination too? Would he ever know whether his time with her had been fiction or reality?

God, he'd been so insufferably arrogant back then. The way his former self treated her upon their first meeting was certainly on brand for the person he used to be, and Kain's 'gift' turning out to be more of a burden he'd saddled him with was also quite in line with reality as he remembered it. It wasn't until he recognized the song that was spilling out of her head and into his own that he started to become convinced that maybe this wasn't only his fractured sanity flailing desperately for something, anything to anchor itself to. She'd sung that song when they'd first met... he'd remember the macabre lyrics anywhere. The accompanying music was indescribable, just as she'd said it would be, and he wished he could laugh as he felt the jolt behind his knees and the resulting fall, realizing that he'd stumbled backward into a chair as she advanced on him and would have sent himself tumbling if not for the stabilizing effect of the table's edge. Serves you right, you egotistical bastard, he'd thought to himself. She ought to have dumped you straight onto the floor herself.

Nothing could have prepared him for what came next, of course. The shockingly overwhelming emotions he felt as his former self fell in love with her, the things they did in bed... It all seemed so very real, and the sheer intensity of it yanked his consciousness back from the edge of oblivion, allowing his powers of logic and reason to reengage. He remembered the way memories had bloomed and faded within Kain's mind when the future was changed, and he wondered... could it be? Had Kain done what he suspected he had? Did he dare hope that these memories were real?

When Rahab had shown up at his beloved library to complain about Turel, seeing him healthy and whole the way he used to be, interacting with him the way he used to when they were still close, was a gut punch. He'd wanted so badly to reach for him, to tell him how sorry he was, how he wished things hadn't turned out the way they did, that they hadn't spent decades not even speaking toward the end. He'd wished more than anything that he had control of himself, that these memories weren't just like the types of visual entertainment from Amalia's world that she had shown his past self, where he watched things as they happened but could not influence what he was seeing through his own eyes. Now his brother was once again right there, kneeling beside his former self with concern and confusion etched into his features, still a vampire instead of the grotesque monster he was doomed to become... the monster that he'd mocked and deliberately exposed to sunlight in his relentless pursuit of vengeance. But Rahab might as well be clear on the other side of the universe, for all the power Raziel had to reach him now.

"Oh, Rahab," he choked out, suddenly overwhelmed with guilt and grief once more. Hot tears sprung to his eyes and slid down either side of his face toward his ears as he drew in a shuddering breath, but he hardly noticed. "I'm sorry..."

"Why... whatever for, Raziel? What's wrong?"

...Wait. Wait, what? Raziel's head actually obeyed his command to move when he tried to turn it, and he looked wildly around the room. Rahab was to his right looking concerned and utterly bewildered, and there was Kain several feet away, staring at him with his mouth agape. That only left...

"Raziel, what happened?"

And there she was, kneeling on the floor beside him, every bit as beautiful as the moment he'd left her in the woods. He found himself scrambling to sit up and reach for her, but succeeded only in rolling to the side somewhat, his limbs feeling as heavy as lead. Rahab planted his hand between his shoulder blades and pushed him upright as Amalia grasped his shoulder, looking just as concerned as his brother.

"Amalia?" he asked, watching her brow furrow. "You did survive... Kain found you. I feared he might..." Leave her to die? Kill her himself? Neither of those outcomes would have shocked him. He lifted his hand and waved it in front of his face, then wiggled all four of his hoof-like toes. He was indeed physically present, in complete control of his body. No longer was he a wraith; Kain had seen to it that his soul had tethered itself to this past version of his vampiric body when he was freed. He never should have doubted him, really... that bastard always had a plan.

Amalia's expression turned to one of pure shock as the realization dawned on her. "Wait... Raziel?" she asked, and he nodded. "That Raziel?!" she asked, pointing to the Reaver, which had fallen over onto the floor, eyes dark once more. He nodded again, wiping the tears from his face. 

"Yes," he confirmed, with a giddy, breathless laugh. "It's me!"

Chapter Text

As happy as Raziel was to be reunited with Amalia, he hadn't forgotten that Rahab was present as well. He twisted around the other way and threw his arms around his brother, tangling the talons of one hand in his long black hair as the other gripped his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Rahab... I'm sorry for everything," he said, his voice cracking with emotion. "I wish none of it had played out the way it did; that we had never grown apart the way we did in the first place!"

Poor Rahab was utterly bewildered. He tentatively wrapped his arms around Raziel, awkwardly patting him on the shoulder. "It's... quite alright, Raziel." He locked eyes with Kain over his brother's shoulder, silently mouthing "What is wrong with him?"

Kain had figured out what had happened and was quite recovered from the shock. He couldn't help but laugh as he knelt next to the three of them on the floor. "Raziel... Stop and think a moment. Your consciousness has obviously been been brought back through time to an earlier era. Your poor brother has absolutely no idea what is going on, because none of what you're apologizing for has happened yet."

Raziel abruptly let go and pulled back to see the disturbed look on Rahab's face, then promptly burst into laughter, which did not help matters in the slightest. Rahab began to edge away from him. 

"Kain... How in the hell are we going to explain all this?" he laughed.

"All at once, Raziel, because I'm not telling this sordid tale twice. Rahab, find Tantallon and bring him back here."

"Tantallon?!" cried Raziel. "Tantallon is alive?"

Rahab stopped in his tracks and turned back toward his brother, more confused than he'd ever been. He stared as Kain helped him to his feet and steadied him, trying to make sense of anything that was coming out of either of their mouths.

"Tantallon is still alive in this era, yes," said Kain. "You'll see him soon, and we'll explain everything to them."

"And then?" Raziel asked, hopefully.

It was an excellent question. Raziel's sudden release changed everything. With this sudden turn of events, there was absolutely no reason for any of them to stay here, and judging by the way the walls had rattled when his son had touched the Reaver, the Timestream had shifted once again, just enough to accommodate what was ahead. He could take them all, he realized. He could take Rahab and Tantallon on this journey, and in fact would have to at this point, because he couldn't bear the thought of tearing his firstborn away from all of them when he'd only just got them back. Raziel deserved a bit of happiness for once; he'd earned it a thousand times over, and there was still work to be done.

"We'll work it out once everyone is here," replied Kain, and Rahab immediately scrambled out the door to find Tantallon.

Raziel turned back to Amalia, who he'd just remembered was now a vampire, and cupped her face in his hands. Since his periods of lucidity were sporadic, the specifics about her turning were blurry in his mind. He only remembered the rage he felt during Turel's attack, and knew that she'd become deathly ill and that he'd turned her to save her life, but couldn't suss out how much time had passed between either of those events and the present. For all he knew, she could be more than a century old by now. But no, apparently not, because neither her hair nor her eyes had lost their natural coloration, her hands bore no claws, her mouth bore no fangs, and she was clearly still incapable of purring, otherwise she'd be firing them off left and right at the moment. Only her scent had changed, so she couldn't be more than a few weeks old. She was but a newborn fledgling... his fledgling. She jerked her head back to dislodge his thumbs from her upper lips, which he had pulled up in order to examine her eyeteeth.

"Could you not?" she laughed, and he laughed right along with her, leaning his forehead against hers a moment before turning back to his sire.

"Kain, I-" 

Kain drew him in and hugged him tightly, delighted to have him back by his side regardless of the complications it might bring. It was certainly nice to have seen the past version of him alive and well in this era, but he knew that it wasn't really him, not anymore. This was his Raziel. "Hush, boy," he murmured, cutting him off. "Did you truly think that after all you've been through, after all I've put you through, I would allow you to languish in there any longer than necessary?" he asked. "Although... I must admit, that you were freed just now was quite unintentional. It's actually somewhat suboptimal... but we'll figure something out. It's good to have you back, my son."

Raziel pulled away from him with a gasp. "You're right... What if the Reaver can't hurt him if I'm-"

"We can worry about that later, Raziel. Right now, we need to get the others up to speed and plan our next..." He trailed off as Raziel began to dash around his old quarters on what was likely the most satisfying nostalgia trip anyone had ever experienced. Amalia could only laugh when he walked past an ornately carved mirror hanging on the wall and cried out in shock and relief at his reflection, and she laughed even harder when she followed him to their bedchamber and watched him gleefully throw open the doors to all three of his wardrobes in rapid succession. He waved the fireplace to life, put it out, and then brought it back again before darting out onto the balcony and right back in. Then it was right back down the stairs to the nearest library door. She heard him laugh out loud, but didn't have the chance to follow him in before he burst out the other side and darted up the opposite staircase right back toward the bedchamber. Amalia shook her head, went back up the stairs on her side and followed him through the door.

He finally came to a stop before the bed and stood staring at it, his expression inscrutable. His eyes drifted to her, then back to the bed. She smirked at him. "Yeah, all of that happened." To her surprise, he gulped and hid his face behind his hand, turning away from her. Was he... embarrassed? 

"Forgive me," he said after a pause. "It's just... my mind now isn't where it was, then... I... I can hardly remember what it's like to even want to..." he huffed a short laugh, still looking as if he were feeling extremely shy. "Not that I didn't enjoy the memories as they poured into my mind, even if I was mostly convinced they were nought but delusions."

"I suppose it makes sense that sex was the furthest thing from your mind when we met. Didn't exactly have the equipment that's responsible for the desire," she teased, and he shot her a look.

"Very funny." There had been a point during his time as a wraith where it suddenly occurred to him that his 'equipment' was no longer present, but he hadn't been able to bring himself to even care. What was there to miss about it, anyway? It hadn't been put to use in centuries, so nothing of value to him or anyone else had been lost. He was momentarily tempted to point out to her that he most certainly had it now, but thought better of it. She'd likely take it as some sort of challenge, after all, and he wasn't sure he was ready for it. How humbling it was, to find himself daunted by the prospect of bedding her when he used to be so sure of himself when it came to such activity. But the way things were now, to him it would seem like the first time all over again. 

There was one other problem as well: While Raziel certainly revered her and was glad to have her by his side once more, this version of himself had not fallen in love with her in the short time they were together. What had happened when Kain brought her to his former self seemed so distant, so far away, whereas their first meeting was now fresh in his mind. He wasn't sure if what had happened to him in his memories had carried over, or if he was even capable of such attachment anymore. Her heart would be broken unless he lied to her if that were the case, and he couldn't bear the thought of either of those things. He suddenly felt her arms wrap around him from behind, and, somewhat uncomfortable with the contact, he pulled away slightly and turned to face her.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have teased you about it. I didn't mean to upset you," she said.

Raziel shook his head, staring at the floor. "It isn't that, it's... just difficult for me to adjust, I suppose," he replied, not moving to hug her back. "The last thing I remember of you that seems concrete... we had only just met, and..."

That was when she reached up to run her fingers through his hair and rested her chin on his shoulder, exactly the same way she had the day he'd met her, right before he... He stiffened as the memory came rushing back to his mind, then his eyes slid closed as raw emotion washed over him. This time, he didn't have to leave her in the woods, hoping that Kain would take her in, knowing that she'd die alone out there if he didn't. This time, she wasn't crying at the loss she knew was moments away. And as distant as the memory seemed to him now, in practice it hadn't been all that long since he'd... gods above, he'd married her. Their life together was only just beginning. Once things were set right and Nosgoth was safe once more... 

Raziel relaxed into her embrace with a sigh, turning his head to bury his face in the side of her neck as he wrapped his own arms around her. The way he'd felt when he was in that chair surrounded by music and relishing the warmth of her hand on his face had pierced him, and he found himself experiencing it all over again. When she kissed him, he found that he was no longer afraid to take her to bed, and began to back her toward it. "Your turn," he breathed in the instant before she hit the mattress and fell backward, laughing at her startled yelp. Once she was atop it and grinning up at him, he crawled his way over her and brought his lips to hers once more. Now he was remembering what it all felt like; the rush of blood to his cock that filled it and sensitized it, the way his pants slowly tightened, the desperation to press his lips to her skin and grind himself against her body. 

In truth, it hadn't been the Abyss that had stripped him of his sexual desire... It had been centuries of boredom and the slow creep of Nupraptor's corruption. Though their repeated evolutions granted them greater and greater power, it came at a terrible cost; the relentless march of time had crippled every last one of them in ways that were invisible, rendering them incapable of deriving any joy from much of anything. His ancient soul had been thoroughly purified now, though, and it was highly unlikely that he'd be bored again anytime soon, with all that was happening. Long dormant instincts roared back to life and took hold of him once more, and a soft growl escaped his throat as he pinned one of her wrists to the bed, causing her to moan into his mouth in response.

"Ahem."

Both of them froze, and Raziel slowly turned his head to look back over his shoulder. This sort of intrusion would once have made him angry enough to lunge and swipe his claws at whoever had dared to interrupt them. Once he realized that he was beginning to lose his ability to enjoy such encounters, he became more and more desperate to hang on to any scrap of desire he could still feel, and having a rare opportunity spoiled in such a way would have rendered him absolutely murderous. As things were now, he merely felt a flicker of irritation, which he quashed. 

"Can't leave the two of you alone for even a moment," said Kain. He stood just inside the doorway with his arms crossed, bearing an insufferable smirk which ratcheted Raziel's ire up several notches.

"Do you mind? We are obviously busy," he said, eyes narrowed. Sensing an opportunity to give him grief, Amalia shifted her hips slightly to grind against him, earning herself a warning growl and a sharp nip to her jawline for her audacity. She only bit her lip and giggled, and Raziel lifted his head to scowl at her, indignant. "Just whose side are you on, anyway?" he hissed, causing her to laugh outright. 

"I can see that," Kain said, amused.

"Then see yourself out," Raziel hissed at him over his shoulder.

Kain narrowed his eyes, pointing a talon at his firstborn. "Oh, no you don't. I'm not going to be stuck explaining all this nonsense to Tantallon and Rahab while you're up here bollocks deep in your bride. Either compose yourselves or have her use her mouth and be done with it. You can fuck her properly later, Raziel, we've got things to do."

Heaving another frustrated growl, Raziel threw his leg over Amalia and shuffled to the edge of the bed. "Fine," he huffed as he stood and adjusted himself within his pants. Amalia sat up and hooked her fingers in the waistband, giving him a hopeful look. He sighed. "No, Amalia... we'd still have to rush it, and I'd rather not," he said, and she pouted, shooting an accusing glance at Kain.

"Why do you have to spoil all my fun?" she asked him as she followed Raziel past him out the door. 

"Because spoiling your idea of fun is my idea of fun," he replied without missing a beat.

"I'm gonna remember that the next time I know you're about to get laid," she groused.

Raziel stopped abruptly, interrupting their exchange before Kain could snipe back at her. Tantallon had stepped into the hallway.

"...Sire? What's going on? Rahab said..." he looked Raziel up and down, noting the dumbstruck expression on Raziel's face as he beheld his firstborn alive for the first time in centuries. "...that you were acting strangely."

Raziel tried to shake it off so as not to upset him. "It's nothing to be worried about, Tantallon. Everything is all right."

Tantallon knew better. He stepped up to his sire and reached for him, and Raziel was undone. He pulled Tantallon into his embrace as tears welled in his eyes once more. "Sire, please..." Tantallon said softly. "Tell me what's wrong. You always tell me everything. Let me help."

"That's all you ever did," Raziel replied, giving up entirely on containing his emotions. "You were always at my side helping me. You were always everything I needed you to be..." He'd spent tremendous amounts of energy pushing away all thoughts of his firstborn once he'd lost him and eventually managed to forget him almost entirely, save for the occasional dream or nightmare, which would invariably throw him into deep depression and render him essentially useless until he could squash his grief and longing back down under the surface and carry on. And now here he was, as if none of it had never happened. How many times had he dreamed Tantallon was still alive only to wake up alone and cry himself back to sleep? How often had he woken from a nightmare and, unable to bear the awful truth, tried to convince himself that he was still dreaming, that in a few seconds Tantallon would shake him awake for real and crawl into his arms to comfort and reassure him, exactly the way he was doing right now? How many nightmares had he finally woken up from earlier tonight only to find everything right with the world again?

Highly unsettled, Tantallon hugged him tighter, almost curling himself around him, protectively laying his hand on the back of his head and gripping slightly. "I don't understand..."

"It's a long story," Kain said, clapping him on the shoulder. "Come, we will explain it all once you're sitting down." 

Tantallon looked even more uneasy as he released Raziel and watched them all move past him toward the stairs. "Well that bodes ill."

Raziel gasped softly when he emerged from the stairway and spotted Lorrelin standing behind his favorite chair, and she immediately cocked an eyebrow at him, completely unaware of what was going on. Two more nervous human servants lurked near the door to his alchemy lab, and he squinted at them a moment before recognizing them as the brother and sister who had once been among his circle of trusted house servants while he still had humans doing the job.

"Amalia, with me. The rest of you might want to sit," he continued, deciding on a whim that since the humans were already here, they might as well stay. Perhaps they'd prove useful in their coming endeavor. If not, well... there was a new mouth to feed, after all.

Raziel took Tantallon's hand once he'd emerged from the stairs and pulled him to his chair, where he sat him in his lap and clung to him despite the fact that it was in no way big enough for two grown men to comfortably share. Rahab sat opposite him, while the humans exchanged worried glances and slowly made their way to the couch. The tension and unease in the room was practically palpable as Kain began to speak. "You'll notice, if you haven't already, that Raziel is acting... rather peculiar. First, I'd like to assure you that he is of perfectly sound mind. What has happened to bring this about is a long, sordid, complicated tale. The gist of it is this: His consciousness is no longer that of today's Raziel; that Raziel is now dead to you. It's the consciousness of Raziel from centuries in the future. Both of us have come from an era far ahead. The how of it is not important. What is important is that Nosgoth is in danger, and has been for thousands of years. There are plenty of myths floating around about how our kind came to be, some more believable than others. Now, I will give you the truth of it." He paused to look around the room, ensuring that he had everyone's rapt attention, even if they looked absolutely bewildered... which all of them save for Raziel and Amalia did.

"The Gift that we've all been given, that which makes us what we are, is in fact a curse. Our ancestors, the first vampires, were a naturally occurring race of winged, non-human mortals who fought a religious war with another species called the Hylden. The 'god' the Ancients worshipped was, unbeknownst to them, not a god at all, but a parasite, a leech who essentially feeds on death. The Hylden were no strangers to magic but favored technology over spirituality, and, goaded by their false god, the Ancients went to war over their rejection of his doctrine. This war raged for centuries. Eventually the Ancients got wind that their enemies had designed and built some sort of powerful device which when activated would obliterate their race along with every last human in existence, and they moved to preemptively strike in order to prevent this from happening. Their most powerful spellweavers erected the Pillars of Nosgoth and banished the Hylden to another dimension, but their enemy struck back as they fell. They cursed the Ancients with bloodthirst, immortality, and sterility. The Pillars needed vampiric guardians, as humans are not fit to serve in this capacity, so they devised a way to pass the curse on to them in order to preserve their bloodline and supply the Pillars with guardians that can maintain the seal that binds the Hylden to the hell they've been sent to. And that is how our kind came to be."

"Forgive me, Master, but I don't understand... How can you call the Gift a curse when it elevates us so far beyond humanity?" Rahab asked, earning a barely-concealed eyeroll from Lorrelin.

"Well, we've certainly made the best of it, haven't we? Humanity has been subjugated and more or less enslaved, and vampires rule Nosgoth... for now." Kain paused here for dramatic effect. "But make no mistake, the Hylden scrabble wildly tooth and claw to escape their prison, and they are cunning indeed. The humans who were being turned in order to serve the Pillars as guardians were eventually manipulated by the parasite into rebellion, and humans took the Pillars for themselves. But remember, they are unable to maintain the Binding. It eventually weakened enough to allow the Hylden's leader to project his soul back into Nosgoth and possess one of the guardians. He promptly used him to murder the former Balance guardian, setting up her lover, the Mind guardian Nupraptor, to find her body. His grief in that moment drove him mad, and he in turn unleashed a psychic attack on every other guardian, driving them mad as well and corrupting their very souls. This included me, as I was the one chosen at birth by the Pillars to replace the slain Balance guardian. This corruption has been passed onto my children, and the six of you have passed it onto yours. The changes we undergo will only remain beneficial for so long. Eventually, they will turn us all into savage monsters. Raziel and I have both seen this first-hand."

Raziel had been silently stroking Tantallon's hair the entire time, but here he paused and sighed. "I hope you all understand now why I'm acting as I haven't seen any of you in ages. My body may be from this era, but my future soul was trapped in the Reaver and was unexpectedly released when I touched it earlier, binding itself to this era's body. To you, yesterday was yesterday. To me, yesterday was nearly seven centuries ago, and in the time we originally came from, none of you are still alive." Tantallon suddenly pulled away and regarded him with concern, but Raziel only gathered him close again and resumed stroking his hair.

"Don't sell yourself short, Raziel. You ended up in the Reaver because you willingly sacrificed yourself to it in order to purge me of Nupraptor's madness and corruption. That's why I have been acting strangely as well. I'm not who I once was, and we are all better off this way. I plan to set things right and restore Nosgoth to her former glory, and it will begin even further back in history than this. Now, my plans were to take only Amalia and Raziel back in time, do what needs to be done, and eventually raise the rest of my sons again, this time sans corruption and with a better future in mind. However, Rahab and Tantallon... I think, perhaps, that we could use your level heads on this adventure. I'd like you to come along." He paused here, regarding Lorrelin with disdain. "I'm sorry, who are you again?"

She stood to address him, bowing her head. "Lorrelin, my Lord. I am Lord Raziel's chamberlain."

"And a fine chamberlain she was!" said Raziel as he disentangled himself from Tantallon, strode over to Lorrelin, and yanked her into his arms, squeezing her tightly. "The best I ever had. I cried for a week when you finally died, you delightful woman, you!"

Lorrelin struggled to push him away and escape. "I'll make you cry now if you don't let me go, you crazy oaf," she threatened. Raziel only sighed happily as he relented. "With all due respect, Lord Kain," she said, regaining her composure, "Despite the fact that I'm quite certain I liked the old, less huggy Raziel better...Wherever he's got to go, whatever he's got to do... I beg you to allow me to continue to serve him."

"You always did have a remarkable talent for inspiring loyalty in your underlings, Raziel," said Kain. "I suppose I'm not surprised that the highest of your servants wants to remain by your side. Seeing as you hold her in such high regard, I can only assume she's useful. Very well, Lorrelin. You're in. Who are the other two?"

Lorrelin breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Lord Kain. The others are Stella and Vance," she said, giving them a sharp look and gesturing them to stand when they sat staring slack-jawed. "Get over here, you fools," she hissed.

Raziel couldn't help himself with them any more than he could with Lorrelin. Remembering that Vance was more or less afraid of his own shadow, he resisted throwing his arms around him and instead hugged Stella, whose expression was the picture of shocked confusion. "I remember you two as well. Stella, you eventually took over for Lorrelin, once she became too old to continue in her role. And Vance, I taught you to read and in time you learned to use magic to an extent that I'd never have expected from a human. You were my master gardener, and this place never looked more beautiful than when you were here."

Vance only gulped, unable to fathom how any of what Lord Raziel had said about him or his sister could possibly be true. Kain looked them both up and down. So they were useful, then. "You're coming too," he stated, his tone making it clear that there would be no debate on the subject. "Now, Amalia, tell them the truth of yourself and where you're from."

Amalia looked up at the assembly, then took a deep breath. "Hoo, boy..." she began. "Well, honestly, the only ones who don't know are Stella and Vance at this point. Lorrelin and Tantallon were in on it from the beginning and that nosy fuck found out by snooping around in my head," she sniped, scowling at Rahab as the two servants gasped and covered their mouths in shock at the way she addressed him. Rahab only crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at her, a growl sounding low in his throat.

"I'm not from Nosgoth. I'm from somewhere else entirely, somewhere really different from here. We're still working out how I ended up here, but I'm remembering more and more of my former life all the time. I've only been pretending to be Raziel's pet to hide our true relationship as husband and wife... er, bride. And that's a whole 'nother story."

"Wait, you... Miss Amalia, you and our Lord...?"

"Yeah... we've been married the entire time I've been here."

The two siblings exchanged glances, then fixed their eyes back on Amalia. "But you're a human!" Stella cried. "I never thought a vampire could ever..." She trailed off, glancing over to Tantallon, who only blinked obliviously back at her.

"Was human," Amalia corrected. "I was sick the last few days, remember? I... apparently wasn't going to pull through, so..."

Vance looked absolutely crushed by this, which caused Amalia no end of distress. She considered him a friend by now, albeit not a particularly close one, and she did not at all like the possibility of him fearing her now that she was no longer human. "Hey, look," she began. "We can still be friends, Vance. I'm still the same person."

Rahab wasn't particularly keen on listening to Amalia talk any longer, and he still had questions, one of which burned more than all the rest. "What did you mean about us growing apart, Raziel?" he asked, before his brother's harridan of a bride could say anything else.

Raziel swallowed hard. "We... What happened was..." He started over, looking over to Tantallon. "Tantallon was killed by hunters same as Lenore, some eight hundred years after the dawn of the Empire," he said, softly, causing his firstborn's eyes to widen in disbelief. 

"Hunters?! How could hunters still be a problem for us that far in the future?" demanded Rahab. 

"They had help. We were certain that Zephon had set the entire thing up; all evidence pointed to it, but we could never prove it beyond any reasonable doubt and even if we could have, Kain would never have allowed us to make war with him. We never recovered from his loss, Rahab, and by time it happened Nupraptor's corruption was already poisoning both of our minds. It wasn't just our relationship that changed. I'd long since stopped keeping humans as servants by then because with every evolution I underwent I valued them less and less. You became even more withdrawn, and we simply stopped speaking to one another at all. We became just as cruel as our brethren as boredom took over and dulled our enjoyment of everything we ever loved. Each clan's society began to break down as our descendants were overtaken by the same madness that was ruining us. The more the anhedonia and the rot of the corruption set in, the worse we got until we all started pitting our own clans against one another for what little entertainment could be wrung from the violence that broke out. We gambled on the outcome... frequently cheating by either aiding or sabotaging whichever clan we were betting on or against, of course." There was much more to the story, of course, but Raziel wasn't certain Rahab could process it all at once. He'd tell him the rest someday, but not today.

Rahab looked absolutely horrified a moment as he digested his brother's words, then his eyes frantically sought Kain's. "Master... tell me this won't happen. Tell me we can avert this future. I cannot bear the thought of it!"

"Easy, Rahab. Averting this future is precisely what we're going to do."

Seeming to relax, Rahab swallowed hard and regained his composure. "When do we get started, then?"

Ah, Rahab. Ever loyal, ever ready to leap into action. Kain ought to have valued him more instead of allowing Raziel to do all the legwork of supporting him emotionally. "We needn't rush into anything. All of us need time to digest all these revelations and adjust to this new reality. And," he began, arching a brow at Raziel, "I believe that Raziel and Amalia already have plans for their morning," he taunted.

Reminded of what they'd been up to before being interrupted, Raziel moved to stand beside Amalia. "Indeed we do," he said, his tone giving away exactly what he had in mind.

"Gross."

"Get bent, Rahab."

Rahab growled and bared his fangs at Amalia again before addressing his brother. "At least now you can bite her without killing her," he said to Raziel. "Though it's most unfortunate that in that context, she'll actually enjoy it."

"Enough," Kain said before things could escalate. "I'm certain you all have questions. Ask them now. I want us all on the same page before we leave here."

"I think we've all got a million of them," Tantallon said, piping up for the first time. "For instance, how do we stop ourselves devolving into monsters? Seems rather important."

"We're leaving the stronghold?" asked Stella, looking aghast.

"All I need is a list of supplies to gather," said Lorrelin.

Amalia raised her hand. "May Raziel and I be excused?"

Kain dragged a hand down his face before answering each question in turn with a point of his claw. "We've yet to figure that out, but obviously this corruption can be purged and the devolution stopped. Yes, for good, so you'd best start coming to terms. I'll get back to you on that once I've had a moment to think. And for god's sake, yes! Get out of here!" He waved his talons at them to shoo them out of the room.

Amalia immediately started up the stairs, and Raziel turned and scowled at everyone as he followed her. "I'm locking the damn door this time. Leave us in peace, or else."

Chapter Text

"Now... where shall we pick things up from?" Raziel asked as the lock to the bedchamber door clicked shut. "I did rather enjoy having you pinned underneath me on the bed, but there was also that bit where you were reaching for my pants..."

"One after the other sounds good to me," Amalia replied, stepping up to Raziel and hooking her fingers in his waistband once more.

"I would agree," said Raziel, as he began to undo the laces. He was only just beginning to get hard, but Amalia wasted absolutely no time dropping to her knees before him and taking him in her mouth. He was at full mast in seconds. Gods, he'd nearly forgotten how amazing these experiences were. It had all become all so distant, so abstract. The blooming memories within the Reaver had brought some of it back, and he'd certainly felt some of the thrill of it then, but his lucidity had been so spotty he could hardly remember more than a few muddled details. But everything had been set right. His mind was his own again, his body was his own, and he was grateful, so very grateful, because-

"Fuck," he hissed, running his claws through her hair as she took him deep, very nearly allowing him into her throat. "You really are an angel, aren't you? You show up out of nowhere at my most desperate hour, and-" he gasped, his head falling back against the door with a thump, and she grinned around his cock. "Gods above, you're good at this," he moaned. He knew that if he let her keep going their encounter would not last very long, and so he stopped her, gently holding her head still as he pulled back. "To bed with you," he urged, and she complied immediately. 

"I'm glad to have you back," Amalia breathed as she fell backwards onto the mattress, this time of her own volition. "This is the Raziel I fell in love with."

He snorted. "You mean you don't prefer that pompous, arrogant fiend that you..." He trailed off as what she'd just said sank in. "You fell in love with me in the woods?"

She looked away from him bashfully. "I didn't quite realize it until after you were gone, but..."

"But I was..." He gave a short, incredulous laugh as he crawled over her. "My god, Amalia, I was hideous! How could you possibly have...?"

She shrugged up at him. "I mean, I'm not gonna try and tell you that I'm not glad you have your old body back. That would be a lie, and not just because you couldn't have fucked me before."

Raziel shook his head, smiling fondly down at her. She'd been so concerned with consoling him when last they spoke that her true personality had been masked, and he was greatly amused by just how fiery she'd turned out to be. "I'm just as glad. And not just for the sake of my vanity... I more or less abandoned that at the bottom of the Abyss when I awoke to find myself so destroyed. I could never have been a proper husband to you like that. I never imagined myself as anyone's husband, to be truthful... You really must have put on one hell of a performance to entice me so."

"Not my fault you're a sucker for good music," she said, smirking.

He only laughed as he leaned down to kiss her.

Though his dominant tendencies hadn't been much tempered by their long dormancy, he still found himself relying on her to lead this encounter, at least for now. His memory was just too spotty to remember the way she liked to be touched, or her favorite positions, or whether or not she... Actually, no, he was fairly certain she'd been into the cane. He felt himself somehow get even harder just thinking about it. He knew it was probably sitting there between bed and bedside table where he'd always kept it, but decided against it for now, figuring it might be biting off more than he could chew at the moment. He was still nervous about this, after all, despite his strong start. Amalia picked up on it immediately, and broke their kiss to reassure him.

"We can take things slow, Raziel. The sun's hardly up; we have all day."

"I know," he murmured. "It's just... disconcerting, I guess, knowing that we've done this before, when I can hardly remember it. I dearly wish I could remember our first time. I'm certain that performance was better than this one will be, all things considered."

She reached up to stroke his hair, eliciting a soft purr. Oh, how good it felt to be able to express himself that way again. "Maybe your memories will be like mine, and they'll start coming back in bits and pieces. In the meantime, we'll make new ones," she shrugged. "You don't need to impress me, Raziel. I know what you're capable of, and I know you well enough to know that you're not going to be satisfied until you're at the top of your game again."

He nodded with a shrug. "Perhaps it will just take time to settle back into a relatively normal life. I suppose this is as good a way as any to start that process."

"Agreed," she said, pulling him down to kiss her again.

Some of Raziel's confidence had been restored by talking things out a little, and he thought back to life in his earlier years; sifting through old memories of past conquests, pulling out the tricks and techniques that were most familiar to him, refamiliarizing himself with the script of how this usually went down. He purred once more as her hands slid up his arms to his shoulders and down his back.

Wanting to goad him along a bit, Amalia broke their kiss in order to nuzzle into Raziel's throat, then dared to gently catch the skin there between her teeth. His reaction was exactly what she hoped it would be. She felt his throat vibrate under her lips as he turned his head and growled dangerously into her ear. "Do you think it wise, little fledgling, to bite your sire while you yet have no fangs of your own?"

She giggled softly. "You gonna bite me back? Rahab certainly seemed to think you should."

Raziel pulled back to look down at her. "What on earth has caused this rift between the two of you? You seem to absolutely loathe one another."

"Yeah, pretty much. We couldn't let anyone find out what was really going on, so we had him convinced I was nothing but a subservient pet, a plaything that you owned. So he treated me as exactly that, and now he's pissed because I don't have to just put up with it anymore, and won't. He was also equal parts horrified and scandalized when he eventually found out that you married a human."

"You must really get under his skin," Raziel commented, "Because in my experience he always just took cheap shots when offended and then ran off to sulk somewhere. You seem to be rather good at eliciting a more... aggressive reaction from him."

"I think I prefer your brand of aggression," she said, giving him another soft nip.

He nipped her back, and much more sharply. "You're going to have more aggression than you can handle if you keep biting me."

"Promise?" she asked silkily, running her fingers up his back, causing him to shudder in delight. 

"Little temptress," he breathed into her ear. "Get those clothes off, before I tear them off."

She'd been waiting for this, and jumped to obey him as soon as he moved aside to let her sit up. Raziel was torn between wanting to watch her strip and wanting to get his own clothing off as rapidly as possible. He opted for the latter, but then had to decide between enjoying the sight of her naked body and pulling her close for as much skin-to-skin contact as he could get. He suddenly wanted to do everything all at once; from burying his face between her legs to sliding his cock inside her to sinking his fangs into her throat to taste her newly-turned blood. He may not be able to remember exactly what she liked, but it would be the work of but a few hours to blaze those trails anew. In the meantime, he wasn't too proud to ask.

"Show me how I touched you before," he murmured into her ear, and she immediately obliged, taking his hand and positioning it properly. He'd expected that she'd direct him to her breasts first, and in fact was quite eager to get his hands on them, but figured they'd still be there after he made her come... which he fervently hoped he could.

"Ease up a bit," she directed as he applied pressure to her clit. "And maybe blunt those claws first."

"Right," he mumbled, kicking himself for forgetting. At least he could still remember the words to the spell.

"That's better,"she said as he found the proper movements. "Just like that. Don't change a thing," she breathed. That, too, was something he remembered, having learned it quite early on: If a partner tells you not to stop, they mean exactly that. Changing things up at the final moments before orgasm usually only resulted in disappointment.

Raziel did not disappoint her.

He watched her closely as she came, taking in every change in expression, every hitch in her breath, every little squirm or arch. It was stunningly, staggeringly beautiful, seeing her this way. A flash of memory suddenly broke through as she came down- It was him, and her, and Tantallon, in this very bed, working together to make her come over and over, all of them engaging in companionable snark in between until he left Tantallon there to bed her. He huffed a soft laugh, remembering the way he and his firstborn would occasionally share an encounter with a woman. It had been hedonism at its finest, and he was determined to dive straight back into it now that he could feel again. "Do you suppose Tantallon feels as if he's missing out?"

"You really want to complicate this right now by bringing in another playmate?" she laughed right back, still recovering from her orgasm, and he immediately hauled himself up and settled between her legs.

"No, I suppose not, as much as I've missed him..."

"We'll head down to spend some time with him after we wear one another out," she replied, once again running her fingers through his silky hair as he positioned himself at her entrance. "Or we can invite him up here if we feel like having another go at it."

He wasn't paying much attention to her words; he was too wrapped up in anticipation for what was about to happen, not to mention entirely distracted by the way her slick folds felt against the head of his cock. "Don't make me wait any longer," she begged. "I want to know what this is like now that I'm like you..." That was all he needed. Knowing that she was accustomed to such activity and well aware by now that she was plenty outspoken enough to tell him if something hurt, he pushed forward to sheath himself entirely within her in one stroke. There he was forced to hold perfectly still, because he was already too maddeningly close. Damnation!

Amalia moaned softly, then opened her eyes and snickered up at him when he froze. "Problem?" she asked with a smirk.

"Fucking hell, yes! You feel too damned good, that's the problem," he panted.

"So come, then. You really think you're gonna be one and done this morning? Pfft," she scoffed. "You'll be ready for another round within twenty minutes, tops."

"No," he insisted stubbornly, gritting his teeth as the urge subsided. After a moment, he was able to move again, and this time things remained under his control even as she wrapped her legs around him, urging him on. "No," he said again, leaning down to kiss her. "I'm going to savor this..." And how could he not? It was the first time he'd done this in centuries and it had been even longer since he'd done it with one he loved romantically. Their slow lovemaking soon had them caught up in a veritable emotional storm, the sort of intimacy that could truly only be shared by those with powers of telepathy.

"Fuck," Amalia sighed, once she finally broke their kiss to come up for air. "This is... God, this is incredible," she breathed, nearly startling when his voice rang clearly in her head. This is only the beginning, my love, he told her. Hey, I can do that too, now! came her enthusiastic response, and Raziel could not help but laugh. It really was only the beginning... he was going to teach her everything, absolutely everything there was to know about what she had become, what he had made her. He'd barely finished the thought before she began to urge him on again, and this time he found himself unable to resist.

Hands and knees, he suddenly commanded, abruptly pulling out and moving back to allow her to rearrange herself. She obeyed him without question, and he scrambled to get his cock back inside her, resting his weight on one hand while he wrapped the other around her torso, holding her still as he took her once more and set a brutal pace. He was no longer caught up in his head, trapped within a tangle of doubts; now he was running on instinct and good old fashioned muscle memory, both dredged up from the deepest, most primal parts of his brain. His lips were inches from the back of her neck, and they pulled back to reveal his fangs as he drew closer and closer to the edge. Without conscious thought he moved his hand down to allow the tip of one talon to brush against the sensitive little bundle of nerves at the top of her folds, gently swiping the blunted edge across it once, twice. That was all it took for her to shatter. Driven by pure instinct, they both surged upwards, fully onto their knees. Amalia threw her head back against his shoulder and dropped her own, baring her throat in open invitation, and Raziel struck with a loud snarl, his fangs sinking deep into her flesh as they both shuddered out their release.

For Amalia, it was a perfect storm of pain and pleasure that served only to enhance her climax and render her boneless in his arms once there was nothing left but the aftershocks. He held her fast as he withdrew his fangs and allowed her blood to flow freely, swallowing every mouthful she gave him. Another brief memory of his utter confusion at her human blood's complete lack of magic flashed, vivid enough that the stark difference in taste between then and now registered. He savored every drop, reveling in the small tickle of power he felt on his tongue as her vampiric blood flowed over it, knowing that one day it would be nearly as potent as his. It couldn't last of course; within moments the wounds healed and there was nothing left to do but lick the last traces away. Gently, he lowered her back onto the bed, rolling her slightly in order to allow them both to lie on their sides without him having to withdraw. Silence reigned for several long moments as they caught their breaths, Raziel nuzzling into the back of her neck to savor the emotional bliss that followed such an intense experience between lovers. Were there words that could even convey what he was feeling in the aftermath?

"Well, that was absolutely bonkers," Amalia finally said, catching Raziel completely off guard with the unexpected and thoroughly unromantic statement. He immediately burst out laughing, the combination of heady post-coital endorphins and her deadpan delivery rendering him completely helpless to contain it. "What?" she cried, beginning to laugh herself. "It was!"

"'Bonkers' is a ridiculously funny word," he finally managed to choke out once he got his chuckling somewhat under control. She immediately said it again, repeating it over and over until they were both practically gasping for air.

"Gods above, stop," he begged, wiping tears of mirth from his eyes. When was the last time he laughed like this? When was the last time anything in his life inspired such joy, such lightheartedness, such a sense of belonging? How long had it been since the last time things felt as if they were actually going his way? He could spend hours wracking his brain and it would all be for nought; he'd never be able to remember.

"You fucking bit me," she suddenly blurted. "And I fucking liked it."

"You sound so bewildered by that," he commented, still laughing a bit. "Have you forgotten what you are now?"

"Was it... I don't know, some sort of weird mating ritual that we do, or something?"

"In a sense," he replied. "The urge is always there... even when I bedded humans, the urge to bite at the moment of climax was there. It's much easier to resist in that case, and even with another vampire, should I want to resist for whatever reason. But between a sire and fledgling, that urge is much, much harder to fight, and I see little reason to do so. It's pleasurable in spite of, and perhaps even because of the pain, and feeding from one another only reinforces our bond."

"Not fair," she grumbled. "I don't have fangs yet."

"I'll feed you from my wrist, darling," he replied. "Whenever you want. It still brings us close, even outside such activity. You won't really need human blood until you've fledged out of your human form."

"Would it be weird to point out how similar that is to a human mother nursing and then weaning an infant?" she asked, wrinkling her nose.

Raziel only shrugged, unbothered by the truth of the similarity and eager to begin teaching her more about their kind. "'Weird' or not, parents feeding their young has always been the way of things. It's a blessing not to have to leave the child alone in order to hunt any more than necessary this early on, because fledglings can be... difficult."

"How so?" Amalia asked, eager to find out what new and interesting kinds of trouble she could make for everyone.

"Call it 'youthful exuberance'," he replied. "Full of energy, constantly bored, and always looking for an opportunity to flex their new claws. The worst of them are more or less like human-sized kittens, constantly bouncing off the walls and looking for something to pounce on and bite. Rahab and I are the only ones out of the six of us who never killed any of our own fledges out of frustration, to be honest with you, and both of us were sorely tempted to on numerous occasions."

"Yikes."

"'Yikes' indeed." Raziel had stopped siring fledglings after raising six of them, same as his own sire, and he fervently hoped that Amalia would be easy to look after. Tantallon had been a kitten fledge, and he'd been at his wit's end until he grew out of it, at which point he promptly roped him into helping him care for the others as they came along in order to give him a taste of his own medicine. His firstborn had been more than happy to wash his hands of the entire business once they were all on their own and had sworn up and down that he'd chuck himself into the nearest river before he'd ever babysit another fledgling.

"Fledglings are also plenty prone to getting distracted and inadvertently blundering their way into environmental dangers, such as the sun or water. If you're wondering just how badly water ravages our flesh, I'd like to suggest that you think back to what I looked like when we first met. As far as the sun goes, you've got to stay out of direct sunlight until you wake from your first evolution or you'll instantly burst into flame and perish. Even after that, until you become stronger it'll quickly drain your energy to the point where you're exhausted and unable to function."

"How long is that going to take?" She very much did not relish the idea of having to stay indoors during the day all the time.

"A few decades. Your first few pupations after fledging won't change your form much if at all; they'll only enhance your strength and senses and grant you access to deeper magic. After a while, you'll emerge with thicker skin which offers much more protection, and that combined with your increasing strength will allow you to spend more time in direct sunlight before you pass out. You'll never be immune to water, I'm afraid... you'd have to have been sired by Rahab to evolve that ability."

"Yeah, no thanks. I'll be able to go out during the day at least sometimes later on, though?"

"Once you've got your claws and fangs, yes. I can stay out for hours before needing to retreat to recover. We used to sun ourselves some mornings before we'd go to bed, before we lost the ability to enjoy it. The warmth is most pleasurable and since the light is weak for a few hours past dawn it results in a very deep, restful sleep rather than a comatose state that could last days. I'll take you out then and allow you to sleep beside me a while. You'll only remain conscious a few minutes, but you'll have a chance to see the world in the morning light and hear the birds and enjoy the warmth." Those were the things that he had always enjoyed about an hour in the sun after dawn, anyway.

It was better than nothing, Amalia supposed. She fell quiet, figuring she'd have to make the most of it and grateful at least that she'd only have to avoid it completely for a few weeks. Until then, she'd focus on doing everything she could to help the real Raziel readjust to his unexpected new circumstances as she adjusted to her own.

"Raz?" she suddenly asked. "What will I eventually evolve with you as my sire?"

Raziel sighed softly, reaching over to stroke her hair. "One day you'll have wings," he replied. "And hopefully so will I. Perhaps I'll actually get to keep them this time around."

"Holy shit, we'll be able to fly?"

"I didn't say that," he admitted. He had no idea whether or not his wings would have eventually evolved to be flightworthy, all he knew was that the initial pair were anything but. They were in practice little more than flashy ornaments, and though they more than proved their worth in that regard, the truth was they were largely an awkward inconvenience, a truth which he was reminded of every time he attempted to roll onto his back during sleep, lean back into a chair, or reach for a shirt he could actually put on. Even showing them off turned out to be an exercise in frustration; he'd lost count of how many times he'd practiced his intended strut/kneel/unfurl plan before he was able to do it all in one smooth movement without them getting caught on one another as he brought them down from his back, and even that had only worked after he gave up on opening them both at the same time and resigned himself to simply doing it one after the other. 

He had no way of knowing that none of it would matter once he'd successfully revealed them, of course. 

She mentally prodded him to show her what they looked like, and as soon as their appearance popped into her head she understood what he meant. "You didn't actually try to fly with those, did you?" she laughed.

"No, or I'd have put myself straight back into a coma," he groused. "I tried to see if they'd gain me a bit of height in jumping once, but they were useless even for that... I simply couldn't put any real force into flapping them. I don't think they were attached to the rest of me in a way which allowed for the proper anchoring of tendons and muscle. Who knows what changes they would have underwent eventually... but we'll never know, now. Our changes in form were dictated by Nupraptor's corruption, and I'm no longer affected by it. For all I know, they won't even grow back, and if they do, I've no idea what they might look like."

"Maybe you'll get feathers instead. Those would be pretty."

Raziel's heart squeezed painfully at the reminder of the last set of feathered wings he'd been around. "I hope not," he said, recalling his first thought upon seeing Janos' wings up close. "They'd be a real pain in the ass to maintain."

"I'd help."

Raziel couldn't help but smile as he buried his face in her hair again. "I know you would. Come, let's sit up so I can get you fed, and then we can doze a while," he said, slashing his wrist and offering it to her once she was upright and pulling her back to settle against his shoulder as she drank. "I've not had a body that could sleep in quite some time... and I am very eager to be reminded what it feels like to do so."

Chapter Text

Amalia had only just licked the last of the blood from Raziel's healed wrist when a knock at the door sounded, and Tantallon's voice carried through from the other side. "Sire? I know you said not to disturb you, but..."

Raziel was already out of bed and in his robe. He quickly unlocked the door and yanked it open, gazing at his firstborn's guilty countenance. "I'm very unsettled," Tantallon whispered, looking completely lost. Raziel immediately gathered him into his arms. "Everything's going to be alright, my son. Come get into bed," he replied.

"You've soiled the sheets by now, no doubt," Tantallon said, wrinkling his nose. "I'd rather not be the one laying in the wet spot, if it's all the same to you. Particularly since I'm not the one who made it." Amalia snickered and immediately shuffled off the mattress. Figuring that the sheets could be changed out later, she pulled the bedspread up and smoothed it out before going in search of a fresh gown and underwear. "I might head downstairs to see what Kain is up to," she announced, hoping he might be willing to work out some of the details about going to get her backpack. Once she'd left Raziel flopped backward onto the bed and held his arms out in invitation, and Tantallon couldn't help but smile as he hopped up over his sire and stared down at him. "Your mind is really from the future? Just... here now?"

"It is, yes," he replied, reaching up to take a lock of Tantallon's long wavy hair between his claws. Oh, how he'd missed such simple things as this small show of affection. If he were being honest with himself, in his arrogance he'd taken many things for granted before his fall; his brother Rahab perhaps being the finest example. But Tantallon... he'd always appreciated Tantallon, had always given him the credit he was due. The fact that after all this time, after all the misery he'd endured he was lying here looking up into his firstborn's golden eyes once again brought a lump to his throat that he was just barely able to swallow. "A rotten future from which I'm happy to have escaped and even happier to have the opportunity to rewrite."

Tantallon had not even known that time travel was possible, and had frankly already tired of trying to wrap his mind around any of it. "That bad, is it?" He sat back onto Raziel's shins, again wrinkling his nose as he grabbed the edge of Raziel's robe, which had fallen to the side and left him quite exposed, and threw it back into place. Raziel either didn't notice or didn't care.

"Worse. Unimaginably so."

"Let us speak no more of it, then. I just want to-"

Another knock sounded at the door, and Raziel called out to whoever it was to enter. It opened only a few inches, and Stella's head popped through. "...Lord Raziel?"

Raziel very nearly told her that she needn't address him with any sort of deference any longer; he in fact fully intended to tell the humans that he no longer considered them servants, though he knew that Lorrelin would put up a fight and likely simply refuse to acknowledge he ever even broached the subject. He thought better of it, however, realizing that they'd already had their lives shaken up enough for now. Perhaps once they'd left this place he'd tell them. "Come in, Stella. Join us," he offered, eager for an opportunity to get to know her all over again. She'd always been one of his favorites; a sweet little thing who was always on top of her work and rarely gave him any trouble. She outshined her timid younger brother by far until Raziel had noticed his talent for growing flowers, at which point he promptly brought him into the trusted inner circle of servants who had the privilege of entering his quarters, much to the boy's poorly-concealed fright. It had been Vance who had suggested, after much hemming and hawing, that flowering vines would look lovely out on the railing to his balcony.

Stella's eyes widened and darted to the side briefly as she hesitated, but after a moment she slipped through the door and approached the bed, taking great pains to avoid eye contact with Tantallon. She'd hoped to throw herself back into her work and simply avoid him as much as possible in an attempt to dispel her feelings for him, but that was going to be damned difficult now, with whatever Kain had in store for all of them. She stopped a few feet away from them, blinking. Did Raziel want her to get into bed with them? The very idea was unthinkable; she'd only ever been allowed to touch it in order to change the bedding, which was why she'd ventured up here in the first place, knowing it likely needed to be done by now.

Tantallon moved off of Raziel's legs and both vampires rearranged themselves to lay properly on the bed, but Raziel sensed Stella's hesitation and wanted to put her at ease. "You needn't climb in if you'd rather not, though you're more than welcome if you'd like to. There's a chair over by the vanity, if you'd prefer." She breathed a sigh of relief and retrieved the chair, pulling it up next to the bed just as the gears in Tantallon's head started turning. If they were leaving here, if everything was changing... did that mean Raziel's rule about bedding servants was out the window? Did he even remember making that rule? Perhaps if he pushed the limits a little, just to see how his sire reacted...

"And here I thought I wouldn't have any trouble getting you into bed with me," he said.

"Subtle, Tantallon," Raziel said drily.

Tantallon kept his intense gaze on Stella and only shrugged in response, triumphant that he hadn't been harshly rebuked. He'd already interpreted the mild response as tacit approval, and as far as he was concerned, all bets were off now. Stella began to blush furiously and wring the fabric of her tunic in her hands, confused at why he would say something so bold with Raziel lying right next to him. "I... I've already got you in enough trouble, Master Tantallon," she replied. "I'm really sorry you got punished and I didn't..."

"I'm going to go check on the others," said Raziel, giving them a smirk before adjusting his robe and making for the door. Tantallon hardly noticed. He blinked at Stella, both surprise and guilt registering on his face. He really should have known that this would weigh on her mind afterward.

"I didn't want you to be punished, Stella. Believe me, Lorrelin was quite eager to find out the name of the girl I'd kissed at the feast, but I wasn't about to serve you up on a platter to her for a thrashing." Though he largely refused to give her up just for the sheer satisfaction of getting under Lorrelin's skin, he also hated the very thought of her having to endure a belting every bit as harsh as the one he'd got, if not even harsher. Lorrelin would not have hesitated to tie her to the bench for such a transgression, and Tantallon knew it. Stella was a hard worker, tough and resilient, but unlike Lorrelin she was actually respectful and had never needed a heavy hand to be kept in line; he couldn't imagine her ever doing anything that would actually warrant such brutal treatment.

"That was very kind of you, and I do appreciate it..." Stella replied, "But I still feel a bit guilty. I know you got it pretty bad..."

"I knew the risks," Tantallon shrugged. "And," he continued, giving her his best bedroom eyes, "I'm not sure if you noticed just a moment ago, but this future Raziel who's with us now seems to have reversed his position on the whole thing. I know it must have been quite frustrating for me to have left you wanting the way I did... and I would very much like to make it up to you," he said silkily, sitting up and offering her his hand.

"I... you... But, Master Tantallon... in Lord Raziel's bed?!" she sputtered, even as she took his hand and allowed him to pull her close.

"I can guarantee you that crazier things have happened in this bed than what I'm suggesting," he replied with a wry look as he slid his hands from her ribcage to her waist.

"What, exactly, are you suggesting?" she breathed as she followed his lead, letting him guide her onto the bed to lie on her back. "Because I've never..."

This stopped Tantallon short. The way he'd imagined this going down was him picking up exactly where he'd left off, making her come, and then taking her roughly in what he hoped to be the first coupling of many... but virgins required a much softer approach. Kicking himself for failing to even think of whether or not she had any real sexual experience, he immediately decided to switch tactics and take intercourse completely off the table for now so as not to overwhelm her.

"You needn't worry about engaging in the act itself until you know you're ready," he reassured her, brushing a strand of hair out of her face as she gulped. She'd begun to tremble, and he remembered the way she'd feared his ability to control his own prey drive, making a mental note to stifle any growls that threatened to erupt from his throat during their tryst. "We'll just take things slowly for the time being. Now, look at me..." he commanded mildly, giving her a pointed look as her frightened eyes met his. "...because this is important. If you want me to stop anything I'm doing, or even if you just want to slow down for a moment, you must tell me. The last thing I want is for you to do something you're not ready for because you think I'm willing to put my desires over your well-being. I'm not. This is not the time for self-sacrifice on your part. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Master Tantallon," Stella nodded, gulping once more. "What if... what if I want you to do something, but I'm too shy to admit it?"

He laughed softly. "I can push you a little, as long as you promise you'll stop me if you actually want me to stop. Even if something just isn't working for you and you'd like to try something else, you only need tell me. That does happen on occasion. I need to be able to trust you on this, because if I find out afterward that you regret any part of the experience, the guilt will weigh on me for the rest of my life... and eternity is a very long time indeed."

"I promise," she assured him, the gravity in his tone having thoroughly convinced her that he'd respect her wishes should she change her mind about anything. "But you're making it sound... rather complicated."

"It is complicated, when it's all new and you don't know what you like or don't like. There's nothing to do for it except learn."

"Teach me, then," she replied softly. All her resolve to avoid falling even more deeply in love with him had flown right out the window. She knew this would end in disastrous heartbreak... but what else was there to do? How could she possibly pass on what would no doubt be a truly profound experience, a sublime memory, a highlight of her youth to look back on when she got old? How deeply would she regret not seizing the opportunity to have her first love become her first lover? She was absolutely powerless to resist, and had indeed even grown a bit bold. "...and I shall endeavor to take your lessons to heart," she finished with a tiny smirk.

"You always have been a fast learner," he said, returning her smirk as he leaned down to kiss her.

Tantallon tasted every bit as good as before, though he was far less aggressive this time. She dared to reach up and lightly run her fingers through his hair, eliciting what sounded very much to her like a cat's purr, only shorter and far deeper. Having never before interacted with a vampire in a way that would prompt it, she'd had no idea they could make that sound, and she covered her giggle with her hand. "Did you just purr?"

"Yes," he replied, unable to stop himself grinning at her amusement. "We have lots of ways to express ourselves that humans don't. Purring like that is simply how we communicate appreciation toward something pleasant. And before you compare us to cats," he said, pointing a talon at her with a tilt of his head, "We don't just sit around doing it willy-nilly. It's more an acknowledgement than anything."

She laughed softly at the thought of a vampire curled up in someone's lap purring up a storm the way a fat, lazy housecat would, but his purr had indeed only been a single short burst of noise. "It would take a very large cat to make a purr like that one," she said. "A lion, maybe."

"I've never seen a lion," he shrugged, trailing the tip of his claw down the front of her tunic. "I'm not entirely sure I'd want to get close enough to try to make one purr."

"Can't argue with that," she replied, again reaching up to touch his hair. "So... what were you planning to do to me before Amalia ruined it the other day?" 

"Ugh, that little shit," he grumbled with a roll of his eyes, causing her to giggle again. "If she hadn't been disregarding a command not to drink I'd have simply told her to get lost, but she's a willful one. If it makes you feel any better, she got a taste of the crop for it." Stella had been rather resentful toward Amalia for interrupting, honestly, though she supposed now she could forgive her, especially since she'd apparently been punished for the misbehavior that led to Tantallon taking off after her. "But to answer your question," he continued, "I was going to uncover your charms and use my mouth."

This left her somewhat aghast. She'd heard bawdy jokes about women performing this act on men, but she didn't think anyone actually did it, and it had never even crossed her mind that a man might do it to a woman. Tantallon must have picked up on her disturbed expression, because he huffed a laugh before leaning down to give the spot where her neck met her shoulder a little demonstration lick. "Think about it a moment..." he whispered in her ear, causing her to squirm underneath him. No doubt she'd be thinking about it constantly from here on out, because from what she'd just felt on her neck she could hardly imagine how good it would feel in that particular area. Just the heat of his tongue alone would... But what about his fangs? 

"Would that be... safe?" she asked, staring at his lips. "I mean with your..."

Tantallon was already moving smoothly backward, reaching underneath her tunic as he did so. He stopped long enough to reassure her. "I won't hurt you, I promise. I know where my fangs begin and end."

She remained silent for as long as she could as he hooked his claws in the waistband of both her breeches and underwear, trying to relax, but couldn't manage it for long. "It's just that... well, there are four of them, and..."

"Just trust me on this one," he said with a smirk as he began to tug them down, and it suddenly occurred to her that he was actually about to unclothe her. "Wait," she said, balking at revealing herself so quickly. He immediately let go and held his hands up.

"Too fast?" he asked.

Was it too fast? Stella was torn between her desire to maintain her modesty and her desire to allow him to remove her clothing and touch her. Momentarily paralyzed by the choice she needed to make, she heaved a frustrated huff. "I don't know," she replied, perfectly honestly. "I want to do everything there is to do, but I'm afraid to get started. It's frankly quite annoying."

"That means you're not quite ready," he said, moving back up to lie alongside her. "We can just go back to kissing for a while; we've got time to spare. Raziel clearly knew where this was going and vacated for a reason. He'll no doubt ensure that we remain undisturbed."

"I don't want to just kiss, though," she whined.

"Well then we are at an impasse, now, aren't we?" he replied with a chuckle.

"Oh... fuck impasses," she growled after another moment's internal debate, and he laughed harder. "Just do it and get the hard part over with."

"Perhaps you'd like to take them off instead?"

Her eyes widened at the idea of stripping while he watched, and she shook her head. "No, that's worse. Much worse."

"If you're worried I won't find your form pleasing to the eye, you needn't give it another thought," he replied, taking hold of the edge of her tunic rather than reaching underneath. He bade her sit up, and she obeyed, allowing him to pull the article up and over her head, gulping as the cloth she had wound around her breasts to support them was revealed. "I always did like the look of these wrappings," he murmured, tracing his clawtips down the front, "Even over the more fitted undergarments which serve the same purpose... though I must admit I'm grateful not to have to wear them myself."

She giggled a bit at this, put somewhat at ease by the frank statement. "It's not so bad, once you learn how to wrap it properly."

He hummed, clucking his tongue once with a shake of his head. "Thing is, I'm much more interested in unwrapping it," he replied, moving slowly to allow her a chance to stop him should she still be nervous about her clothing being removed. She only held her breath and closed her eyes, and he soon had her unwound, pressing her back down against the mattress and tossing the cloth to the floor in one fluid movement, moving in to kiss her again to distract her until she got used to being bare before him. It did not take long for her to settle, and he soon had her breeches and underwear off as well. "See, now was that really so hard?" he teased.

"Clearly it was!" she replied with a glare as she flushed red. "You're terrible." That was something that she'd never have said to him before now; such familiarity was unimaginable even though he'd always been nothing but kind to her.

"I'm sorry," he replied with a smirk.

"No, you're not!" 'she laughed as he planted a kiss right between her breasts.

"No, I'm not," he grinned, continuing his way down until his breath stirred the patch of hair that spread over her mound.

"Wish there was a way to get rid of that," she mumbled, shifting uncomfortably. It was difficult to imagine anyone being able to enjoy this business with a mouth full of pubic hair... but at least she'd bathed before beginning her shift.

"Won't stop me," he replied, sliding his hand between her knees. "Never has." There were ways to make it disappear, of course, but Tantallon had no desire to stop long enough to explain them.

Stella wasn't listening. She was frozen again, having to choose whether to allow him to push her legs apart or to resist to prevent him just... seeing everything. All of it. Right there in the open, where he could stare while she lay there feeling like a mouse caught between a cat's paws. Tantallon noticed immediately and moved up alongside her to reassure her, knowing that he might have to push a little at this point. "Easy, sweet girl," he soothed as he applied pressure to the inside of her thigh, attempting to slowly ease it to the side. "Remember what I said..."

She immediately melted into his touch with a soft whimper. "I know a spell to blunt my claws," he informed her, preempting the inevitable panic that would arise when she realized the deadly sharp points were about to make contact with the most vulnerable area of her body. Humans, in their fear of their own fragility, did tend to balk at that... not that he could blame them. He held his hand up as he spoke the proper word, allowing her to watch as the faint blue magical energy surrounded his claws, then offering them to her to touch. "See?"

"That's... wild," she said, gazing intently at the way the force field surrounding his dangerous talons glowed slightly wherever she touched the tip of her finger to it, only to fade back to the barely-noticable transparent blue when she pulled it away.

"Wildly useful," he responded with a grin as he gently put his claws to her folds, waiting out the momentary full-body tension that resulted from the contact before allowing them to settle down completely against them. Stella wondered to herself if she'd have stopped him at the feast if they'd gotten this far, or if she'd have perhaps been too caught up in it all to think so much about everything. Maybe that was her problem... maybe she was simply stuck too far inside her own head to be able to relax. But the way it felt for him to touch her like this... she suspected that coherent thought wouldn't be a problem for much longer. "There you go," he praised as her breath hitched at the sensation. "Ready to try what I mentioned before?" he asked, deliberately keeping his touch light so as to make her desperate for more.

"Yes," she said with absolutely no hesitation. Tantallon did not have to be told twice; he moved into place and got to work immediately.

"Oh my god," she squeaked, arching as his tongue found its mark. The sensation was indescribable, better than she ever could have imagined, and whatever he was doing, it was already about to make her come. "Fuck, Tantallon!" was all she managed to get out before the most spectacular orgasm she'd ever had overtook her entire body, necessitating that he hold her still lest she accidentally squirm away from his mouth and prematurely spoil the fun. He seemed to know just when to stop; pulling back just shy of the point where pleasure began to lose ground to overstimulation.

"What did I tell you?" he asked when he raised his head, smugly satisfied at the quick results. Stella responded with a breathless, incredulous laugh.

"That was... I've never experienced anything like that..."

This caught him off guard. "Have you not... surely that couldn't have been your first orgasm?"

"I've never been touched except over my clothes," she mumbled, looking away from him. "And none of them were very good at it, frankly."

"Don't you ever touch yourself when you're alone?"

"What sort of question is that?" she asked defensively, beginning to blush once more.

"So, yes?"

"Ugh," she groaned, loathe to admit it but knowing she couldn't lie to him. "Fine, yes. Once or twice. It's just never been... that good. Not to stroke your ego or anything," she grumbled, side-eyeing him as he broke out into a wide grin. "What now?" she asked, hoping to change the subject.

He snickered, knowing better than to believe she didn't do it fairly regularly; generally if you'd done it once you'd done it a thousand times. "Would you like another?" he asked, eager to keep the ball rolling.

"Well," she began, hesitantly. "I was thinking more that..." she trailed off, but her eyes drifted to his groin. "I mean, fair is fair, after all..."

"If you feel you're ready for such activity, then I'm certainly not about to tell you no."

"I mean... I don't know if I can use my mouth the way you did... not yet." Possibly not ever, but she didn't want to admit it... it seemed rather selfish to have allowed him to perform an act that she wouldn't reciprocate.

"Stella, I'd never expect you to jump straight to that. It's a much appreciated service, to be certain, but a bit... advanced."

Stella relaxed a bit, relieved. She honestly might have made herself muster up the courage to just do it had he not just told her what he did... but that was exactly what he'd made her promise not to do, she realized. Unsure of how to continue and fearing that she was getting caught up in her own head again, she drew in a shaky breath, avoiding Tantallon's gaze.

"Come here," he said softly, shifting onto his back and bidding her to roll onto her side against him. "Give me your hand." She obeyed, and he guided it downward over where his cock lay underneath his breeches, just below the laces that kept them snug. She only touched him lightly at first, in much the same way he did her, but finally rested the weight of her hand upon him, flexing her fingers lightly, blinking as she felt the firm bulge beneath the leather. Now that she was actually looking at the area, she realized she could see the outline of it straining against its confines. Her eyes widened a bit with concern.

"How big are those things?" she blurted, causing him to laugh.

"It varies," he replied, still grinning. "There's an average, of course."

"You must be well above," said Stella, still eyeing the area. That was a compliment, right? She hadn't really meant it as one, it had been more a plain statement of opinion, but she'd heard men bragging about their sizes often enough to know that most would find such an observation quite flattering.

Tantallon only shrugged. "I dunno," he said. "I don't bed men, so I've not seen a particularly large sampling of full erections. I've had group encounters with both Raziel and Rahab, however, so I have seen theirs, I suppose."

"Wait... you all just... together?! With each other?"

He shook his head. "Only once or twice with all three of us, but since I've no interest in men I only interact with the women we share. Raziel and Rahab will occasionally have contact with one another, particularly if it pleases whoever else is present to watch, but generally when I'm involved with either of them I'm just off to the side with my own partner heckling them until I'm too distracted by her to keep it up," he grinned. "You should give it a try sometime... it's a great deal of fun. As far as their anatomy goes, Raziel has claimed to be somewhat above average, and I'd guess I'm about the same as him, I suppose? Rahab is slightly smaller than us, so he's probably average. Then there's Turel, who might be bigger than all three of us put together. Bastard probably skews the numbers, to tell you the truth," he concluded with distaste. It was possibly a slight exaggeration... but not by much.

Stella gasped and covered her mouth, looking somewhat scandalized. "So it's true, then!"

Tantallon rolled his eyes. "Oh my god, why am I not surprised that someone from all the way over here has still managed to come across Turel putting his freakish genitalia on display?"

"Well, Soren was brought here from the Sanctuary, so he's been around all of the Lieutenants at some point. He was telling the other servants that he'd seen Turel's cock, and that it looked like an asp viper slithering out from between his legs!"

The mental image caught Tantallon completely off guard and caused him to burst into raucous laughter. "Okay, I'm going to need you to repeat that word for word to Raziel and Rahab later," he said once he'd recovered enough to speak. Stella was delighted to have made him laugh so hard, and found herself somewhat less intimidated when he moved her hand aside so he could undo the laces and free himself.

It did not last. Once his cock was fully revealed, Stella jerked her hand back, shaking her head as she eyed it, looking more disturbed than he'd ever seen her look. "No. Absolutely not, that is not... that is not going to fit where it's supposed to go," she insisted.

"Stella," Tantallon soothed, moving his hand to her face. "You needn't worry about that. Your body is meant to accommodate it; it'll fit just fine when the time comes."

"How?! I tried to get two fingers in there once and it hurt like hell, and I do not have big hands." she cried, holding her hands up for proof.

...Oh. That could possibly present a problem. "Perhaps your maidenhead is particularly narrow," he mused. "That would make it difficult to get past."

"Is that... is that what makes you bleed the first time?"

Tantallon snorted with derision. "Only if your lover is a fiend or a fool," he replied. "And I can assure you that I'm neither. With patience and gentle treatment it's generally not a problem. What were you trying to do when it hurt?"

"I mean... do you really need to ask?" she huffed.

He laughed softly. "At what point along the way did you try to use your fingers? You may have simply attempted it too soon."

"Well, it was what I started with that time," she admitted sheepishly. "I didn't even finish; I was afraid I had somehow hurt myself and would have to tell Lorrelin, which would have been absolutely mortifying. It frightened me so badly I never tried it again."

"That's almost certainly why, then," he informed her. "Is it alright if I try? My talons aren't half as thick as my cock is, and the spell hasn't worn off."

"You don't think it'll hurt?"

"You've just had an orgasm, you're still plenty wet, and I'll be gentle," he shrugged. "If you feel anything more than mild pressure, then you need only say the word, and I'll stop so we can figure something else out. If it doesn't hurt, then you can stop worrying about it."

"Boy, am I being adventurous tonight," she observed, relaxing her legs to allow him access again. "I must be enjoying myself or something."

Tantallon snickered as he began to gently press the tip of his talon into her. "Try to stay relaxed. Does it hurt?"

"...No, actually. Not at all."

"Well, apparently you were just doing it wrong, then," he teased, relieved to find out that it wouldn't be an issue after all. "Because I'm already well past the entrance."

"Well it isn't like anyone teaches us about these things, you know," she replied somewhat huffily, finally wincing slightly as the thickest part of his talon slid in. "Okay, that stung a bit, but not nearly so much as when I-" She broke off, moaning softly as he curled the digit upward and applied a bit of pressure. "Oh my god, do that again," she begged.

"Again? But you were so worried it would hurt... I wouldn't want to hurt you, dear Stella."

"Master Tantallon," she huffed, "I never thought you a cruel man until now, but-"

He could only laugh in response as he got back into position between her legs. "Oh, I'm cruel, am I?" he asked as he bent to put his tongue back to work, gently curling his talon in the right spot at the same time.

"Oh, god, please," she begged.

"Please what?" he asked, planting a kiss on the inside of her thigh.

"Fuck me!"

Surprised, Tantallon looked up from between her legs. He'd been expecting her to beg him to make her come again, not to stop what he was doing to actually take her. "Stella... I'm not entirely sure you're ready for that. You're still quite inexperienced, and this is moving faster than it probably ought to be..."

"I promised to stop you if I need you to stop, didn't I?"

Well, he couldn't really argue with that... Stella was a grown woman and perfectly capable of making her own decisions in this regard. "And you're certain this is what you want? Right now?"

"Tantallon, please..."

"Alright, sweet girl, alright... far be it from me to disappoint you," he soothed as he sat up to remove his clothing. Once he'd tossed his shirt to the floor and shuffled out of his breeches, he moved over top of her and leaned down to kiss her, jolting slightly when he felt her hand slip between them to grip his cock. He helped her position him at the correct angle, and she writhed underneath him as he slid the head through her slick folds.

"Remember what I said," he admonished once more, waiting for her to nod up at him before he began his slow push forward. She winced slightly just before the head breached her, only to whimper when it did. "Okay, stop," she gritted, and he froze, studying her face intently.

"Do you need me to hold still, or do you need me to withdraw?" he asked, not wanting to simply yank himself back out of her for fear that it would cause her more pain.

"Just... hold still a second," she replied, shifting her hips slightly and taking a deep breath before nodding at him to continue. He was able to press all the way in this time, and was forced to swallow down a satisfied growl at how amazing it felt to sink inside her for real after days of fantasizing about little else. She nodded again when he asked if she was okay, and so he began to slowly move, relishing the way her nails suddenly found their way into his flanks.

"Oh, god..." she sighed, reaching up to run her fingers through his hair. He gazed down at her a moment before leaning down to kiss her once more, keeping his movements slow so as not to cause her pain.

"Fuck, Stella, you feel impossibly good," he breathed, eliciting a soft moan. He hadn't kept this slow a pace for this long in years and had almost forgotten just how erotic it could be to slow down and just focus on the sensations rather than allow himself to get lost in primal instinct as he usually did. 

"You were right," Stella breathed as she tangled her fingers in his long hair. "It does fit..." She'd always wondered what it would feel like to have a man inside her, but between never having been penetrated and never having seen an erect cock in her entire life, she'd had absolutely no way to even fathom it. Now that she knew that it was this good, this deeply satisfying, she feared she'd never want to do anything else. Even what little pain there had been was easy to simply push through; it had faded so quickly that she'd forgotten it had ever hurt at all.

"I'm always right," he replied with a soft snicker. "Shall we pick it up a little?"

"Yes," she begged, and he was more than happy to oblige. She couldn't muster up the courage to touch herself when he encouraged her to do so, and in the position they'd started in he couldn't quite keep his own hand in place well enough to provide the consistent stimulation that she needed to find release. But Tantallon was no quitter; rather than continue down a path he knew would lead to frustration for her, he gently withdrew and urged her up onto her hands and knees before entering her again. This made it much easier to reach under and touch her the way she needed him to, and the results were spectacular indeed. She wasn't quite so quick to come this time, but it still didn't take long. The instant he felt her tighten around him he was undone; she yanked him hard over the edge with her and tested every bit of resolve he had not to bite or growl upon the final hard thrust.

His willpower ultimately failed him somewhat on the growling, but Stella was still too caught up in the storm of her orgasm for it to really register. Fighting for breath, he gently withdrew right before she simply flopped down beneath him on her belly, exhausted. Her head popped back up immediately as she felt his spend leaving her body, and he snickered as he settled down next to her, recognizing the surprised expression on her face.

"You'd think you'd have done enough laundry by now to know it ends up everywhere after," he teased, and she shot him a look as she blew a stray strand of hair out of her face.

"You'll forgive me, of course," she replied between heavy breaths, "if my powers of cognition have yet to sort themselves out after all that."

Tantallon could only laugh, somewhat surprised at her proper use of the word 'cognition'. She was turning out to be a lot smarter and a lot more interesting than he'd realized, and it pleased him to know that she was unlikely to begin to grate on his nerves the longer he spent in her company. He intended to enjoy her for quite some time, after all, and even hoped she'd be interested in being shared with Raziel or Rahab. He did bristle slightly when she took it upon herself to squirm her way across the bed to snuggle into his side, but fought it down, not wanting to upset her so soon after deflowering her. Odd that she'd be so bold now that she was no longer caught up in a sexual frenzy; she'd always been respectful of the rules regarding touching one of them without permission. Perhaps she wasn't entirely satisfied and intended to attempt to rouse him again after a few moments of rest? Wouldn't be entirely surprising for a first-timer. Tolerating her show of affection would be worth another round, to be sure.

Raziel's lecture about the dangers of bedding servants lest they develop romantic feelings suddenly hit him like a ton of bricks. He glanced at her, dismayed to see her gazing at him with sheer adoration in her eyes. Looking away immediately with a gulp, he lay staring straight up at the canopy as she contentedly stretched her legs and settled in.

Fuck.

Chapter Text

Rahab.

Yes?

Help.

...With what?

A... situation. Upstairs.

Somewhat bewildered, Rahab excused himself from the conversation taking place downstairs and went up to the bedroom. When he stuck his head in the door to find Stella lying in bed naked next to Tantallon, stuck to his side like glue and snoozing happily, he smirked slightly, knowing that Tantallon had figured it out.

Got yourself into a fine kettle of fish now, haven't you?

I think she's in love with me.

Rahab snickered. No shit. 

It's not funny. 

It's a little funny.

What do I do?! I don't want to hurt her! It isn't as if I don't care about her, I just...

Do you not feel the same? You could always take a page out of Raziel's sordid little book and wed her.

When Tantallon only glowered at him from his position on the bed, Rahab decided to relent, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall across from him with a soft sigh. There's nothing to be done for it now, Tantallon. I know you've never really been in love-

I have so! You should remember, she was one of yours!

Ah. Right. Well, you ought to remember, then, that newly established love isn't really much established at all, he Whispered, striding over to one of Raziel's wardrobes and beginning to rifle through it for a robe. If I recall, you moped for all of two nights after she got bored with you and disappeared, and then you promptly forgot her. You want my advice? Don't do what Raziel did with Amalia. Starve the beast rather than feed it, and she'll pine a bit and then get over it once someone else comes along who catches her eye. Here, cover her before she wakes and sees me, he said, tossing him the robe. Now, you'd best figure out a way to extract yourself from that bed, because preparations are already well underway and you'll soon be wanted-

Stella shifted slightly as Tantallon spread the robe over her, eyes popping open. She blinked at him in surprise, as if mildly disoriented, and then turned her head... and saw Rahab. Reality hit her like a kick from a mule, and she covered a shout with her hand as she gripped the robe tight around her and leapt out of bed. "Oh, god! I'm sorry!" she said in a rush, beginning to make her way to the door before promptly realizing, to her horror, that she was wearing one of her master's robes. She covered another shout of dismay, then quickly gathered up her own clothing and made for the door. "Forgive me, my Lords!" she managed, just as she slipped out. After a moment, the robe was tossed back inside and the door pulled shut. The two vampires stared at it a moment before Rahab turned back to Tantallon with a shrug.

"You're welcome."

When they returned downstairs, Stella was nowhere to be seen, and guilt immediately seized Tantallon. He'd let his damned libido rule him, ignored the truth in Raziel's warning, and pounced on an opportunity to get what he wanted without consequence the instant it presented itself. Now he was realizing that his selfishness did indeed have consequences... and Stella was going to bear the brunt of them, as if being torn from her home and thrust into an entirely new situation wouldn't be hard enough for her. Nevermind that he'd been fine in two days when his erstwhile girlfriend had stopped writing back and stood him up for a meeting they'd agreed to only the week before, his mind was now throwing the absolute worst scenarios at him. He pictured her breaking down when reminded of him the same way Rahab often did when something brought Lenore to the forefront of his mind. He saw her lying on her deathbed, dying old and alone after refusing to ever take another lover. Worse than that was the thought of her dying young, as a direct result of her heartbreak. Humans were just so fragile; it had to be possible for them to perish that way.

What had he done? And how could he bear to do to her what his woman had done to him? Ghosting was easy when you were far away, but they were all about to leave here together; he'd have to witness every bit of her pain and endure everyone's judgment if he suddenly gave her the cold shoulder after bedding her only once.

He hadn't really given the idea of actually leaving here much thought until now, and looking around at the familiar warmth and beauty of his sire's parlor, he was suddenly overwhelmed with the weight of what they were about to do. He'd never see this place again once they left. He'd never sit by the fire again, never help Raziel with alchemy in the lab again, never curl up in the library cubby with a good book again. And Raziel was different now; the one he'd known all this time had fled, and though this future Raziel clearly loved him every bit as much as the past one, Tantallon couldn't help but feel as if he barely knew him at all. This thought was the one that pushed him over the edge, and tears began to stream down his face in spite of his efforts to contain them.

Only Vance remained in the parlor when they came down, and Rahab immediately went into the library to join Kain, Raziel, Amalia, and presumably Lorrelin. Unwilling to face what lay ahead any more than he already had, he simply sank down onto the couch next to the human, who hardly even reacted when he did. Hugging himself, he kept up his efforts to keep his tears at bay.

"Won't be so bad, Master Tantallon," he heard Vance mumble after a few moments. "We'll get along. It'll be... it's an adventure, right?"

Tantallon absolutely could not be annoyed at the man for speaking to him without permission, not when was trying to console him despite his intense fear of vampires. He pushed all thoughts of Stella from his mind, because he couldn't even deal with that right now. Not while her brother, who would no doubt hate him soon enough for what he'd done and would do to his sister, was sitting here bravely overcoming his fear to be kind to him.

"Everything's already so different," he replied. "Not even a few hours ago, everything was normal and our future was secure. Now it's all just... shattered."

Vance moved off the couch to sit at Tantallon's feet, perhaps realizing that he was probably walking a fine line in his attempt to interact with him. "Yeh... sucks, don't it?" he replied, sounding completely deflated himself.

"Yes. It does."

"Huh, shattered's a good word for it," Vance continued after a moment's thought. "Nothin' to do but pick up as many of the pieces as we can and carry 'em with us, I guess. We'll always have fond memories."

Tantallon was more than a bit surprised at the... Well, he refused to call it wisdom, considering the source. Sensibility, perhaps. Something along those lines was present in the human's words. He was right... that was all there was to be done for it.

"Mistress Lorrelin's holdin' up well, of course," Vance continued. "She's already come up with a list of supplies, helped make plans to leave without causin' a stir, and she's off roundin' up what we'll need. Probably good she's a right old battle axe, 'cause ain't none who'll question her about it."

Vance's frank assessment of Lorrelin was most unexpected, and despite his melancholy Tantallon snorted with laughter. "...Wow," he replied. 

"Don't tell 'er I said that," the human grumbled, and he laughed harder.

"You needn't worry; it seems we share a common sentiment toward her. I bit her once, you know. Early on, shortly after she was promoted. She's had a poor opinion of me ever since, and it's always been quite mutual."

Vance snorted. "Runnin' her mouth, no doubt."

"Oh, of course. She was perhaps twenty-five, then, and already completely out of control. I made a polite suggestion that she manage something a bit differently, which, admittedly, was a foolish one that wouldn't have worked out the way I thought. Well, apparently she was having a particularly bad day, because she lost her temper and snapped 'Don't tell me how to do my job, you pompous-' and that was as far as she got before I had her on the ground with my fangs in her shoulder. Gave her a good shake and then tossed her aside for Raziel to patch up."

Rather than amused at the tale, Vance was silent and tense, seemingly lost for a response that he was certain wouldn't result in his own bite. Realizing he'd gone into far more detail than he should have, Tantallon deflated a bit, remorseful once again. "Sorry, little human. I should have known you wouldn't find that amusing. You needn't fear me, you know. You've always been respectful. Lorrelin is bold because she's good at her job and because Raziel actually enjoys the constant discord between them, and thus allows it." He reached down to pat Vance on the head only for the man to flinch under his touch.

Apparently he couldn't do anything right today. Feeling immensely guilty once more, he curled up in a ball on the couch with a soft sigh and simply stared at the floor.

Raziel hadn't yet noticed his firstborn's absence, being too caught up in searching through his desk for the oldest maps he could find. He'd nearly burst into tears when he'd first walked into his old library, having been convinced he'd never see it again and knowing that after they left, it would indeed be forever beyond his reach. At the moment he was all business, though, and he gnawed at his lip as he shut the drawer he'd been looking through. "I don't know that we have any maps from the time of the collapse, Kain. Perhaps in the clan library, but they'll be so faded and brittle by now that I'm not sure they'll be any use."

"Fuck it, then," Kain grumbled, irritated. "Our memory of the land will have to be good enough. We can lead the way out of the swamps between the two of us."

"What about other streaming chambers?"

Kain turned to glower at him. "You think it wise to emerge in the middle of the Sarafan Stronghold?"

"I don't mean those," Raziel snapped. "Do you think me dull? I meant others. Ones that we haven't discovered yet. Surely Moebius didn't limit himself to only three, two of which are for whatever reason in the same location."

Kain shook his head. "We'd need maps, or at least some sort of recorded information, for that, too. The only settings which are plainly apparent in the Chronoplast are the ones that lead to chambers we've already been to... by his design, no doubt. I've no idea what to set it to for anywhere else, and I'm not about to gamble on where we'd end up if I were to simply take a guess."

"Then it's either through the swamps and forest, or down from the cave to begin this leg of our journey. We're obviously going to need a base of operations. We can't drag everyone along for the search; It's got to be you and I alone. Tantallon and Rahab can look after everyone else while we're gone."

"I'd suggest Vorador's manor if not for it being either occupied by him or overrun with Sarafan, depending on exactly when we emerge. They'd be unlikely to survive either of those situations."

Raziel shuddered to think about what Vorador, in his bitter sadism, might do to Amalia should he get his hands on her, and if they were open to a suicidal confrontation with the Sarafan anyway, they might as well just make use of the time-streaming chambers within their stronghold rather than avoid it entirely.

"What about up into the mountains to find somewhere for them?"

"What about just traveling to the lake from here before using the portable device to go back in time?"

They turned and stared at Amalia, and Kain was immediately irritated that she'd taken it upon herself to get involved regardless of her suggestion being entirely worthy. He'd have soon come around to the idea himself had she not interrupted, and now she'd no doubt take credit for it. But would it work any better than going back in time first? They had to get back to that lake one way or another; not going to retrieve Amalia's backpack and search the area for the anomaly wasn't an option. He needed to know whether the portal was still present, open, and capable of consistent two-way travel between their worlds. If it was, then finding Janos and freeing him as soon as possible was even more critical than he'd originally thought, because he would be the only one who could possibly have insight into its nature and origin. 

"Forgot you had it, didn't you?" she asked, snapping him back to reality. He bared his fangs at her. "No one asked you, you intrusive little nuisance."

"I mean..." Raziel interjected, "It's probably the best idea so far, Kain. At least in this era, you're in control. We technically wouldn't even need to sneak our way there; we could simply pass our departure off as a visit to Rahab's territory and blaze our own trail off the road once far enough South. Hell, we could surround ourselves with an escort and then simply ditch them when convenient if we really wanted to, though I think both of those ideas would complicate things unnecessarily. If we take everyone there and get them safely set up..."

Kain dragged his palm down his face as he resigned himself to this particular course of action. "Get over here, Amalia," he commanded, noting with satisfaction her brief struggle to ignore the directive. That she hesitated at all was a testament to how firmly entrenched her characteristic spiteful defiance was, but ultimately, no fledgling vampire could disobey a direct command; not from their sires, and certainly not from him. With a scowl, she stalked over to his side and sulkily crossed her arms.

"Tell me what exactly is in this backpack of yours. Are there any of those handheld weapons you showed me? The ones that fire projectiles?"

"You're talking about guns, and no, there aren't, unfortunately."

"Not unfortunate at all. I will not have such things in this world. If I am to do my job as Balance guardian, the last thing I want is for such weaponry to fall into anyone's hands here to be reverse-engineered and handed out like cheap beer at a festival. There's nothing balanced about one side being so overpowered compared to any other... I've long since realized that. None of that nonsense is to be brought here, provided that gate is open. Is that clear?"

"Crystal."

"Good. Now, is there anything that might be useful? You say there's no magic, but you clearly possess and are capable of using advanced technology. Is there something in the bag that will allow us to navigate more effectively, or to locate someone in particular?"

She thought a moment. Her memories of home had returned in force, and though she wasn't sure she remembered everything, she was certain that she remembered most if it by now. "Not that'll work here in this world," she sighed. "Back home we have things in up in space that'll triangulate your position and tell you exactly where you are..." she said, showing him images of what she spoke of as she went. "...and even map a route to where you tell it you want to go, but I somehow doubt you've got satellites in orbit here. There are trackers that use the same technology to locate someone, but it needs to be planted on whoever you want to track."

Kain blinked back at her as the images faded. "How in the hell...?" he breathed as he tried to process where these 'satellites' were located relative to the planet's surface.

"Rockets."

Another blink, and then he simply shook his head. "What else?"

"Besides clothes, personal care stuff, and food, my laptop computer is in there, along with a Kindle, my phone, a speaker, headphones, and a solar charger. I'd meant to bring a handheld game system, but ended up forgetting to grab it before I left my house."

Raziel simply remained silent, since his memories of everything she'd shown his past self were so muddled that he might as well be just as in the dark about these things as his sire. Kain, on the other hand, grew irritated. "I don't know what any of that means, Amalia! Show us, and be descriptive while you do so!" he snapped.

Scowling, she imagined herself opening the laptop, starting up a word processor, and beginning to type what she wanted to tell them. "The computer has a lot of functions. Things are displayed on the screen that you're reading this from, obviously," she typed, taking the time to bold, italicize, and underline the last word before shooting Kain a glare and continuing. "You can communicate with others, look up information, play games, draw pictures... tons of stuff. The Kindle is much simpler, and just has a bunch of books on it."

"Books?" Raziel asked, intrigued.

"Yep," she said out loud. "Entire books can be stored on it. You choose which one you want and the pages are displayed one at a time for you to flip through."

He held his hand up. "Yes, but... book-sss? Plural?"

Amalia huffed a laugh. "I've got several hundred on mine," she said, grinning at the sharp breath he drew in. "I'm not sure if any of them would have information that would help us here, though, so it's irrelevant except for entertainment. The phone is just a smaller version of the computer, honestly, able to fit in a pocket. That's what we'd use to navigate if we were able to. The charger sits in the sun and converts the energy into a form that can be stored. When the devices get low, you plug them into that, and it recharges them. Oh yeah!" she suddenly exclaimed, turning to Raziel. "The speaker and headphones are devices that'll play the music I've got on the computer and phone. I've got hundreds of songs on both, spanning multiple genres and decades."

"I... think I need to go and sit a moment," he replied, looking almost faint at the revelation. Amalia laughed and followed him away, and Kain let them go. He was wholly uninterested in any aspect of these 'devices' that would not directly further their cause, and it sounded as if they were all utterly useless in that regard. Lost in thought, he began to pace, holding his chin in his hand, glancing up only once to see Rahab slinking out the door to the parlor behind Raziel and Amalia, casting a wary glance over his shoulder as he did so. The realization that Rahab was afraid to remain alone with him shouldn't have shaken him... but it did. 

Old memories resurfaced to become old regrets. Cuffing his fourth son about the head, boxing his ears, shoving him away when he sought comfort from his sire as all fledgling vampires do... He could tell himself it was because he didn't have the protective instincts that sprung from the conventional method of turning vampires. Whatever Mortanius had done to make him what he was, he'd always been different from his progeny. This knowledge did nothing to assuage his guilt. Even self-centered, sociopathic Zephon had been driven to keep his youngest fledglings happy rather than abuse them right from the start... even if he was anything but kind to them once they matured.

It was always sharp words and bared fangs for anyone save for Raziel, and Rahab, in his devotion, had only ever repaid him with loyalty, obedience, and his absolute best efforts. The way his son had looked at him every time he treated him badly now haunted him; it was always the exact same expression, one born of grief, longing, and deep hurt. When his bride had been killed, Kain had actually been relieved that he'd run straight to Raziel rather than him for comfort and support. He'd always viewed Lenore as a weakling and a hindrance anyhow, and deep down he'd been relieved to have her out of the picture as well, though at least he'd been smart enough back then to refrain from revealing those particular sentiments to Rahab. If there was anything that would have caused his loyalty to his Master to crack, it was that. "Selfish pig," he mumbled to himself, momentarily overcome with self-loathing.

He was shaken from his unhappy thoughts when the door opened to reveal Lorrelin. "What news?" he asked as she dropped to her knees before him, keeping her gaze firmly on the floor. Annoyed and still feeling bereft, he huffily waved a hand at her. "On your feet. I don't care about the formalities anymore. Just tell me what's going on with the preparations."

With a casual shrug, the human got to her feet as commanded and looked him in the eyes, entirely unafraid. "I've been to the stables and ensured there are horses prepared for you, Raziel, Rahab, and Tantallon, plus one to serve as a pack animal for our supplies. The rest of us, unfortunately, don't know how to ride and we haven't the time to learn, so either we'll need to take a cart or we'll have to double up. The horses look sturdy enough for either option."

"No carts; it'll slow us down too much once we're off the roads. You'll all just have to endure the saddle sores, I'm afraid. What of the supplies?"

"I caught Stella on her way out of here earlier and took her down with me to round up food suitable for travel, skins to carry water, and several changes of clothing. That's all sitting in the entryway waiting for Vance to haul up some packs and Stella to return again with personal care supplies, you know, soap and hairbrushes and the like. Rahab and Tantallon are going through Raziel's armory, and Raziel and Amalia are in his lab collecting whatever potions they think will be useful. He's got quite an extensive variety already, but I believe I overheard him and Rahab talking about finishing the brewing of a batch of shapechanging potions. Hopefully if they're going to be brewing, it won't take long. Oh, and as for the library, I suspect Raziel will need to be... gently encouraged to pare down the pile of books he's going to want to carry away from here."

This, at least, lifted Kain's mood. "Excellent work, Lorrelin. I can see why Raziel put you in charge. Continue your preparations and keep me in the loop. We can assess what we can accommodate as far as books go when everything else is gathered here."

"Thank you, Lord Kain. I'll get back to it, then."

Everyone continued their work, and within a few hours they had all they needed save for the shapechanging potions, which Raziel and Rahab were still bottling. The splash potions from his armory had been dusted off and brought out alongside the weaponry they'd chosen, which consisted of a few light swords, some small daggers for the humans to keep on them just in case, and three bows along with several quivers of arrows. Raziel had no armor that wasn't entirely too heavy to bother bringing along, and none of it would fit anyone but him anyhow, so it was all left in the armory along with the large broadswords, heavy polearms, and hefty battle axes that lined the walls. There was enough food and water to last the humans several days; after that they'd have to forage, hunt, or send one of them to the nearest market with a few coins to restock. Tantallon had finally forced himself to return to his old home to retrieve his own stash of gold along with several sets of clothing and a few blankets, and when he returned in tears Raziel took the time to console him before going to raid his wardrobes and library for whatever he couldn't bear to leave behind. The humans finally dragged in several tents and bedrolls, and once everything was carefully packed they all settled down to get what little rest they could.

They left in the middle of the day while most of the Razielim were asleep. There was no final tour and no goodbyes to anyone they were leaving behind. All was quiet as they led their horses through the gates and out to the road. Stella was the first to falter, and Tantallon tried his best to ignore her distress. He'd already resolved to follow Rahab's advice and avoid her until he was sure her feelings had faded, so someone else would have to console her. He kept walking past her, staring straight ahead even as he realized that no one else had noticed that she'd stopped.

She'd catch up, he told himself. She'd snap out of it and catch up; he just had to keep following the others. He'd hear her footsteps start up again any second now... Any second. He just had to avoid looking back.

...He couldn't do it. After several more paces without hearing her start to follow, he finally turned around, and the instant he saw her standing forlornly in the middle of the road, hugging herself and sniffling, he broke. "Come on, Stella," he said gently as he returned to her. He reached out his hand for her to take, and she finally turned away from the sight of home... the last look she'd ever get. "It'll be alright," he soothed as she leaned into his side, crying softly. Even Lorrelin sought comfort; sticking to Raziel's side like glue with a fistful of his sleeve held tightly in her hand even as her expression remained stoic. Tantallon had never seen her act this way once she was past childhood, and the knowledge that even she was barely keeping it together only distressed him further.

They stopped once out of sight of the stronghold, having decided it would be less hassle to wait to mount the horses until they were out in the open with room to spare and no one around to ask questions, offer help, and make annoying suggestions to take a cart rather than try to double up on their steeds, which were fitted with thick pads behind the saddles for the extra riders to sit on. Amalia opted to ride with Kain so that Lorrelin could stay with Raziel, Rahab pulled Stella away from Tantallon before she got any ideas and boosted her up onto his horse, and Tantallon was left with poor Vance, who wouldn't have been happy with any of them. 

Silent and full of sorrow, they continued up the road to begin their adventure.

Chapter Text

The first day of riding was difficult, to say the least. The road leading south out of the stronghold was deserted at the time of day they began, but after little more than an hour of travel Kain abruptly decided that he'd rather they stay off it. This lead to a harrowing ride through the thick brush and low branches that grew at the edge of the woods alongside the road until they finally got deep enough into the forest that it cleared out. Amalia was highly annoyed at having to spend the entire trip wrapped in an oversized cloak with a hood to keep the sun off her, but at least she was now too resilient to become sore from long hours on horseback. Sadly, the three humans could not claim the same. Kain allowed them a short rest to to give them a chance to eat a few bites, relieve themselves, and stretch their legs a bit, but then it was right back on the horses. 

By nightfall Raziel was having a difficult time staying awake, and Lorrelin was unintentionally making it worse. Though she'd spent the first hour or so sitting stiff enough to minimize physical contact with him, her exhaustion finally got the best of her and she ultimately ended up leaning all the way forward, even going so far as to doze with her cheek pressed between his shoulder blades. The warmth and weight against his back was comforting, and between that and the constant rhythmic swaying with every step his horse took he found himself repeatedly nodding off. He finally had to speak up and convince Kain that continuing on after dark was inadvisable; both humans and vampires alike needed to catch up on sleep, it would take a while to set up camp, and it was only inviting disaster to risk the horses stumbling in the dark while carrying two riders.

The first clearing they came across was fortunately quite suitable; it was on the leeward side of an outcropping of rock which would act as a windbreak should any weather kick up, and the vampires could just barely make out the sound of a brook running somewhere nearby. The humans had never once been outside the walls of the stronghold, and thus had no experience with the process of bedding down outside for the night. Raziel walked Lorrelin through how to set up the large tents they'd brought while Rahab showed Stella how to build a fire from wood her brother was gathering and piling nearby. She'd been afraid at first that she'd be in trouble for being found in bed with Tantallon earlier, but no one said a thing about it, to her endless relief. She was certain that Rahab had seen her naked, however, which did not ease her discomfort at being forced to interact with him further after being stuck on a horse with him all day. Thankfully, once she'd stacked the wood to his liking he ignited the fire with a wave of his hand and simply walked off without another word.

Tantallon was no happier when they stopped than he was when they started, but at least now there were things for him to do and people to assist. His resolve to avoid Stella faltered every time he looked at her; his only saving grace at the moment was how busy they all were with getting settled. He took the horses to the brook for water and gave them each a bit of grain from his hand, helped Rahab finish setting up the tent they'd be sharing with Raziel and Amalia, aided Vance in unpacking their cooking supplies so the humans would at least have the comfort of a hot meal, and finally offered to take first watch, which Kain promptly shot down because Lorrelin had beat him to it, having long since grown accustomed to being awake at night. He agreed to take second watch instead.

Once camp was set up and everyone finally had a chance to actually rest, morale was a bit higher. The woods were dark and the autumn air was chilly, but the fire was warm and bright. All three humans were good cooks owing to their regular rotation into kitchen duties, and the rich scent of vegetable soup and toasted bread soon mingled with the woodsmoke rising from the fire. The vampires had brought along enchanted skins filled with blood for their own sustenance (though Amalia insisted on having a small amount of what the humans were eating so as not to delay her reacclimation to the food she liked), and once there were full bellies all around they fell into comfortable conversation around the fire save for Vance, who sat off to the side against the rock, and Kain, who sat alone in his tent reading one of Raziel's books.

"We're used to sleeping during the day, of course, so this adjustment will be fun."

"The journey to the lake won't take much longer on horseback, Lorrelin. After that, we'll set up a more permanent camp, and you can assume whatever schedule you like."

"We'll assume whatever schedule our duties require, my Lord. We're not exactly on holiday, here."

"You needn't call me 'Lord' anymore, you know," Raziel replied, gently. "Things are different now. You're not our servants any longer."

Lorrelin blinked at him, surprised, then her gaze hardened as she parsed what he'd said. "I don't want to hear that kind of talk. We've spent our entire lives in this role, it's all we know, and I'll thank you not to bring it up again."

"Your lives belong to the three of you, now. That's all I'm saying. We're all in this together, more or less on equal footing at this point." Rahab and Tantallon both raised an eyebrow at that, but said nothing. Lorrelin simply waved her hand dismissively as she took a sip of water from the beaker she was holding, and that was the end of it.

"Damned bugs!" Vance suddenly growled, slapping at his arm.

"Well if you'd come closer to the fire, they wouldn't be so bad. It's your own fault for skulking in the shadows," Stella chided. Knowing she was right and unwilling to end up with any more itchy welts, Vance shuffled over to sit next to his sister, grumbling all the while.

Soon they all decided to retire to their tents; vampires in one and humans in another, with Kain in his own on the other side of the fire. Rahab's gaze fell on Amalia as he headed for his bedroll. Wanting to hear some new and interesting music, he glowered at her as his desire to hear her sing warred with his reluctance to admit to as much. Ultimately, he opted to compromise with himself by simply refusing to ask her politely. "You know, you could make yourself useful exercising the single talent you have," he said as he entered the tent and held the flap open.

"You're the last person here I'd give a blowjob to, if that's what you're implying," came her immediate deadpan reply, earning herself a satisfying snarl from Rahab, snickers from Raziel, Tantallon, and Lorrelin, and stunned silence from Stella and Vance.

"Forgive me for selling you short; it's two things you're good for, then," he sniped back as he dropped the flap and curled up on his side. "The other one."

"Fine, but I'm doing it for them, not you. Tantallon, you in?"

"I don't feel much like singing tonight, if I'm being honest," he sighed with a shrug. "It's all you tonight."

With a shrug of her own, she got comfortable near the fire, waiting for everyone to settle completely before getting down to business. She chose a song that she hoped Raziel might recognize, having sung it to him first when they met and then several times after they'd married at his request. After a moment's internal debate, she opted not to project the music for the vampires so as not to leave those without powers of telepathy with long stretches of silence while she thought through the relevant parts of the song. If all went according to plan, they'd soon all be able to hear it for real anyways.

"They're playing our song
They're playing our song
Can you see the light
Can you hear the hum

Of our song
I hope they get it right
I hope we dance tonight
Before we get it wrong

And the seasons will change us new
But you're the best I've known
And you know me
I could not be stuck on you
If it weren't true

I was swimming
My eyes were dark
'Til you woke me
And told me that opening
Is just the start
It was...

Now I see you, 'til kingdom come
You're the one I want
To see me for all
The stupid shit I've done..."

Raziel did indeed vaguely remember the song, and he huffed a sleepy laugh at the last line as he fought to stay awake to hear the whole thing. Tantallon, for his part, shuffled back out of the tent to sit in front of the flap. He loved this song, and had demanded she teach it to him the moment she'd finished singing it the first time. His mood lifted considerably, and try as he might to resist joining in, he ultimately failed three words into the chorus, his voice starting at barely above a whisper and steadily growing stronger as he backed her up on the last part of each line.

"Soil and six feet under
Kept just like we were
Before you knew you'd know me
And you know me

Blooming up from the ground
Three rounds and a sound
Like whispering, you know me
You know me

So this was our song
This was our song
I still see the lights
I can see them

And the crisscross
Of what is true, won't get to us
Cause you know me
I could not give up on you

And the fog of what is right
Won't cover us
Cause you know me
I could not give up a fight..."

By now, Tantallon was singing every word and had started harmonizing with her, and the two of them finished out the song and sat grinning at one another.

"At least we still have this, right?" Tantallon asked her. "We haven't lost everything..."

"Yeah, man... we can do this whenever you want to," Amalia reassured him.

"Strange how something we've been doing for naught but a few weeks has already become so dear. Will we really have the actual music soon? For real, I mean. Not out of your head?"

"If we can find my stuff, yeah. Believe me, everything in that bag will have your mind off things. Though I am admittedly a bit worried about how well everyone's going to share." 

"You forget that Kain is here, and even if he weren't, there's a pecking order. Neither the Master nor Raziel will allow any fights over your possessions. We'll probably be lucky not to have them taken away, if they prove to be that much of a distraction. We're on some sort of mission, after all..."

"You wanna go for a walk?" asked Amalia, suddenly feeling restless. Tantallon gave her a sly look. 

"Want to go for a hunt?"

"I... don't want to kill anyone, Tantallon. I know I'm not one of them anymore, but..."

"Who said it had to be a human? We could just go chase down an animal or two. Probably won't catch anything by time I have to be back for my turn on watch, but the humans will appreciate the meat if we do." He stood and offered his hand. "Come. I know how you infants are; I've been roped into looking after enough of you by now. If you don't wear yourself out while you've got the chance you'll be miserable doing nothing but sit on a horse under a cloak tomorrow."

The humans, of course, were a bit sore next morning, but they forgot their aches and pains the moment they cleared the sleep from their eyes and looked around. The forest in autumn was sublime; a fine mist hung in the air and the morning sun filtered through leaves colored red, orange, and gold. None of them had seen a real forest before, and they were all captivated by the novelty of being surrounded on all sides by nature. Lorrelin didn't even scold Stella and Vance when they began to turn over stones and dead logs to look for creepy crawlies, though she had plenty to say to Stella when she approached her with a gigantic beetle perched upon her hand. Tantallon, who couldn't help but feel protective of her considering all that she was going through, ended up intervening when it looked as if Lorrelin might slap the girl, leaping between them with a snarl and menacing her until she huffily backed down. Stella quickly shooed the beetle into the nearest bush and went to build the breakfast fire.

The midnight hunt had been a success; Amalia had managed to flush a big, fat rabbit straight into Tantallon's deadly talons, and they soon had it cleaned, spitted, and ready to be cooked. Once they'd eaten, Raziel took the humans to the brook to stand guard while they bathed, politely leaning against a tree with his back turned and his focus on the book he'd rescued from Kain's tent before they'd walked off. He snickered to himself when Lorrelin shrieked nearly as loudly at the cold water as she had at suddenly finding a huge beetle right in front of her face. "Could be worse, Lorrelin," he called over his shoulder, still grinning. "Better an uncomfortable chill than debilitating burns."

"Oh, shut up before I come over there and splash you good," she groused. "We'll see who's yelling then!"

By midmorning the humans were dried and dressed and the supplies were packed and loaded. They mounted the horses and got underway again, and Amalia immediately began to annoy Kain with questions.

"How much longer?"

"A few hours; probably late afternoon. We've gone the long way around this time, but we're on horseback rather than on foot. Be still."

"You think my backpack will still be there?"

"Yes."

"Then what?"

"We've been over this, Amalia," Kain sighed. "We're going to find that gate. Then we'll find you all a place to stay while Raziel and I go and look for Janos."

"Who's Janos again?"

Kain groaned in exasperation. "You are this close to riding with Raziel," he growled over his shoulder. "Then you can pester him to death instead of me."

"Am I pestering you?" Amalia asked sweetly, knowing perfectly well that she was.

"Shut your mouth, or I'll put you with Rahab instead!"

"Please don't," Rahab called from his place at the end of the line.

It was enough to shut her up, at least. The rest of the trip was uneventful, and they soon found themselves at the lake's edge, well south of where they needed to begin searching.

Rahab dismounted first, and he began to pace along the shoreline. While everyone else save for Raziel and Kain looked nervous and unsettled, he appeared to be positively elated. "I can't believe we're about to actually travel through time," he remarked to Tantallon as Kain began to arrange everyone so that they could hold onto one another as well as keep physical contact with all the horses. "I can't wait to see what it's like on the other side!"

"You would be thrilled by all this nonsense," Tantallon groused. He wanted nothing more at the moment than to go back home and forget any of this had ever happened.

"I do wonder what effect this might have on the animals," Raziel commented. "Perhaps you ought to Charm them first, Kain. We can't have them bolting the second we emerge."

"I plan to," Kain replied as he checked that the horses were positioned where he wanted them. "I've been working this process out in my head the entire way here. Once I've finished subduing them, all of you need to grab onto one another, and someone needs to have one hand on each horse and the other holding the reins."

The humans, of course, doubled over and began to heave the moment they arrived, and once they were done being sick they were too dizzy and disoriented to stand on their own, just as Amalia had been. Stella was affected the worst, and Tantallon found himself kneeling next to her, holding her hair back while Raziel retrieved a canteen of water for the three of them to rinse their mouths out.

"Sorry guys... I should have thought to warn you about that," said Amalia, looking rather guilty. 

"Get back here, Rahab," Kain called over his shoulder to his son, who had already begun exploring the woods. "You're coming with me and Amalia to retrieve the bag." Rahab obediently returned to Kain's side to await further orders, too excited over being included to even be annoyed that Amalia was coming along too. "Amalia, go and get that cloak."

"But it's cloudy now!" she whined even as she went to retrieve it.

"Do you think it wise to assume it will remain so? Do as I say and hurry it up; we're not wasting any time stopping to bury you under a pile of leaves if the sun comes back out. The weather cannot be predicted."

"Yes it can."

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, but refused to engage her any further. "The rest of you, sit tight. Look after the humans, and keep a wary eye on the skies in case you see a possessed maniac with giant feathered wings swooping about."

"Wait, what?!"

"Janos Audron, Tantallon," Raziel replied sadly. "Sit, and I'll explain everything."

Knowing that this gate between worlds was little more than a nearly-invisible shimmery patch of air, Kain slowed their search to a crawl before they got anywhere near where Raziel had found her. The last thing he needed was to accidentally blunder into it and end up wherever Amalia had come from; he had no idea what would happen should Nosgoth's Balance Guardian suddenly be cut off from their world and was not about to risk having all his hard work undone by one single misstep. Though the sky stayed dark enough to protect her from the sun, after two hours Amalia was nearly bursting with restlessness, and she soon got distracted and began to wander off. Kain immediately directed Rahab to retrieve her, and he was more than happy to do so by taking hold of her and physically dragging her back. She reacted predictably.

"Get the fuck off me, asshole!" she snarled as he grabbed her by the wrist. Breaking out of his grasp proved impossible, which sent her from righteous indignation straight to murderous rage. Kain opted to simply let the situation play out as it may once Rahab hauled her back and threw her at his feet, figuring that Amalia could use a good thrashing to temper some of that attitude of hers, and it might as well take place now while Raziel wasn't around to intervene. These situations usually ended up being resolved in one of two ways, and they clearly weren't about to fuck it out. This suited him just fine; given the imbalance of power between them a fight would waste far less time.

Amalia had barely hit the ground before she turned and launched herself right back at Rahab with a howl of rage. He overpowered her effortlessly, tackling her right back down to the forest floor and pinning her there on her back before delivering a savage bite to her forearm when she tried to take a swing at him. This didn't bother her nearly as much as the fact that he now had her completely immobilized with an iron grip on both wrists; she wanted to fucking fight, and he'd more or less ended it within seconds. She bared her teeth and screamed at him in frustration, and he bared his right back.

"Give it up, fledgling," he snarled. She responded with a futile attempt at biting him right in the face.

Kain simply shook his head in amazement. Rahab's bite had been well placed; his fangs had gone straight through between the two bones in her forearm, tearing her sleeve and spattering blood everywhere, but it seemed as if she'd barely even noticed. It certainly hadn't helped to subdue her one bit; in fact it may have done the opposite. He thought back to the servant she'd bitten back at the Sanctuary, but he was beginning to question his prior assessment that she'd make a fine vampire. He hadn't expected her to be able to so easily overcome her natural instinct to defer to those of higher rank now that she'd become one of them. This sort of vicious behavior by a fledgling toward any elder, much less one of the Lieutenants, would normally bring about a swift death; fledges who lashed out like this were a liability as well as a nuisance. Amalia was a classic problem fledgling, and seeing as disposing of her was in no way an option, she needed to be brought to heel and kept there.

"Sire," Rahab growled, never breaking eye contact with her, "May I have permission to cut a switch from the nearest tree and whip her bloody?"

"If she keeps this up any longer, I'll bare her arse myself and hold her down for you."

That brought a swift end to it. The anger faded from Amalia's eyes, and she shot Kain an injured look from her position on the ground, as if she felt like he'd betrayed her somehow. "Don't look at me like that, Amalia. You are out of line. The next time you pull a stunt like this, a lashing will be the least of your worries. Have you forgotten what we're here to do, child? Do you suppose that now that you've got Raziel back your part in this is over? That you get to sit back, put your feet up, and do nothing but bask in his adoration in between your disrespectful fits of temper?" he demanded, advancing on her. "You are a high-born vampire, sired by one second only to me, and yet you behave as if you're little more than a wild animal!"

Sensing that she was about to break, Rahab abruptly gave her a loud snarl. With a cry of fright, she instinctively bared her throat to him in submission. Satisfied, he dragged her to her feet and shoved her away.

They got moving again, and Amalia trudged along behind Kain and Rahab, subdued and silent. She suddenly missed Raziel more than anything, and was torn between wanting to turn and run straight back to his arms and wanting to seek comfort from Kain. But Kain was mad at her now. Properly angry, not just annoyed or exasperated at her usual antics. She expected no consolation from him and she was sure he wouldn't allow her to go back. She didn't even care about her backpack anymore... all she wanted was her sire.

"Still sulking, are we?" Rahab asked her after half an hour or so. She didn't respond, and he thought it would be better to simply leave her alone for now. Under normal circumstances, after disciplining a fledgling this young he'd make an effort to smooth things over and console the child he'd chastised, provided their behavior had improved. But Amalia wasn't his fledge (thank the gods), and even though he was pleased that she seemed to have learned her lesson, he still disliked her intensely and was content to let her stew if she wasn't willing to engage. Her mood didn't improve until she finally broke down crying and practically threw herself into Kain's arms, apologizing over and over and begging him not to be angry with her, much to his exasperation.

"Enough, Amalia," he said. "So long as you've learned your place and resolved to improve your behavior, all is forgiven. Well, by me, anyway," he added as she clung to him despite his efforts to unwrap her from around his torso. "I'll not speak for Rahab. Now let go, we need our wits about us. We're getting close."

"Okay," she mumbled as she wiped her eyes on her non-bloody sleeve, feeling somewhat better now that she'd regained his favor. She wasn't entirely sure she liked how much she now craved his approval; these new instincts of hers were turning out to be difficult to ignore if she wasn't completely pissed off. His comparing her behavior to that of a wild animal had stung far more than it would have when she was human, and she was certain that if not for the effects of the instincts on her mind she'd never have felt a single scrap of regret or shame about attacking Rahab no matter how badly she lost the fight. She had to stop letting him get to her; she could not allow herself to lose control like that again, and not just because she didn't want to be whipped. Sniping and shit-talking was one thing; she knew that there'd still be plenty of that coming from Rahab and she'd probably continue to give as good as she got, but she had to disengage if his barbs began to truly anger her, even if it felt like she was letting him win.

Kain immediately recognized the blown-over tree that he'd found Amalia under when they came upon it. She retraced her steps to where Raziel had left her before she went to find a place to hide, and then stood looking around, trying to remember how she'd got there. "I came from north of here, past where that other tree blew down," she said. "I can't exactly remember the path I took, but it was probably that of least resistance."

"You lead the way, then," replied Kain. "Both of you keep an eye out for anything that shimmers; and if you see it, keep well away from it."

"The backpack might be a problem too, as far as seeing it goes. It's green and brown."

"You forget that the Master and I have a far keener sense of smell than you. The shore is clear and level to the north," Rahab pointed out. "This hill leads straight down to it; it's likely you came up from there. We'll find it."

Amalia shrugged and slid down the hill, walking slowly and peering through the trees. It was at least another fifteen minutes before Rahab caught a scent both familiar and unfamiliar, a combination of Amalia's scent along with things he simply could not identify save for a faint whiff of woodsmoke. It did not take long for him to follow it back to its source, and he returned triumphant, holding the bag up by one of the straps and resisting his desperation to sit down and spend hours studying it inside and out. He handed it to Kain, who promptly tossed it at Amalia's feet. "Open it up. Let's see these technological wonders of yours."

She did not need to be asked twice. She sat down and quickly unzipped the main compartment and was greeted with the fuzzy face of a stuffed giraffe. "Oh my god. I forgot I brought him!" she cried, yanking the toy out of the bag and hugging it to her chest. She'd stuffed it into her backpack on a whim when she walked past it on her way out of the house, figuring it would bring her some comfort. Both Kain and Rahab knelt down next to her, staring at the thing as she squeezed the life out of it and buried her nose in the top of its head.

"What the hell is it?" Rahab asked. It was obviously a child's toy, but unlike any he'd ever seen.

"His name is Hightops," she replied, her voice cracking with emotion. "My grandpa gave him to me the last time we went to the zoo... and he's gone now."

"...But what is it?" asked Kain, reaching for the toy's neck. She released her hold on it and allowed him to inspect it, and he held it up between two talons. It was made of high quality material, and the craftsmanship was remarkable. His talons had long since lost their sensitivity to touch, so he rubbed the thing's neck against his forearm, confirming that it was every bit as soft as it looked. He'd never in his life seen such an animal, however, and couldn't fathom what it was supposed to represent. The closest equivalent he could imagine was a horse, and this was clearly not a horse.

"He's a giraffe," she replied, projecting an image of the real deal for them both rather than try to describe such a ridiculous looking creature. "Please be gentle with your claws. I will be very sad if you inadvertently decapitate him."

Kain and Rahab exchanged glances. "That is not a real animal," Rahab declared.

"Yes, it is!" she insisted. "They live on a different continent than the one I'm from, but they have them at the zoo in the city," she informed him, once again projecting images so as not to have to explain to them what a zoo is. The moment Kain gave it back to Amalia, Rahab reached for it. She hugged it close again, leaning away from him and looking almost frightened that he might take it from her.

"For god's sake, Amalia, I'm not going to hurt it," he huffed with a roll of his eyes. "You just said it was a gift from one now departed. Believe it or not, I am not heartless." She reluctantly handed it over for him to inspect, and he marveled at it the same way Kain had. Lenore would have loved something like this... if only she were here to see it, to hold it. Had he known such things existed before she died he'd have done damn near anything to get one for her. Were his beloved here with them now, he was certain Amalia would allow her to borrow it for a bit, despite her clear attachment to it. Lenore would have treated it with the utmost care while she had it, and would have given it back with nothing but gratitude for having been allowed to keep it a while. He sat lost in his own thoughts, wistfully imagining her hugging it to her breast the same way Amalia had. 

Kain, on the other hand, had immediately lost interest in the silly thing. He reached into the backpack, pulling out a flat rectangular object that he recognized as the computer, though he couldn't remember what she'd called it. "Make it... do whatever it does," he commanded. She unfolded it and pressed a button on the side as she set it on the ground.

"Prepare to be amazed," she told them.

The screen blinked on, revealing a sharp, clear image of a field of beautiful flowers. Rahab had been absently stroking the giraffe's soft fur since his talons had regained their sensitivity when they lost their armor, but he was immediately pulled from his reverie as he watched Amalia's fingers fly to the little buttons labeled with letters, numbers, and a jumble of other nonsense.

"It's password protected," she remarked. "And before I let you handle it, you need to know that it's rather fragile. The screen can easily be scratched by your claws, and dropping it will probably break it."

"We'll treat it with care," Kain quickly replied as he extended a single talon toward the keyboard. Amalia took hold of it and directed it to the Windows key, snorting softly as he blinked, startled, when the menu immediately popped up.

This is where the problems began. As it turned out, thickly armored talons would not work with capacitive touch features, meaning the only thing Kain, Raziel, and Tantallon would be able to operate easily was the Kindle, which had physical buttons to press. Since she hadn't bothered bringing a USB mouse, unless they figured out how to use the keyboard for absolutely everything they'd be out of luck with the laptop, and the smartphone was entirely beyond their capabilities. This was also unfortunate for Amalia, because it meant she'd be the one stuck teaching the ever-curious Rahab how to operate everything, since his talons posed no such limitation and there was no way he'd ever be able to resist anything so interesting. She wasn't about to just let him putter around with her electronics on his own until he gained an understanding of them, so it was definitely up to her.

Kain wasn't particularly put out by his inability to use the devices, to be honest, once he'd confirmed that none of these objects were of any use to his quest anyway. Knowing that the tension between Amalia and Rahab would likely escalate again should she be forced to aid him in using any of it, he ordered her to put everything back into the bag and then slung it over his own shoulder, directing them to begin looking for the gate. "The sooner we find it, the sooner we can get back to the others. You can have your toys back then," he informed them, and they all got to looking. It had to be somewhere near here; Kain could feel the strange energy emanating from the anomaly. As long as no one blundered into it, they'd be just fi-

A blinding flash dazzled him and Amalia both. When their vision cleared and they looked toward the source of it, all they saw was Rahab standing rigid in front of a patch of shimmering air with a deeply disturbed expression on his face. Bunched up in his hands was Amalia's bright red nylon hammock.

"It goes both ways," he stated flatly. "And there is absolutely no magic there."

Chapter Text

"I cannot even begin to describe how unsettling the absence of naturally occurring magical energy is. It was almost suffocating, as if all the sound had been sucked out of the environment. You don't even notice it's there until it's gone," said Rahab, pacing back and forth several feet away from the portal, which he'd marked by placing a pile of stones next to it.

"The absence of magic is the least of our worries," replied Kain, sounding utterly defeated. "It's the presence of their weaponry that scares me. This is exactly what I feared; this is truly a gate, capable of two-way travel. And if she found it, someone else eventually will."

"How'd you get my hammock off the trees so fast?" asked Amalia. "It usually takes a while to take it down. You were back here almost instantly."

"I... was there for at least ten minutes exploring," he replied, his face the picture of confusion. "The fire was lit and what appeared to be food was sitting on a rock next to it, so I looked around trying to pick up the scent of any other humans, but all I could smell was the fire, the things you had sitting around, and your own scent."

"Wait... the fire was lit... and there was food sitting there? What kind of food?"

"Some sort of gross-looking sausage-like things in a package made of transparent material I didn't recognize, sitting next to what appeared to be bread rolls in a bag made of the same. I don't know, I certainly didn't touch it. It looked... off."

"Holy fuck. Was it early afternoon?"

"...It appeared to be, yes. What are you driving at?" he asked, annoyed.

"It sounds to me like time has stood still there the entire time I've been here. I left that stuff sitting there after I lit the fire and saw the gate. If time had been passing normally, the food would have been taken by animals and the entire forest would have probably gone up in flames at some point."

"Master?" Rahab asked, unsure of what to make of this. Kain didn't know what to make of it either, and simply threw up his hands. "Alright, you know what? Fuck it," said Amalia, striding forward with her hand outstretched. There was really only one way to find out for sure.  Another flash... and she was home. 

Everything was exactly the way she'd left it; time had indeed stood still. She kicked dirt over the fire anyway, unable to bring herself to risk leaving it unattended. The lack of magical energy in the environment was indeed oppressive; it reminded her of walking into a soundproof room, just as Rahab had suggested. This was nothing compared to the gravity of this new discovery, however. She stood blinking back tears as it finally sank in that the gate actually worked both ways. She could come back whenever she wanted, and everything would be perfectly preserved the way it was. She hadn't really lost anything at all, as it turned out. With a giddy laugh, she began to gather up her food supplies, ensuring that the lid to her cooler was shut tight and then throwing the non-perishables (including a liter bottle of her grandfather's favorite Scotch whiskey and the accompanying shot glass) into the bag she'd brought along to put her dirty laundry into, taking one last look around before returning to Nosgoth.

When the flash faded, Kain was halfway to the gate with one hand outstretched and the other shielding his eyes. He dropped them both and stared at the things she was carrying.

"How long was I gone?"

"You weren't," said Rahab, peering behind her at the shimmering portal. "The flash came, and you were just standing there when it faded. Judging by the fact that you've brought something else along, I think we can deduce that time stands still here while you're there as well."

Kain sighed deeply and began to walk off. "Let's go. We need to find Janos. This raises so many questions it makes my head hurt." Gods, how he wanted to just rest. He was so fucking tired of all this. When would it all end? When would their world finally be safe again? When would he be able to kick back and just spend an hour reading one of the many books on Amalia's strange little word rectangle without the constant presence at the back of his mind of what was at stake?

The moment they returned to the others, Amalia dropped what she was carrying, ran straight to Raziel, and threw herself into his arms.

"What the hell happened?" he demanded upon seeing her torn and bloodied sleeve.

"Ask him," she replied with a scowl, more than happy to throw Rahab under the bus. The more she thought of it, the more she realized that she hadn't been the only one acting like an ass earlier; he had been the one to escalate the whole thing in the first place by grabbing her by the arm instead of simply calling her back. No one had called him out for his own part in the whole ordeal, and it irritated her to no end that she was apparently expected to simply put up with his bullshit without reacting to it while he got away scot-free.

"She physically attacked me, Raziel," Rahab informed him warily, wisely keeping himself at a safe distance. "You cannot fault me for bringing her to heel. I wouldn't have bitten her had she not taken a swing at me after I already had her on the ground!"

To his surprise, rather than menace him Raziel instead gave his bride a sharp look. "He put you on the ground after you started a fight and rather than submit, you still kept fighting?"

"He grabbed my arm and started dragging me just because I got distracted and wandered! What, do you expect me not to be pissed?" she replied defensively.

"I expect you to conduct yourself with decorum, Amalia. Heaven knows you're unlikely to rein that sharp tongue in, and the rules regarding interactions between those of lower and higher rank have certainly been relaxed now that we've left the Empire behind, but I'll still not have you acting out like this. Do you realize that such behavior would have resulted in summary execution if things were as they used to be?"

"Yeah, well, he obviously won the fight and I felt horrible thanks to this stupid instinct bullshit I've apparently got going on now, so you probably don't have much to worry about anymore," she groused as she went back for the food she'd carried back. Though she certainly felt put out by the reprimand, she refused to sulk; she was entirely too eager to see what the humans thought of the snacks to let it dampen her spirit. She promptly called them over, set the cooler down, and dumped the laundry bag out on the ground. 

All three of them stood gawking at the bizarre array of packages; they'd never seen so many bold, bright colors in one place in their lives. Besides the hot dog buns and some ketchup and mustard there was a half-eaten bag of sour cream and cheddar potato chips along with several boxes of Girl Scout cookies, a handful of granola bars, a bag of Reese's Pieces, and six packages of Dunkaroos. Inside the cooler, still cold, were six cans of Pepsi and four bottles of water along with the unopened package of hot dogs. She finally plucked the bottle of Scotch out of the middle of the pile and set it upright, then sat back to enjoy the reactions the spread was eliciting.

"It's food," she finally had to say. Lorrelin wrinkled her nose, kneeling down to poke a finger at the bright orange material containing the candy. "That is not food."

"It has food inside it," Amalia explained as she opened the bag. "Here, try one," she said, placing one of the small candies into each of their hands. Stella turned out to be the bravest, and after giving the thing a cursory sniff she gingerly bit it in half. Her eyes immediately widened.

"Oh my god, eat them," she urged the other two. "I'm not kidding; that is the best thing I have ever tasted in my life."

With a shrug, Vance and Lorrelin popped their own candies into their mouths. Vance had much the same reaction as his sister, whereas Lorrelin maintained her composure aside from her eyebrows momentarily shooting up. "...How many of these are there?" she asked, and Amalia laughed. "Just this bag, I'm afraid," she replied. "I brought it back from my own world after we found the gate. I might be able to go and get more at some point, but I don't know when or if Kain will let me."

"What else is there, Miss Amalia?" asked Vance. He had been avoiding her since finding out she'd been turned, and she was immensely relieved to find him willing to engage with her again. "Sit down, guys. I'll open the rest up and you can try everything. Well, everything save for the Scotch. We can enjoy that later."

Meanwhile, Raziel, Tantallon, and Rahab were exploring the contents of the backpack. Tantallon's face lit up when the stuffed giraffe was revealed, and he promptly lifted it out and sat turning it over in his hands and rubbing the soft fabric across his cheek. "She didn't tell us about this! What is it?"

"A toy her grandfather gave to her before he died, apparently. A 'ja-rav', I think she called it. Some bizarre animal from her world. I thought for certain that she was fucking with us when she told us it was real, but she insists that it is. Apparently they're kept and cared for in extensive menageries where the public pays to go and gawk at them."

"A zoo, yes," Raziel replied absently as he tried to figure out what to do with the laptop. His memories of living with his bride had begun to return in force; he was able to recall entire conversations by now, and he remembered her explaining these sorts of attractions. "You should ask her what an aquarium is sometime, Rahab. It's right up your alley. Where's the thing with the books?"

"It's this one," said Rahab, digging it out and handing it to him. He was immensely relieved that Raziel wasn't angry with him for disciplining Amalia the way he had. "You'll not be able to operate the big flat one or the little hand-held thing, I'm afraid. You direct them to do what you want by touching them, and your talons won't register for whatever reason. The thing with the books at least has buttons."

Tantallon was so taken with Hightops that he forgot the backpack entirely. He wandered over to Amalia's side with the toy in his hands, plopping down next to her as she handed out a Thin Mint to each human. To her surprise, none of them seemed to like them very much. "The hell is wrong with you guys? Everybody likes these!"

"What's a ja-rav, Amalia?" Tantallon asked her, noting the soft gasp from Stella when she saw what was in his hands.

Amalia burst out laughing. "Giraffe," she corrected, spelling the word out for him. "Be careful with him, he has a lot of sentimental value to me."

"Amalia, may I...?" Stella asked, never taking her eyes off it.

"Sure, just be sure your hands are clean before you handle him." Stella immediately sidled over and planted herself next to Tantallon, who couldn't resist a smile as he handed it over to her. "What's all this, then?" he asked.

"It's food, Master Tantallon!" Vance replied, beaming. "Some of the stuff's a bit too strange for my tastes, but those little orange and brown things are candy, if you can believe it! I was just thinkin' of tryin' one of the drinks in that box o' cold stuff."

Tantallon hadn't had a cold drink in a very long time; he'd long since grown accustomed to imbibing nothing but warm blood and room-temperature red wine. Though the clear bottles obviously contained water, the metallic blue cans intrigued him. "Do it, Tantallon," Amalia encouraged, noting his interest. "One little sip isn't going to make you sick. Vance, grab a few beakers from the supplies, would you? I'll divide it up."

They all watched as pulled the tab on top of the can, startling slightly at the pop and hiss of it being opened. Having decided to throw caution to the wind, Tantallon took the first swig of the stuff as soon as Amalia handed him his share. He immediately began coughing as tears sprung to his eyes. "God, it burns!" he sputtered, shocked at how the drink somehow felt as if it were both hot and cold at the same time. "How much alcohol is in this?"

"There's no alcohol at all, it's just fizzy," laughed Amalia. "That bottle over there is the booze."

"Is there anything here that doesn't have enough sugar to choke all five of our horses?" asked Lorrelin as she handed her beaker back to Amalia. Stella passed her the chips just as Tantallon remembered the electronics.

"Hey, what about the music?" he asked, eyeing the bottle of Scotch and then exchanging a mischievous glance with Amalia. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" he asked.

"Oh yeah," she replied with a grin as she reached for the bottle. "We're gettin' hammered tonight."

When Amalia went to retrieve her laptop from Raziel, she instead found him with the Kindle. "We're gonna put on some music and get wasted," she informed him, prompting a raised eyebrow. Music was probably the only thing that could possibly drag him away from the extensive list of book titles he'd been perusing, but he had his reservations. "I'm not sure Kain will be amenable to that," he told her.

"I bet he will if I offer him some of the booze in return for letting us have some fun tonight. Honestly, Raz, I think it'll do everyone a world of good, especially Tantallon. He's been down since before we left."

He eyed the bottle in her hand. "You're probably right, I suppose... and I am quite eager to hear what your world's music really sounds like. I'll go talk to him while you do whatever you need to do with the devices. Don't start passing out the drink just yet; I suspect that's the part he'll object to."

To Raziel's surprise, however, Kain was completely in favor of letting everyone party. "They're not the only ones who want to simply forget for a night," he sighed wearily. "If Amalia's got something good, then let her share it out. So long as I get some, I don't care what you all do so long as you set up wards against noise. The last thing we need is to attract the attention of anyone nearby who might hear whatever she's got on those devices of hers. Set up camp first, then bring me enough of that liquor to help me relax and have at it."

Raziel relayed Kain's decree, and they quickly got their camp in order. Once Amalia had set up the laptop and connected the Bluetooth speaker, she retrieved the Scotch.

"Okay, we've only got one shot glass, so we're gonna have to pass it around if you want to do shots," she informed them as she opened the bottle. "Otherwise we can use the beakers."

"Never seen a glass that tiny before," Vance commented.

"Oh, yeah. It's an ounce and a half. You pour it and just toss the whole thing back at once. A few of those, and you'll be feeling pretty good before long."

"It certainly smells like good liquor," said Raziel as he caught a whiff.

"It's a fifteen year single malt, so yeah, it's good shit. I think Kain ought to have some first, though, so I'm going to take him some before we get started," she said as she picked up the bottle and shot glass.

He was standing in his tent, lost in thought, and was somewhat startled when Amalia poked her head through the flap. She wordlessly slipped through, poured a bit of the alcohol into the comically small vessel she'd brought in with her, and knelt before him, offering it up. "I wanted you to have the first taste, Master."

He was surprised at how much the gesture lifted his spirits. He hadn't expected her to ever refer to him as 'Master'; figuring her stubborn pride wouldn't allow for it. But here she was, on her knees before him, offering him what seemed to be very high-quality liquor and calling him exactly that.

Maybe she'd turn out to be a good fledgling after all.

"I could swallow this in one gulp," he remarked as he took the glass from her, noting the way his gigantic talons dwarfed it. Was she afraid he wouldn't like it?

"You're supposed to, it's a shot," she replied, throwing her hands up. "Are shots just not a thing here? Nobody knows what one is."

"Apparently they are now, thanks to you," he replied, sniffing at the small glass. It had been quite some time since he'd allowed himself this luxury, and he'd honestly rather savor what she gave him rather than just slam it back, but thought it only fair to do things her way for now, considering how well she was behaving. It was indeed excellent liquor; the taste was smooth and complex, leaving a pleasant burn behind as it slid down his throat to his belly.

"There's plenty where that came from if you like it. Why don't you join us? You've seemed really down since we found the gate."

"I'm just tired. I've got the weight of the entire world on my shoulders, after all."

"Not just your shoulders. We're all here to help... we only need you to lead us."

Kain reached down and stroked her head, grateful for the reassurance. "Go on and enjoy yourself with the others. I'll come and have a drink or two, but I suspect that music of yours is going to become tiresome rather quickly, at which point I'll be sound-warding my tent and retiring. Raziel and I will head out to search for Janos in the morning."

"Whatevs," she shrugged as she turned to leave. "I just want to see you drunk. It's gotta be entertaining."

Raziel had overheard the remark, and he shook his head at her when she returned with the bottle and glass. "You'll be disappointed, I'm afraid. He's a terribly boring drunk. He'll take a sip, sigh contentedly, and after watching everyone else get good and sloshed he'll just get up and stagger off to sleep somewhere."

"Unfortunate. Here, let's do this, then. Who wants the first shot?"

Rahab wordlessly held his hand out. "I'm not much of a drinker, so I'm only having one." He would have been perfectly happy to not have any at all, but he didn't want to be left out.

"Bottoms up," she said as she handed the glass off.

"Why all at once? Seems like such good liquor ought to be savored."

"Because that's how you do shots," she replied, exasperated. "If you want to savor it, get a beaker and let someone else go."

He shot her a look, then dumped the glass's contents into his mouth and swallowed the amber liquid down. "That... is very good," he commented as he handed the glass back.

"Lorrelin, how about you?"

"Forget it. I'll have some in a beaker; I'm too old for this 'shot' nonsense. Seems like the sort of thing burgeoning young alcoholics do before passing out in alleyways in the wee hours."

"You're actually not too far off," Amalia laughed. "Even I had a phase a few years back where I spent most weekends absolutely trashed."

Everyone else opted for the shot glass save for Stella, who Lorrelin warned against introducing herself to strong drink by slamming back an entire mouthful. "You'll choke, Stella; the stuff burns and you'll likely not care for the taste at first." The two of them sat and sipped from beakers, and even Lorrelin had to admit that it was damned good whiskey.

"Grandpa had good taste," said Amalia. "I'd like to think he'd be pleased to know I'm sharing one of his best bottles with friends rather than sitting around a camp drinking alone and feeling sorry for myself, which is what I would have done had I not ended up here. Here, Raz, keep pouring for everyone while I get some music going. What should I play first?"

"That symphony song seems to have somewhat universal appeal," he replied. "But we've got all night."

"Alright guys, here we go. Time to hear the real deal."

"Will you be singin', Miss?" Vance asked hopefully.

"Nah, you're gonna want to hear this stuff on its own for a while. Tantallon and I might sing later."

None of their reactions disappointed. "Wow, this is much better than hearing your fuzzy memories in our heads," Tantallon commented, eyes wide. What was coming from the strange little sound-making box was clear as a bell, sharp and full of little details that the vampires hadn't heard before. "I told you," replied Amalia, grinning at him before studying everyone else's expressions. Lorrelin sat covering her mouth, Vance and Stella both simply stared at the speaker, dumbfounded, and Raziel abandoned his drink in favor of staring at the laptop's screen, watching the little indicator slowly move from left to right as the song played. Even Rahab looked excited, though it was obvious he was trying not to let it show. He sat watching over Raziel's shoulder, reading through the list of song titles in Amalia's library. Even Kain was intrigued; he came out of his tent, poured himself some more Scotch, and leaned against a tree for the first few songs before coming to the conclusion that anything she had was too outlandish for his tastes and retreating back inside.

The night went on, and they all got progressively drunker. Even Rahab had been cajoled by Tantallon into joining in, and while he still had no interest in going as hard as the others he was at least maintaining a pleasant buzz. The subject of dancing inevitably came up, and Amalia was pleased to learn that Raziel was indeed a good dancer only to be disappointed when he told her that the only ones he knew were the waltz and the minuet.

"Man, don't give me that ballroom shit," she said, waving her hand at him. "Come on, I'll teach you how to swing dance."

"I'd really rather not, darling," he laughed, knowing that whatever it was, it wasn't going to be the sort of thing he was interested in. He honestly didn't even particularly care for the 'ballroom shit', as she so eloquently put it, but it had been expected of him to attend social functions in their society, and many of them involved that sort of dance. "Go and teach the others, I'm sure they'll be happy to learn." 

"Ugh, fine, Mister Party Pooper. Vance! Tantallon! ...Maybe Stella!" she called, unsure of whether or not Stella would want to join in. "Who wants to learn something new?" The four of them crowded around the laptop while Amalia brought up a video of several couples dancing wildly to Big Band in what Amalia explained was a contest in which she'd taken part once she'd learned this style of dance.

"We lost, of course, but there I am," she said, pointing to one of the couples.

"That is you!" cried Vance. "How did you... This is something that actually happened? Captured by this thing?"

"It's a recording, yeah. It wasn't made by the laptop, it was recorded by somebody watching, probably using a smartphone like the one I have."

"Look at them all go! This is the wildest dancing I've ever seen!" said Stella.

"It's absolutely ridiculous," commented Tantallon. "...and I love it. I fucking hate ballroom dancing; I want to do this."

"Okay, let's set the booze aside for now and I'll start teaching you the steps. You're going to be absolutely terrible at first, and that's fine. This is a complicated style of dance and the music is really fast. You're not going to learn it in one night."

By now, Lorrelin was three sheets to the wind, much to Raziel's endless amusement. Her personal bubble had shrunk considerably, and she sat down hard next to him and overbalanced straight into his shoulder. To his surprise, she didn't pull away when he steadied her.

"Hi," she said with a drunken smile.

"Hi...?" he replied, eyebrow raised.

"You know, you're really my favorite person," she informed him as matter-of-factly as someone who was absolutely hammered could manage.

He stared at her a moment. "...You are going to have so many regrets tomorrow," he replied, completely deadpan.

"Look at those idiots trying to dance!" she cried upon noticing what was going on nearby. "Bloody awful! Looks like someone's put them in a gigantic frying pan and set it directly on the fire!"

"You should go and join them," Raziel encouraged, hoping that she was drunk enough to actually do it.

"Fuck that," she slurred. "Can't even walk, and I need to pee. Might have to crawl."

"...So many regrets." he repeated to himself.

"Hi! What's up?" she called to Rahab as he walked past them. He paused, blinked at her, then wrinkled his nose.

"Your blood alcohol levels, clearly," he replied with disdain, and kept on walking.

Lorrelin only laughed. "I like him. He's funny. Shame he's such a sourpuss most of the time."

"He has his reasons. I'll explain when you're less... inebriated."

The dancers tired quickly and soon decided they'd rather be drinking again, which suited the other vampires and Lorrelin just fine. They'd been playing what Amalia referred to as Electroswing, and everyone who wasn't either in their early twenties or perpetually stuck there found it nothing short of obnoxious. Fortunately, it seemed that she'd chosen something quite a bit calmer and more pleasant this time.

We'll be singin'
When we're winnin'
We'll be singin'

Their relief did not last long.

I GET KNOCKED DOWN
BUT I GET UP AGAIN
YOU'RE NEVER GONNA KEEP ME DOWN

The four of them immediately resumed jumping around dancing like idiots, whooping and laughing. Raziel, Rahab, and Lorrelin exchanged exasperated glances.

"I really hope they get all this out of their systems tonight," stated Rahab.

He drinks a whisky drink
He drinks a vodka drink
He drinks a Lager drink
He drinks a cider drink

"What the hell are you playing now?!" demanded Lorrelin.

Tantallon stopped 'dancing' and turned toward her. "It's a song about getting absolutely piss drunk," he replied. "You ought to be able to relate, judging by the looks of you."

"I'm going to slap him one of these days," she stated flatly.

This was the point at which Kain poked his head out of his tent and watched in bewilderment as Amalia, Tantallon, Vance, and Stella continued to make fools of themselves. He then strode out shaking his head, wordlessly poured himself another generous serving of the liquor, warded his tent against any and all sound, and silently walked back in and secured the flaps, making it clear that he wanted no more part in any of this.

"I think he's got the right idea," said Rahab. 

"He's got the Kindle," Raziel groused. Sure he was drunk, but he was certain he'd still be able to focus on a book, and he'd long since grown tired of the raucous din his fledglings and the young humans were producing.

Ultimately, Amalia had better ideas. She sauntered over, dropped to her knees in front of where he sat, and kissed him, eliciting a surprised little growl. He responded immediately, dragging them both to their feet, heading for the vampire tent, and warding it in the same fashion that Kain had before disappearing into it with his bride.

Rahab threw his hands up. "I suppose I'll just be bunking up with you lot, then," he snarked, though he in no way intended to share a tent with a bunch of humans.

"I don't get it," said Lorrelin with a shake of her head.

"Don't get what?" Rahab asked. He suspected he might regret engaging her in conversation, but was starting to feel a bit left out again now that everyone save for the drunk woman was occupied.

"That," she replied, nodding toward the tent. "Don't see the appeal. Never have. Never even bothered with it."

He blinked at her, confused. Surely she didn't mean...? "Good god, woman, have you never been bedded?"

"Nope. Not interested. Never was."

Rahab almost wanted to offer to do it himself just to show her how utterly foolish her sentiments toward sex were, but he knew he hadn't the patience to actually put any effort toward making it good. She had been quite pretty in her younger days, from what little he remembered, and he supposed she still was now that he was looking at her... but he just wasn't in the mood to engage. Besides, he'd started drinking again now that he feared growing bored and feeling lonely.

"Pity," he replied. "It's fun."

"It's gross."

"So is the way you humans eliminate, but you don't see me denying that it's a normal part of life."

"I don't involve anyone else in my elimination habits either, thank you very much."

"...Fair enough."

The party soon wound down. Lorrelin ended up passing out right where she sat, and so much the better, because Tantallon and Stella had given in to temptation and were headed in the same direction as Raziel and Amalia. "Told you to leave it alone, you foolish boy," Rahab muttered as he watched him crawl over her and pin her wrists to the ground, leaning down to kiss her. He promptly poured himself another drink. Vance was still inebriated enough to willingly engage with Rahab, and he disgustedly abandoned the pair in favor of plopping down a few feet away from him.

"He's going to break her heart," said Rahab.

Vance shrugged with a sigh. "It's her own stupid fault. Can't tell 'er nothin'. She knows he's only in it for one thing. Told me as much when I told her what an idiot she was for lettin' any of this happen."

"Don't be angry with her," Rahab replied with a shake of his head. "You ought to be grateful you still have her. Tantallon lost his own sister seventy years ago."

Vance was surprised, to say the least. "I didn't know he ever had a sister."

"Indeed he did. His human mother was blessed with twins, or cursed I suppose, knowing how difficult childbirth is for your kind. Her name was Lenore," he said, knowing he really ought to stop talking but for whatever reason feeling compelled to continue. "She was my firstborn... and my bride. I loved her..."

"I... didn't know you was ever married, either, Lord. Hope you can forgive my ignorance... and I'll not ask you to talk about what happened to 'er. I'm sorry to hear it, for what it's worth." Rahab only shrugged and fell silent, having made himself sad like he knew he would should he keep running his mouth. After a moment of quiet thought Vance spoke again.

"Why don't you go and get 'er?"

Rahab snorted in derision, shaking his head. "Don't talk stupid. There's no bringing her back. That's not how vampires work; we only get one more chance at life and can indeed be killed for good. Fire will do the job just fine, in fact," he finished bitterly.

"But... Lord Kain... the thing he has... the thing that brought us here?"

It suddenly struck Rahab what Vance was driving at. He lifted his head and blinked, then met the human's eyes. "Why, you little genius," he breathed. Why hadn't he thought of the time travel device himself? If the Master would only grant him the use of it, just once... Did he dare hope? Could he douse the flame that had just sparked to life even if he wanted to?

No, he could not. He'd ask Kain in the morning. He'd borrow the device, and then he'd go to rescue her before they could hurt her. He'd kill anyone in his way and tear the fortress apart looking for her, and he'd see her again... he'd get her out of there, and bring her here, and then he'd go to Amalia's world and bring back as many stuffed animals as he could carry for her, and...

"Well, you ain't gonna be sleepin' tonight, eh?" Vance asked.

Rahab smiled faintly. "Indeed not," he replied just as a soft moan sounded from behind some bushes.

"Fuck's sake!" cried Vance, throwing up his hands in disgust. "I'm out. Ain't sittin' here listenin' to him goin' to town on my damned sister." He stood and stalked to the humans' tent, muttering something about finding some cotton to stuff into his ears.

Feeling grateful toward the human despite himself, Rahab decided to soundproof the tent for him to spare him any further trauma. Noting that Lorrelin was lying on her back, and knowing that she'd easily had enough booze to end up getting sick, he rolled her onto her side with his foot, rolling his eyes as well. Then he took up Amalia's laptop, dug out the headphones that she'd shown them earlier, and set about figuring out how to use the two objects to play some music just for himself. He didn't mind being alone if he had something to do, to investigate, to learn about, and he just knew there had to be a song that Lenore would love somewhere in the extensive list that showed on the screen. He'd play it for her once he brought her back safe, and wouldn't she be just thrilled to hear it?

Tomorrow, he'd ask the Master for the device. Tomorrow, he'd go and get her back.

Chapter Text

When Amalia woke an hour before dawn, she was more than a little surprised at what she saw. She'd expected to find Rahab up against the far wall of the tent with Tantallon in the spot next to him. Instead, she found Tantallon in Rahab's spot... and Stella in Tantallon's. He lay behind her with one arm slung over her, his three large talons awkwardly interlaced with her five slender fingers, and both appeared to be stark naked under the covers and were dead asleep. She got up, remembered that she was naked as well, wrapped herself in a blanket, and emerged from the tent to survey the damage from last night's revelry.

Lorrelin apparently hadn't moved much; she was lying in the grass right where Amalia had last seen her. There was about a quarter of the Scotch left in the bottle, which was sitting on the ground next to the upturned shot glass, and the beakers had been left all over the camp. The laundry bag containing a pile of empty wrappers and containers sat next to what human food hadn't been eaten over the course of the night. The speaker was right where they'd left it, and her laptop was...

Wait. Where the fuck was her laptop?

Scowling, she began to hunt for it, first looking under the laundry bag and then checking to see if anyone had put it back into her backpack. All she found was that Hightops, her headphones, and the power bank that came with her solar charger were also missing. Kain couldn't use the laptop, so there was no reason to think he had it, and Raziel, Tantallon, and the humans were all still asleep. The only one unaccounted for was Rahab. Of course it was Rahab.

It didn't take her long to find him, but when she did, she was greeted with an even bigger surprise than the one she'd woken to, one that had her instantly convinced of one single truth:

Rahab was entirely too smart for the middle ages. 

He'd donned her headphones, plugged them in, and sat himself down crosslegged on the ground in front of a large flat rock where her open laptop sat. Hightops was there next to it, arranged in an upright sitting position that indicated careful placement rather than just being tossed or dropped there (why Rahab had even brought him along, she could not guess.) The computer's battery ought to have died hours ago, but it was perfectly operational owing to the fact that he'd apparently worked out the power bank's purpose and figured out how to plug that in as well. She watched as he started a song from her track list, skipped through parts of it as if he were trying to just get a feel for if he liked it rather than listen to the entire thing, then moved the cursor to the taskbar and switched windows to an open Notepad document, where he promptly hunt-and-pecked the name and artist into a list he was making before retuning to Media Player to start the process over again.

Amalia stepped around into his field of vision, and he quickly yanked the headphones off his head and snatched the laptop off the rock as if he thought she'd come to take it back from him. "I didn't break anything," he said defensively.

"I can see that," she replied, staring blankly at the screen. "What are you doing?"

He stared at her a moment, eyes narrowed, as if debating whether or not he wanted to tell her or simply chase her off. Then he put the headphones around his neck and set the computer back on the rock. "Making a list of songs, obviously. I'd have asked if my brother hadn't had his cock down your throat at the time," he replied, apparently still feeling the need to justify taking such liberties with her property but unwilling to put the slightest bit of effort toward tactful phrasing. "But if I'm not interested in joining, I'm generally not interested in spectating either, so..."

"Man, I'm not even mad," she said truthfully. "I can't believe you figured this shit out to this extent in just a few hours."

"Why? It's not exactly complicated, if you're willing to engage in a bit of careful trial and error and have enough brainpower to apply basic logic to what your eyes tell you. I mean, the hole the little cord attached to the headphones goes into is the correct shape and size as well as clearly labeled with a symbol representing them, and this... whatever you'd call it that I'm putting words into is literally called 'Notepad'. It's obvious what its purpose is," he stated haughtily, then paused. "...What do you call it, by the way?"

"An application, or a program. In this case, it's a simple word processor. There are fancier ones, but this one suits what you're doing just fine."

"Why are the letter buttons so jumbled up? It makes it difficult to find the one I need."

"They're called keys. That arrangement makes it more efficient to type the words quickly. I can do around eighty or ninety per minute."

"Per minute? Horse shit," he scoffed. Amalia wordlessly sat down next to him, took the computer, pulled up his song list, hit the Enter key twice, and then proceeded to quickly type "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. See? Amazing what you can do with ten fingers, isn't it? Dickbag." She passed it back to him with a scowl.

Annoyed at being proven both wrong and inferior, Rahab briefly considered responding in kind and starting a Notepad insult war, but quickly realized how foolish he would look taking several minutes to type one sentence while she could call him every name in the book in the same amount of time. She clearly had him beat when it came to these things no matter how quickly he adapted. Instead, he backspaced until only his own work remained and moved on.

"I don't suppose you'd be willing to tell me how to capitalize the letters properly? It's driving me insane to see nothing but lowercase when I know how it's supposed to look."

She wordlessly reached over and demonstrated pressing the shift key at the same time as a letter.

"Ah." was all he said, feeling somewhat foolish not to have figured it out for himself.

Amalia stood up and began to walk off. "I'll just, uh... leave you to it, then."

"Wait," he said, navigating back to the taskbar and bringing up her web browser. "How do I fix this? It says I'm not 'connected to the web', whatever that means. I don't know what any of these suggestions mean either, and haven't enough information to figure it out on my own."

"You haven't any internet service here, either, so you're out of luck. There's no fixing that one in this world; you'd have to take it through the gate and back to civilization to connect to anything."

Rahab's eyebrows shot up as if she'd just given him a marvelous idea.

"Dude, no. Kain would fucking kill us, and I am not spending hours trapped in a car with you."

"Who said anything about 'us'?" he shot back.

Amalia leveled her gaze at him. "Rahab, I am being dead serious and one hundred percent not snarky when I say this: If you're thinking of trying to go there without me, don't," she warned. "I don't care how superior you think our kind is, and neither would the humans of my world if they got ahold of you. You'll be well out of your depth and will not survive there for long on your own." When he still looked somewhat unconvinced, she pressed on. "Unless you think you can figure out how to get back to my car, start it up, set up the GPS navigation to tell you where to go, and drive it without crashing it into anything, you're not getting anywhere in that world without me. I mean, you could try to ask one of the locals for help, but it wouldn't end well considering you cannot even hope to pass yourself off as human. You'd have a mob after you before you could get a mile down the road."

Rahab glanced at the stuffed giraffe, which had repeatedly stolen his focus over the last few hours and had him staring at it for several long minutes just fantasizing about how Lenore would react to it when he showed it to her. Honestly, he cared far less about this 'web' thing than he did about the prospect of having such a wonderful present for his bride sitting here ready to give to her when he brought her back, but he wasn't about to try to explain any of this to Amalia and doubted she'd help him anyway. With a sigh, he simply went back to his task. Amalia began to walk away, but then paused and pointed at Hightops.

"Be careful with my giraffe; I love him." 

"Once again, not heartless," he fired back without even looking away from the screen. With that, Amalia strode off to go back to bed, and Rahab set about narrowing the list of songs down to what he thought his bride would enjoy most.

Unfortunately for Rahab, before he could even work up the courage to ask about the device later on, the Master remembered, to his endless frustration, that Raziel now had a young fledgling and couldn't just leave her alone to help him search for Janos. He wasn't about to bring Amalia along, and thus he resolved to go and start looking on his own, right away. 

He took the time travel device with him.

He was gone for a full week, during which time Amalia both entered and emerged from her first pupation. Raziel and his descendents had always matured the fastest and had the shortest pupation periods, and though it was certainly out of the ordinary for it to happen quite this soon, it wasn't unheard of. When she woke with golden eyes, ebony hair, perfect ivory fangs and sharp black claws Raziel was practically beaming with pride. They began to look around for a good place for a more permanent camp and ranged far enough toward Nachtholm that they'd come across an old inn that had been abandoned. The road next to it was overgrown and hadn't been maintained for quite some time, and a further search of the area revealed that a wider, smoother road had been cleared several miles away, which likely caused business to dry up this far out.

They immediately took it over and began to make it livable again. It had clearly once been one of the most popular stops on the way to town, and boasted multiple guest rooms, large and small, both up and downstairs. The inn's tavern had a full kitchen and larder and there were stables and an overgrown field out back which looked as if it had been used to grow a fairly large garden to supply fresh produce to the cooks. Vance began to prepare the beds immediately, pulling out the dead crops and weeds and shoveling manure from the stable over newly turned soil to prepare it. "Won't do us no good this year, with winter comin' so soon, but it'll be prime growin' next spring," he'd told Lorrelin. "I ain't got much experience with vegetables, but I reckon I can learn." Lorrelin asked him to make a list of seeds to buy when they made their first supply run.

All the while, Rahab did whatever was asked of him and said nothing of his plans to rescue his bride, spending his free time either on Amalia's laptop or fantasizing about having her back. He'd ask Amalia to take him to her world to get Lenore her own stuffed animal, and was willing to do whatever it took to get her to agree to help him. He'd hunt for her and provide for her just like he always did, and they'd talk and laugh and read books together like they always had. He'd finally be able to touch her, to kiss her, to bed her. She'd always been so responsive to his touch, right from their first coupling on that night so many years ago. She was frightened, of course, to be taken for the first time, but he was her sire and her husband and she trusted him. Rahab wasn't particularly experienced himself at the time, but he got the job done, and done well.

No one really paid him much attention, which was fine, really; he preferred his computer time and silent reverie. His brother spent days hovering protectively over his sleeping fledge before she woke and had a tendency to growl if anyone got too close to her, and Tantallon was busy trying and failing to stop interacting with Stella, who he just could not seem to stop spending the night with, whether in her room or his. Lorrelin sulked for three full days after enduring the teasing she'd earned by completely missing the mark on what her tolerance for alcohol was like, and Vance seemed to have gone straight back to being afraid of him once he'd sobered up. He was on his own and had to stew in his impatience until the Master returned with the device, and when Kain finally walked in the door he was thrilled to find that Amalia had fledged to adulthood. Raziel would be now be able to leave her for short periods of time, and he and Kain immediately began planning another search. Rahab continued to bide his time. He'd waited a week; he could wait another hour.

He really ought to have known that Kain would say no. 

When Rahab finally approached him while he was alone in the room he'd chosen for himself, he was shot down and brushed off immediately. "Rahab, we don't have time for this. There are more important things at stake right now. The answer is no," he'd said, without even looking up from the map he was studying to see the gutted expression on his son's face.

There was no alcohol to be found in the inn's storeroom; it had either been taken along when the owners left or pilfered by opportunistic thieves since. Lorrelin had hidden the Scotch in a high cupboard in a fit of pique after yet another jab about her overconsumption, muttering something about it being "devil's brew", and had refused to tell anyone where it she put it. It was no more trouble for Rahab to sniff it out than it would have been for any of the other vampires had they not been too busy to indulge again, and as soon as he got his hands on it he went to his own room and proceeded to get absolutely plastered, unable to bear the crushing weight of his pain, his disappointment, his grief. The hope he'd felt while planning Lenore's rescue had been intoxicating; he felt like no matter what the future brought, he'd be able to find happiness there so long as she was back by his side. It had all vanished like smoke in the wind after talking to Kain, and now he was right back to living the nightmare of being without her. It almost felt like she'd been taken from him all over again, and it was more than he could bear. He ought to have known. 

He sat there, drinking and crying, crying and drinking, until Amalia walked past his door, which he'd forgotten to close, and saw him sitting at the small table that sat in the former guestroom with his head in one hand, a beaker in the other, and the bottle in front of him. 

"Are... you okay, Rahab?"

He snorted. "Spare me your feigned concern. We both know you care even less than anyone else about my well-being," he snarled before quaffing the last mouthful of liquor in his beaker. "You know, I do have to say, as utterly insufferable as you are... I envy my brother," he continued, eyeing her with distaste before dropping his gaze into the empty vessel. "He'll never have to sleep alone again. When he slakes his lust it's with someone he cares for rather than someone who's kept around solely for that purpose, or even with a stranger. He loves you with everything he has, and you're right there within his reach, whenever he feels the desire to reach for you..." he trailed off.

Amalia was... concerned, to say the least, at both his condition and his response to her. They'd actually been almost civil to one another since Kain had left; neither of them had gone out of their way to instigate conflict like they used to and they'd been working side by side every day to get set up in their new home with only the occasional snipe at one another. Hell, she'd even introduced him to Civilization 6 and let him have the laptop to play it whenever they weren't all busy working on something, largely because he just sat silently by himself as if he were lost in a daze otherwise. Sure, Rahab could be surly, even around people he actually liked, but to see him so badly intoxicated was worrisome considering he'd already demonstrated that he wasn't much of a drinker, even socially. She'd yet to ever see him more than pleasantly buzzed, so what the hell had happened to him to drive him to this?

"Okay..." she began, moving in to sit across from him, refusing to relent even when he tensed and growled low in warning. "Remember how you keep telling me you're not heartless? Well, this may come as a surprise, but neither am I. What's got you so upset? Believe it or not, my concern is genuine. This," she said, pointing back and forth between him and the bottle, "is not like you."

"You know nothing of what I'm like," Rahab snapped. "But fine, if you insist on putting your nose in my affairs..." he began, making a move toward the bottle of Scotch and scowling darkly at Amalia when she got there first and dragged it across the table out of his reach. "I asked our Master earlier if there was any chance he would grant me leave to use the time-streaming device... to go and retrieve my bride from a time when she was still alive. He said no, more or less immediately. Apparently my grief just isn't that important in the grand scheme of things." He grit his teeth as his slender claws bit into the wood of the table. "He'd have done it for him," he said angrily as tears sprung to his eyes once more. "He'd do anything for him."

Amalia's jaw dropped. She blinked at him once, twice. Then she shoved away from the table and stood. "Yeah, no. We're gonna steal it."

A jolt of panic instantly took hold of Rahab, momentarily yanking him back toward sobriety. "What?! Are you insane?" he demanded, staring incredulously up at her.

"Are you?" she countered. "There's a way to get her back, and you're gonna sit here drinking and moping like a sadsack and let it all go just because Kain's being Kain?"

Rahab was torn. In truth, he'd entertained the thought himself for an instant. Somewhere during the time it took for helpless rage to give way to hopeless despair he'd considered just waiting until Kain's back was turned and taking it. It had been disturbing to realize that for the first time in his long life he was genuinely angry at his sire, but he was... Oh how angry he was. But he couldn't go and take it, he just couldn't... the Master would never forgive such a transgression; disobeying him in this likely meant forsaking his favor for good, and what else was there to keep him going? Every moment of every day of his life had been spent striving for his approval. 

But did he even want his approval anymore? What had chasing after his sire's favor ever brought him, other than heartache? Could he ever forgive Kain, was the real question. Paralyzed by the turmoil and the dilemma, he had instead opted for avoidance. Now, here he was, drunker than he'd been in centuries and finding himself faced with it all over again, thanks to his brother's thrice-damned bride. He couldn't even find his voice to respond, and merely sat looking at her with an expression of terrified uncertainty. Amalia only rolled her eyes, turned on her heel, and walked out the door. 

Rahab had thought that he wanted her to go away and leave him alone, was really quite certain of it, in fact. Though he was in no way surprised to find her so eager to retreat from his presence, he was very much caught off guard by how much it stung that she'd simply given up on him without another word. Now feeling even sorrier for himself than he already had been, he promptly surged forward to reach across the table for the liquor bottle only to find it empty. Falling defeated right back into his chair, he buried his head in his arms on top of the table, fervently hoping that he'd soon simply pass out and gain a moment's respite from his despair. Eventually he'd have to sort through his emotions and get on with life, that much he knew... but he hadn't the strength left for it tonight.

He wasn't sure how long he'd been unconscious before the door slamming shut startled him out of his stupor (and his chair), but through the haze of surprised bewilderment he realized he'd fallen backward onto the floor. The only sense his drunken mind could make of it was that Kain had somehow discerned his blasphemous thoughts and had come to punish him for them, and he scrambled to haul himself into a kneeling position from which he could beg for mercy as the room spun wildly around him. "Sire, please, forgive me! I didn't mean to... I wouldn't have really done it, I-"

"It's me, you idiot."

Rahab lifted his head in confusion, fighting down the wave of nausea the sudden fright had sent straight up to the back of his throat. He stared blearily up into Amalia's disparaging countenance, then shifted his gaze to her outstretched hand. In it was the time-streaming device.

"Well? We doing this, or what?"

Chapter Text

Rahab could only blink up at her, stunned speechless. Had she really just...?

"Aaaaand you're wasted. Right." Amalia sighed as she stepped around him to set the device on the table. "Whatever," she muttered, "We need to plan this out anyway." She stepped back into his field of vision and he watched in confusion as she plopped right down on the floor a few feet in front of him. 

Rahab wasn't entirely sure he wasn't dreaming. "How did you...?"

"Kain and Raziel went to hunt down some meat for the humans nearly an hour ago, doofus. I went into his room and walked right back out with it. We'll be long gone by time they come back."

"Have you some sort of death wish, you idiot child?" Rahab demanded, as incredulous as he was hammered. "The fuck have I told you about just... just opening any damned door you see? If he'd had his room warded..."

"I'm not dead and the device is right here. Do you want to save Lenore or not? We need to start making plans."

Okay, so this was... apparently this was actually happening. Rahab's breath quickened as that small flame of hope reignited within him. He could do it now... Kain might be furious, but what's done was done; he had the device, and now that it was here he knew he wouldn't be able to bring himself to put it back. He could go and- Wait... we? Surely she didn't mean to- "Are you serious?" he slurred.

She raised an eyebrow. "Do I look like I'm playing right now? Yes, I'm serious. We have the device, so let's figure this out."

He held up his hand. "Wait, just a moment. You... you think you're coming with me?"

She looked him up and down. "Yeah, man. You're kind of a wreck."

"It's... it's not like... I don't think this is going to be... I'm quite certain I can manage-"

"Dude, you're absolutely trashed. You can't even manage a complete sentence right now."

Rahab sighed, deeply regretting allowing himself to spiral so badly. She'd been right, it wasn't like him, and now that he'd done it he had no idea what to do with himself other than sit here and wish he hadn't. But how could he have known that she would...?  And why? It wasn't that he wasn't grateful that she'd completely turned this situation around for him, he just... didn't understand. "Why are you doing this?" he implored, looking utterly lost.

She threw up her hands. "I already told you! There exists a way to essentially bring your beloved back from the dead. That is not something you just let go because you're wrapped up in feeling sorry for yourself because you're not the favorite child." He bared his teeth in outrage, but she cut him off. "Not that I'm suggesting that you shouldn't be upset about that. I am not. Kain's blatant favoritism is bullshit, of course you're gutted. Anyone would be. But something tells me that he's going to be the furthest thing from your mind once she's back in your arms. How we feel about each other is irrelevant here; this needs to happen, so let's just do it."

Rahab had nothing to say to that. 

Sensing that he'd resigned himself to the adventure, Amalia got the ball rolling. "We'll wait a bit, until you've sobered up some. What year do we need to go to?"

He tried to think, but everything was frustratingly fuzzy. "Can't risk running into... myself," he finally said.

Amalia thought about this a moment. "Raziel told me you were pupating when..."

Ah. Right. Rahab swallowed hard. "When she didn't come back, yes."

"Okay," she replied, "So we don't have to worry about that, then. We'll know where you are the whole time, and we can try to intercept Lenore before she gets ambushed rather than try to take on the hunters. Do you think she'll willingly come if you explain everything?"

"I hope so," he whispered, still looking lost.

"Should we go armed? Just in case?"

"Well, we're not going anywhere unarmed, for all the good it'll do you," he sneered. "You've no training at all yet and you're practically still teething."

Amalia shrugged. "Well, let's hope we don't have to fight our way out of anything."

"That certainly inspires confidence in this hare-brained scheme." 

"Shut up. We'll be fine," she groused, standing up to snatch the device off the table. "How do we work this thing?"

"You're asking me?" he asked, scoffing.

"Well I sure as shit can't ask Kain! Here, let's just look at it," she said, turning it over in her hands as she sat back down.

"There are dials, though they look quite delicate," he pointed out. "The runes on the rest of the surface are strange, but the dials seem to be labeled clearly. This actually doesn't look complicated at all," he said, sounding a bit more hopeful. "Here, let me think a minute and I'll set it to the right time. We'll have to gather supplies and weapons quickly before Kain and Raziel come back."

"I wish we could wait for Raz, but he'll almost certainly return with Kain on his heels. I think we ought to let Tantallon in on this, though. We could use the backup, and Lenore is his sister. I think he deserves to help us go get her."

"Agreed. We'll talk to him first, and once we're there we'll just... wait," he sighed. If only he hadn't lowered himself to drinking his sorrows away.

Amalia handed the device to him, and he began to turn the dials, pausing every so often to recall the exact year, month, and day he needed to set it to. "This ought to do it. It'll give us enough time to-"

Suddenly, the world spun, and Amalia covered her face and squeezed her eyes shut as her vision blurred. When she opened them, Rahab was sitting wide-eyed, frozen with the device still in hand, slender claws still touching the dial he'd been turning when he'd inadvertently activated the thing. He moved his thumb off the activation switch, then met her eyes. "Whoops."

"'Whoops' indeed!" she hissed. "Where..." she cut herself off. "When the hell are we?"

He looked wildly around, then sniffed the air. "Well we didn't move, obviously. The tavern is no longer standing, but we're still sitting in my room." This, at least, seemed to be accurate. The only evidence anything had ever been there was the crumbling stone foundation and a few rotten beams from the frame.

"Cool. Great. When did we emerge?"

Rahab glanced down at the dial labeled "Day", which was the one he'd been manipulating last. He stiffened with a soft gasp, then looked back up at Amalia. "I had the year and month right. The day was set to the day before she disappeared," he said before taking a deep breath to calm himself. To no avail, apparently, because when he next spoke his voice shook. "But it's okay, we'll just... go back to get Tantallon and then try again." He turned the proper dials back, and then pressed the switch to activate it. It didn't budge. "Um..." he tried again, to no avail.

Amalia's face fell. "What? What's wrong?"

"The switch is stuck!"

"You have got to be fucking kidding me."

"No, I think you'll find I'm quite serious," he hissed. "Here, you try."

The switch wouldn't move for Amalia, either. The device was hot to the touch, nearly too hot to handle. "Maybe it just needs time to cool down. If using it once made it hot like this, then using it again right now would probably make it explode. It's just a safety feature, I'm sure. We'll be able to get home," she stated, sounding a lot more confident than she actually was.

Rahab was already staggering to his feet. "Fuck home," he said, starting off toward the trees that had grown up where the road used to be. "This is no longer about retrieval. It's a rescue mission, and I'm getting started. If we are stuck here then this is my only chance to save her," he growled, glancing back over his shoulder and swaying as the movement threw him off balance. "We have to get to the road between my clan territory and Raziel's and get our bearings, then I can find the fortress where they took her. We're going to have to stop and take shelter when dawn breaks, but we'll still have tonight and tomorrow night to get where we need to go. If you're coming, come."

Amalia leapt up and caught up to him. "Well, at least by time we get to the rescue part you'll be sober."

"I'll never touch liquor again after this nonsense," he groused as they jumped the crumbling stone wall at the edge of the property and loped into the woods.

Unfortunately, the less drunk Rahab became along the way, the more the awkwardness between him and Amalia grew. They spoke little as they journeyed, though every so often they would glance at one another, then quickly look away. After the fifth or sixth time it happened, Amalia could stand it no longer. She stopped dead in her tracks, hands on hips.

"Okay... can we maybe just go ahead and talk about the elephant in the room?"

Rahab glanced confusedly around at the trees, and then met her eyes. "What the fuck's an elephant?"

Amalia facepalmed. "Context, genius. It's obviously a figure of speech," she began, ignoring the way his eyes narrowed. "Look... you've saved my life more than once, and I've never thanked you. I probably should have, but I didn't. But I stole the device and I'm helping you rescue Lenore, so... I was thinking maybe we're all settled up and even now." She extended her hand. "So, can we just be cool from now on?"

He stared at her hand, then blinked at her. 

"Well? Are we cool, or what?" she repeated.

"I don't know what that means!" he exclaimed, throwing his own hands up.

She groaned, dropping her hand back to her side. "I'm tired of fighting all the time, Rahab. It was entertaining for a while but it's just tiresome at this point. I don't want to do it anymore."

"Oh, you want to be friends now, is that it?"

Amalia held up a hand. "Okay, let's not get ahead of ourselves. I was suggesting a truce."

Rahab crossed his arms and stared at her for a long moment, then shook his head with a sigh and extended his own hand. "Fine. A truce, then." She shook his hand, and they began to walk again.

Things were blissfully peaceful until they caught the scent of a human shortly before dawn and followed it back to a small cottage in a clearing. No one was home, but judging by how heavy the smell was in the clearing whoever lived there couldn't be far. They kept following it a little ways into the woods beyond.

"We're going to need to feed, and now's as good a time as any. You need to learn to hunt. Go get him."

"I'm not killing an innocent person. If you want him, you go-" Amalia suddenly shrieked as her ankle was grabbed and dragged out from under her, causing her to fall on her ass before she was hoisted clear off the ground. She swung lightly to and fro, snarling angrily. "Seriously?! A fucking snare trap?!"

Rahab had stopped in his tracks, and he stood staring a moment before crossing his arms with a laugh and beginning to circle her. "Oh, this is... this is fantastic. Delightful. Exquisite, really," he observed, grinning savagely as he reveled in her predicament. "That rope goes way up into that tree."

Amalia only growled at him as she craned her neck upward to see where she was caught, hoping for an easy way down to reveal itself.

"The way I see it, you have two options," he mused, still circling. "You can set yourself swinging again and try to muster enough momentum to take hold of that branch there... perhaps you can haul yourself up to sever the rope with some support under you," he said, pointing at the branch. "Or you can simply engage your abdominal muscles and try to reach your ankle, and sever it with only the hard ground below."

"Yes, asshole, I can see that," she snarled. "I'm trying to decide which one is more dignified."

"What little dignity remains for you is quite literally hanging on by a few bare threads at the moment," he laughed, noting that the rope was old and somewhat frayed. "There is a third option, of course, but I'm afraid it isn't much better."

She knew exactly what he was getting at, and quashed the idea immediately. "I'll gnaw my own foot off at the ankle before I ask you for help getting out of this," she snapped.

Rahab only shrugged. "I wouldn't have given it anyway. Would have enjoyed telling you no, though."

Amalia growled again, furious at both her predicament and just how much enjoyment Rahab was having at her expense when she'd actually believed they'd come to an accord. "We agreed to a truce! We truced! And now you're just being a dick again!"

"Truce isn't a verb, you dolt. You'd be better served getting free from that rope than butchering basic grammar."

"I hate you," she gritted as she attempted to heave herself upward, having made her choice. If she could grab the rope up far enough, she could hold onto it with one hand while she sawed at a spot below with her claws. Then it would merely be a matter of-

The rope frayed and snapped mere moments after she shifted her weight, and Amalia hit the ground with a thud, her breath wooshing out on impact. She lay there listening to the sound of Rahab's raucous laughter and enduring the pain radiating throughout her back, thoroughly humiliated and beginning to wish she'd never tried to help him in the first place. Tears sprung to her eyes, but she refused to let him see them. Rolling to her feet, she stood and yanked the remnants of the rope from around her ankle before throwing it at him and walking off.

Unfortunately for Amalia, she was no better at keeping her emotions in check than she was her sharp tongue. Her tears soon spilled over and ran down her face, and she quickly scrubbed them away, hoping that Rahab wouldn't notice. He'd fallen silent as he followed her along the trail into the woods, but she was certain that he'd only see her tears as another opportunity, and she refused to grant it. Clearly the truce they'd agreed to meant as little to him as the fact that she'd stuck her neck out for him only to possibly have become trapped permanently in an era where Raziel did not love her and in fact didn't yet know she even existed. She'd been steadfastly pushing that thought away every time it threatened to take root in her mind, but had no more mental fortitude to do so, and now it was all she could think about.

Contrary to Amalia's entirely warranted assumptions, Rahab had actually begun to regret his actions the moment she had stalked off. He hadn't meant to be so cruel... but he'd made no effort to resist his impulse to torment her either, even as what little semblance of a conscience he had was telling him to shut his mouth and simply help her down. He cringed at the sound of a choked sob, eyeing her as she tried to subtly wipe the tears from her face. Unable to stand it any longer, he quickened his pace in order to walk at her side rather than behind her.

"...Amalia?" he ventured, wincing as he braced for the deluge of foul language that she was sure to unleash on him. When she did not respond, he continued. "I didn't mean to..." She began to increase her own pace in order to put distance between them, and he quickly moved in front of her, stopping her in her tracks. "Look, I'm sorry, alright? You're right, we agreed to stop this nonsense, and I shouldn't have-"

"I don't give a fuck about the truce, or how much you hate me, or anything outside of the fact that if we really are stuck here, you'll have your bride and I will have no one. So, you're welcome." she said angrily. She then sidestepped him and began to walk again. Wracked with guilt and knowing that simply letting her stew in her misery was the cowardly road to take, Rahab began to babble at her in an attempt to set things right. 

"Amalia, I don't hate you. I never truly did. It was simply unthinkable that my high-born brother, the strongest of us all, the only ally I've ever really had... you got to him! You, a human... whatever you did pierced an armor that he's worn for centuries, and suddenly he didn't seem so powerful after all. Without him... if it were just me against the rest of our brethren... I was afraid! My entire world began to tip over the second he accidentally revealed what you were to him, and now that we've left everything behind it's upside down entirely."

"At least you still get to live in your world! Even if we can go back I'll be lucky if Kain even lets me visit mine, especially after this!"

"We can't keep going this way. Dawn approaches and the sky is clear," he stated, gesturing upwards and hoping he could convince her to stop. "I told you we'd have to find shelter and remain there until dusk. Let's just... let's just go back to that cottage and rest until it's safe to leave again. If the owner returns, I'll take care of him and you can feed first."

Amalia had no more fight left in her at this point. With a sigh, she dejectedly turned and followed Rahab as he led her back to the only comfortable shelter that was within a safe distance. She slunk past him as soon as he broke the lock and forced the door open, and he set about barricading it shut again as best he could with the kitchen table and chairs to prevent any possibility of the owner returning and gaining access without being heard. By time he'd finished, she was dragging a pile of blankets out of a cupboard and piling them on the far side of a bed that sat against the wall, intent on avoiding him by making herself a nest and hiding in it.

Rahab stared at the jumble of bedding as she climbed into it and fell still. She'd stopped crying at least, but guilt still gnawed at him, and letting her shut him out completely would solve nothing. Ordering her to come out and talk to him wasn't an option; though as a fledgling vampire she'd feel compelled to obey him, he knew that pulling rank right now would only make her more resentful and render any conversation unproductive. The instinct of an Elder vampire to soothe one so young through close contact led him to briefly consider simply climbing in and making room for himself within her little cocoon, but he quickly nixed that idea as well. She wasn't his fledgling, after all, and willful as she was she'd probably claw his eyes right out of his head if he so much as laid the tip of a talon on her regardless of their innate sense of hierarchy. His nurturing instincts really ought to have kicked in the moment they left Raziel's vicinity regardless of his sentiments toward her, and he was irritated at having to fight them now, though he supposed he probably deserved it.

"A fine mess I've made of everything," he muttered to himself as he set about getting a small fire going in the hearth. Most of his night had consisted of one bad decision after another; turning to the bottle had blinded him to all reason and led to his selfishly agreeing to this idiotic scheme in the first place, and his drunken fumbling with the device had brought them here with no preparation, no weapons, and no backup, and had possibly stranded them to boot. Ah, but sobriety hadn't made things any better; he wasn't under the influence of anything when he'd foolishly run his mouth after she'd been ensnared, taking advantage of her situation to extract whatever sick amusement he could get out of it. Once the logs were ablaze, he gingerly sat on the edge of the bed, listening for any warning growls emanating from her shabby little nest as he lowered his weight onto the mattress. When none came, he curled up on his side facing toward her to bide his time while he figured out what to do. They couldn't go into this rescue attempt with things as they were. They needed to be a team, a united front, and the truce that he'd carelessly broken had been the start of that. He began to think back over what she'd said to him in the woods, and it finally occurred to him where to begin.

"You're not going to be alone, Amalia," he murmured. "If the device is broken, if we truly are trapped here... I know it probably isn't much consolation to tell you that you'll have me and Lenore, but it's the truth. If it weren't for you, I'd still be completely hopeless about ever seeing her again. Whether we are able to return or not... things will be different from now on. I'm sorry I didn't take our newfound accord as seriously as I should have."

When she didn't respond, he reached over to pull the blanket she was hiding under from off her face, willing to risk the consequences despite being well within range of her shiny new claws. Rather than respond with violence, she simply squeezed her eyes closed and hid her tearstained face under her arm. "I wish Raziel were here," she whispered.

"So do I," he confessed, "Though I shudder to think of the hiding he'd give me for upsetting you so."

"He wouldn't. Not now... not anymore. Wouldn't solve anything anyway."

"Tell me more about your world," he murmured, though she only sighed in response. After several long moments she finally lifted her arm off her face and bunched a handful of blanket under her head to serve as a pillow. When she glanced over and realized they were lying face to face, however, she sulkily turned over onto her other side, refusing to look at him even as she unwittingly obeyed the command that he hadn't actually intended to give.

"What do you want to know about it?"

"Anything. Everything. Have you remembered any family outside your grandparents yet?"

"Well, my parents and sister are all horrible people, so I cut them off as soon as I became a legal adult and moved out of their place and in with a bunch of roommates. I'd always had a close relationship with my grandparents, and often spent summers there growing up. I'd have just gone to stay with them if they hadn't lived hundreds of miles away, but I wasn't ready to leave where I grew up yet. They left me their house and property along with a hefty sum of money when they died, though, so I finally moved a few weeks before I ended up here. It was either that or sell it, and I couldn't bear to sell it. I packed what little shit I owned into my car and drove most of the way across the country, only to find myself in a house that was still full of my grandparents' belongings. Couldn't bear to sort through those right away either, so I just retreated to the woods because I was overwhelmed. I'd always liked hiking and camping, so..."

"So you went to escape. Understandable, I suppose."

"Oh, I escaped alright. Escaped to a world full of vampires and devoid of modern comforts. I wouldn't change anything now that I've met Raziel, but that party we had made me pretty homesick, honestly."

"What's an aquarium?" Rahab asked, remembering Raziel's earlier suggestion.

"It's like a zoo, but for aquatic life. They've got walls full of glass tanks filled with water and different kinds of animals. Lots of them have tanks as big as an entire room with a glass tunnel you can walk through." She showed him her memories of the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, and he nearly sat straight up.

"This is what it looks like under the ocean's surface?" he breathed.

"It's a small recreation, but yeah. There are freshwater exhibits as well, of course."

"You're starting to make me homesick for this place, and I've never even been there."

The sun was beginning to make its way beyond the horizon by then, and Rahab got up to shutter the windows before its light could filter through the trees to reach the cottage, knowing if any of it hit Amalia directly he'd be hard pressed to wake her up by time they needed to be moving again. She had turned onto her back and unwrapped herself somewhat when he returned to lay back down. "Do you remember being able to eat food and bathe like a normal person?" she asked, her voice soft.

"No... I don't remember ever being human at all."

"I envy you," she replied after a long pause.

Rahab sighed softly, realizing that she was sliding back into melancholy and unsure what more he could do to bring her out of it without resorting to physical contact. "In retrospect," he said as he sat back down on the bed, "Asking you to speak of your past perhaps wasn't the best approach to elevating your mood."

"It's okay, Rahab. I know you're trying," she murmured, finally meeting his eyes. "I just feel... really unsettled. Nervous, almost. I don't know why, it isn't like I'm afraid of what we're planning on doing. Everything just feels wrong."

"I'll tell you why. You're barely fledged and your sire is nowhere near. Even under the absolute best of circumstances you'd probably feel somewhat ill at ease without him, but in a familiar location among other vampires you'd get along just fine. This has turned into such a mess," he sighed, running his talons through his long hair.

"Only for now. We'll get her back, and it'll all be okay."

Rahab glanced over at her. "Are you trying to console me, now?" When she only looked away and shrugged, he dared to shuffle closer to her. "That isn't how this is supposed to work, you know. You've got it quite backwards, in fact."

"Yeah, well, we've established that I suck at being a vampire, between my inability to kill anyone and the lack of awareness that ended me up in that trap."

"You are a fledgling struggling your way into a new existence while trying to come to terms with the loss of the old one," he replied, taking note of the fact that she hadn't immediately pulled away from him. "But your lineage is strong. You are a child of Raziel and Kain is your line-sire, your immediate line-sire. You will one day be as powerful a vampire as the rest of us." After a pause, he corrected himself. "Well, only as powerful as Tantallon, actually. But you know what he's capable of." Amalia only shrugged in response and then lay morosely staring at the ceiling in silence, and Rahab could resist his instinct no longer. "Come here, Amalia."

She turned her head and blinked at him, her internal struggle written plainly on her face. Hesitation won out in the end. "Why?"

"Out of the blankets, fledgling," he commanded mildly, and this time she was unable to shake it off, though she grit her teeth as she sat up to obey him. 

"I really don't like this instinctual obedience bullshit," she complained, eyeing him warily as she pulled the blankets out from under her and kicked them off the foot of the bed before laying back down, clutching at the pillow under her head as if she thought it would anchor her to the spot.

"I expect you don't. Following orders really isn't your strong suit. But you're going to follow mine, because that is the way of things. We'll both feel better if we stop fighting the natural order and embrace it. Now, do as I say and come here."

"What do you want?" she asked, exasperated and uncomfortable. If he was thinking of acting as a surrogate Raziel...

Unfortunately for Amalia, that was exactly what Rahab was thinking. Wordlessly, he leaned over, wrapped an arm around her waist, and pulled her to his chest. Predictably she resisted, jerking her head back and planting her hands on his shoulders as she tried to push him away, making a sound that landed somewhere between a distressed squeak and an angry growl. He only tightened his grip on her. "Shh," he soothed, and she instantly fell still with a soft whimper as higher functions momentarily gave way to her own instinct. Still, Rahab was not her sire. He smelled different, he felt different since his body was somewhat slighter than Raziel's, and the matter of their tumultuous history was not so easily forgotten. Unable to either relax or bring herself to make another attempt to escape, she let loose another squeaky, frustrated growl of protest.

Rahab was wise enough to know that to respond with a growl of his own in an attempt to put her in her place would only upset her further, and thus opted to simply continue shushing her, and though she was as upset as anyone would be at what amounted to losing complete control of her own will she slowly began to settle. "Relax, Amalia. Let me do this one thing right today."

Though she heaved an affronted grunt, she finally relented and fell still. "Fine. Happy now?"

"I'll be happy when you're relaxed and content."

"That's a pretty tall order right now, bud."

"Hush," he chided, lifting his chin and moving his hand behind her head to gently tuck it underneath. "Do you not feel safer now, despite everything?"

Amalia had to admit to herself that she did. Every concern, every fear, every scrap of depression had been banished the moment she had given in, smothered by a drowsy calm that rivaled that of a large dose of the anti-anxiety medication she'd been prescribed to help her deal with all the upheaval that she'd had in her life before ending up here. "Don't like it," she mumbled as she unwittingly snuggled closer to him, even going so far as to sleepily grasp a fistful of his shirt along his flank as she settled in, eliciting an unexpected and completely involuntary purr from them both which was immediately cut short as they froze, mortified. Silence reigned for several tense moments as Amalia stared wide-eyed into Rahab's throat.

"Not a word," he finally said, rather tersely.

"Nope," Amalia responded, perfectly happy to never speak of it again.

"Go to sleep," he commanded.

"Yep."

They closed their eyes as the sun climbed higher in the sky, and that was that.

Chapter Text

Raziel was becoming frantic. Lorrelin had mentioned offhand when he and Kain had returned that she hadn't seen Amalia for several hours, and he'd immediately started looking for her only to find Rahab missing as well. It would be one thing if Tantallon were the other to have disappeared; that could easily be explained by the two of them goofing off somewhere in the woods. But for Amalia to go anywhere in Rahab's company? 

"I can't find either of them, Kain. I found the Scotch bottle in Rahab's room, empty. His chair is tipped backward as if he stood suddenly, or fell out of it. Amalia's scent is there, mingled with his, but otherwise no sign of either of them." 

Kain processed Raziel's words, and his stomach dropped when he realized what had likely happened. Rahab would never do it on his own, not in a million years. But with Amalia goading him? He raced back to his room with Raziel in his wake, only to have his suspicions confirmed when he saw the Timestreaming device gone.

"Kain...?" 

"I might have made a mistake earlier," Kain murmured, almost to himself.

Raziel crossed his arms. "Explain."

"Rahab asked to use the device earlier today to go and intercept Lenore before she could be captured."

Raziel's jaw dropped. Why hadn't anyone thought of that before now? "You think he and Amalia went together? Just the two of them? They hate one another! What could possibly have them in such a rush to leave that they'd resort to cooperating to accomplish this alone?" 

And what would have driven his brother to drink the way he apparently had? He doubted very much that he and Amalia shared the bottle together due to their mutual dislike of one another; and the amount of liquor leftover from the party in the woods would have had Rahab nearly incapacitated. Raziel hadn't seen him drink like that since Lenore had been... Wait. Raziel's eyes narrowed, and he took a step toward Kain.  "Kain... Tell me you did not refuse his request." 

When his sire did not respond, Raziel understood. 

"I had hoped that when I healed you of Nupraptor's madness, your inherent selfishness and cruelty would have gone with it. Now I see that both are as boundless as ever!" he snarled, his voice rising. "How could you possibly deny him this? Have you really paid so little attention to him that you're unaware of just how broken he's been since she was killed?"

"I regret it, Raziel. I admit it, I made a-"

"Saddle your damned horse! We are going after them," was all Raziel said before he was out the door to seek out Tantallon. With the portable device unavailable they'd have to trek all the way to the thrice-damned Chronoplast, make an educated guess as to how much time to give themselves to intercept Rahab and Amalia before they did anything stupid, and then come all the way back to this area to begin the search.

Several centuries into the future, Rahab woke at dusk to the sound of the door shifting and knocking into the barrier he'd erected. Amalia had squirmed out of his arms and lay sprawled on her back, still asleep. He left her there and silently ghosted his way off the bed and along the far wall toward the door. The cottage's owner was smart enough to realize his house was occupied upon his return, and had already retreated. He did not make it far before Rahab climbed out the front window and chased him down. The man never knew what hit him.

He stopped in the process of dragging the kill back to Amalia to consider whether to go back in and clear the doorway or simply haul the poor bastard in through the window. He ended up deciding upon the latter, and Amalia's head popped up as the limp body hit the floor of the cottage and lay with his feet on the windowsill. "The hell?" she asked, bleary-eyed.

"Open his throat and feed. Just the one side, mind. Don't go tearing into both arteries, I don't fancy having to lick the floor and walls to sate my own hunger."

Amalia only stared silently down at the body, clearly at war with herself over obeying the command. Rahab rolled his eyes. His brother had thus far been handling Amalia's reluctance to hunt and take her sustenance directly from a kill exactly the way he'd handled Lenore's... by indulging it. Oddly enough, even Raziel himself had seemed as if he were holding back since they'd left the Empire; he'd consistently waited until he was half-starved before giving in to the urge to take prey, or would drink from another's kill in a way he'd have been far too proud to before. Regardless of either of these things, however, Amalia was not Lenore, and unlike his bride Rahab knew she had the fire in her to act as a proper vampire if only she weren't coddled. He slashed at a spot just beneath the man's collarbone and held his bloodied claw under her nose. That was all it took for her to slide down off the bed and close the distance.

"Right there," he pointed, guiding her to the correct spot under his chin, then stepping back with arms folded to observe. "Again, top fangs only. Don't open your mouth enough to catch the bottom ones on the other side; you're not a wildcat dragging a kill up a tree. Bite into the artery, withdraw your fangs, and drink."

She reacted predictably to the taste of fresh human blood; the full body shudder of delight, the unwitting flexing of her claws, the soft, satisfied growls. She stopped before she was completely full, however, pulling away suddenly and scrabbling backward on all fours, looking dismayed and ashamed of herself.

"You're not one of them anymore, fledgling," Rahab reassured her. "There is nothing to feel badly about in regards to this."

"He was just minding his own business out here..."

"Humans don't live forever, child. His time would have come eventually, and this was a far swifter death than any of the other beasts that haunt the deepest parts of the forest would have given him. I'm actually surprised he's lasted this long, considering how far he must have been traveling to find his own food," he mused. "Move aside so I can take my own fill before he bleeds out. We need to get moving."

Amalia hemmed and hawed about what to do with the man's body before they left, knowing that burying him would take too long but unwilling to simply leave him on the floor with his feet hanging out the window. Rahab's suggestion to simply put him in his bed if she insisted on doing anything with him did not appeal to her.

"I'm not gonna just... arrange him in his bed like he's just sleeping! That's... morbid."

"You just drank his blood, you idiot. Everything about this is morbid. Pick a flower and put it in his hands if it'll make you feel better, but do it quickly."

She scowled at him, but finally agreed to simply lay him back in his bed and cover him with the blankets. They got underway, and Rahab soon got his bearings, confirming their location by climbing up into a tree and observing the landscape from his vantage point.

"This is good. Not having to go all the way to the road makes it far less likely that a patrol will find us. My clan expects me to be in my bed pupating, not roaming the countryside with an infant Razielim."

"We're in your territory now?"

"The edge of it, yes. Lenore was no doubt intending to pay Raziel and Tantallon a surprise visit when she left on her ill-fated journey. The border is nearby, and the abandoned fortress the hunters were playing soldiers in when they ambushed her caravan lies just beyond it. Come, let's sit and rest a while. We've made better time than I expected."

They plopped down on the ground with their backs against the large tree Rahab had climbed, and sat silent a while before Amalia glanced over at him to find him staring into space, brow furrowed.

"You look like you're deep in thought about something."

"Indeed I am," he replied. "That song you sang the day I found out you weren't from Nosgoth... The one that upset me so. I'm trying to remember how it went but can't recall any of it save for one part. Something about meeting again?"

Amalia winced at the guilt that erupted from the memory. "We can meet again somewhere... somewhere far away from here," she murmured, staring at the ground.

He leaned his head back against the tree, gazing upward at the stars with a hopeful smile. "That's the one."

"You know I did that on purpose, right?" she admitted after a few long moments of silence. "I was pissed at you, and I knew it would upset you... and I wanted to get back at you."

This was indeed news to Rahab, but he took it in stride. "Amalia... we've both been extraordinarily unkind to one another," he sighed. "Neither of us has anything to be proud of, looking back. But there's no point in looking back. It's behind us now, and so much the better."

"Maybe so... but I'm sorry. It was a shitty thing to do and I've felt awful about it since. It's honestly probably one of my biggest regrets."

Rahab snorted softly. "Well, cut it out. You were right about the arlapant," he replied with a dismissive wave of his hand. "We're even now."

"Elephant," she corrected, amused.

"Whatever."

After a while, Rahab stretched his legs and shifted slightly, ready to begin working out a plan, but both of them froze at the sound of rustling leaves in the distance. Amalia jumped to her feet before Rahab could stop her.

"Get down, you fool, before you're seen-"

"Holy fuck, it's Raz and Tantallon!"

He leapt up beside her, utterly flabbergasted.. "How did they find us?!"

"No idea... but Kain is here, too," she replied with dismay, pointing to where he could be seen moving through the trees. "And he does not look happy."

Rahab glanced over at Amalia. "And now the bill comes due," he muttered to her.

"I'm not scared," she replied, though her voice was shaking.

Rahab turned his eyes forward and stared Kain down as he approached, gritting his teeth. "Neither am I."

"We came from the Chronoplast. We've been traveling for days to find you!" Raziel cried, leaping over a fallen log to reach them with Tantallon following on his heels. He made a beeline for Amalia and pulled her into his arms. "Are you both all right?"

"We're okay, yeah. And boy are we glad to see you and Tantallon!"

"What the hell possessed you to try to do this on your own?"

"We weren't going to do it alone, we-"

Just then, Kain came barreling up, fangs bared and growling angrily. "What have you two done?"

"We've done and are doing exactly what you refused to do!" Rahab shouted.

The vehement response stopped Kain short, and his jaw hung open in shock as he processed what was happening. This was where it really began to sink in just how badly he'd fucked up by flippantly refusing his son's request to go and rescue his bride. Sure, he felt pretty rotten about the whole thing, but up until now he'd simply taken it for granted that he'd be forgiven as long as he admitted his mistake and wasn't too harsh in reprimanding the pair for their rash decision to take the device and run. Caught off guard by the fact that Rahab of all people was standing up to him, he could only stare dumbly as he endured the release of literal centuries of pent up anger, frustration, and heartache.

"It's always been this way with you, since the moment you dragged me out of that blasted tomb as a newborn fledgling! All I've ever wanted, all I've ever hoped for, was for you to love me the way you've always loved Raziel," he snarled. "You'd have allowed him to rescue Amalia without a moment's hesitation. You'd probably have led the charge yourself; I certainly wouldn't have been surprised to see it! But when it comes to me and the woman I've been mourning for seventy fucking years, it's not even worth considering!"

"Rahab, I-"

"Centuries of devotion, centuries of following orders, of winning battles, of succeeding in everything you asked of me, and I've had to content myself with the occasional pat on the head while you devote every waking moment to your eldest! I have been torturing myself with water for decades in order to better serve you, and you've hardly given me a passing glance. What will it take, Kain? What do I have to do? When I one day overcome my weakness to water and walk right out of a god damned lake before your very eyes, will I look up only to find your attention once again focused on Raziel?"

Kain drew himself up to his full height, fangs bared. "Enough, Rahab! Am I not standing before you right now? I realized my error in this! If you had but waited instead of resorting to thievery and recklessness, I would have come to you in repentance and aided you in retrieving her!"

"Debatable," Raziel muttered. Tantallon elbowed him sharply. "You're not helping!" he hissed.

"Well forgive me for having nothing but the lowest of expectations when it comes to you!" Rahab spat. "I don't need your help. I don't want your help. Go look for Janos, we can handle this on our own. You can take all the devotion I've shown you over the years and choke on it for all I care, because I don't anymore!"

The others were already moving away before things got any more heated, and Rahab turned his back and followed them, leaving Kain standing alone among the trees.

It took a while to calm him down. He seemed reluctant to allow Raziel to comfort him at first, seeming almost distrustful of him, but after a while he stopped ducking out of his reach every time he paced past him and simply melted into his arms, unable to resist falling back on what he'd always done when he was upset. He could spare a few moments just pretending that nothing about his brother had changed, right? A few moments of self-deception couldn't hurt.

"We're on your side, Rahab," Tantallon soothed. "No one here thinks you've done anything wrong, I promise."

"I know that, I just..." he pulled away and eyed Raziel a moment, then sighed. "Everything is just so different, now. You're different."

"I am indeed," Raziel replied after a moment of thought. "But so is the future that was in store for you. If not for these changes, Lenore would remain out of your reach, Tantallon would be lost to us as well, and everything that ever made us who we are would slip through our talons as we devolved into monstrous beasts." When Rahab didn't respond, he tried another angle. "Don't you remember, Rahab, how happy you were back in the days before the Empire? When we and our brethren were the only vampires alive, when times were so much simpler? Does our current situation not remind you of those days?"

Rahab rested his head on Raziel's shoulder with a soft sigh. "It does..." he began, then snorted softly. "Though I must admit, not having Turel around to make me miserable is a drastic improvement."

"Believe it or not, Rahab, Kain really is sorry," Tantallon said, gently. "He barely spoke the entire way here, and Raziel berated him handily on multiple occasions. I was on pins and needles the entire time expecting him to be pulled off his horse and beaten to a pulp, the way he was talking."

"I don't care if he's sorry," Rahab sneered, finally disentangling himself from Raziel's arms. "I don't care, and frankly it feels like a huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders. Now it's time to solve the other problem that's been plaguing me for years. Let's start making plans."

"How'd you go about this the first time?" asked Amalia.

"Raziel and I each brought fifteen of our own with us," Rahab answered. "Blew holes in all four walls at once using splash potions, overran them in minutes, and then proceeded with the execution."

Amalia didn't particularly care to ask what style of execution had been employed. "Well, there's no overrunning the place with just the four of us. We're obviously gonna have to stealth it."

"Yes, indeed. Who's got ideas? We already know the layout of the fortress and where they've got weaponry stashed," Rahab stated, quickly drawing a map of the compound in the dirt with his talon. "They've got the good stuff well protected, but this building here toward the back is being used to store everything that's either seen better days or is of poor quality. It's almost certainly all stolen off those they kill, of course."

"Well, they won't be hawking any of it after tonight. This is what we hit first, then," said Tantallon.

"So we arm ourselves with whatever is worth taking once we're in," added Raziel. "Then what?"

"We need somewhere to take Lenore to be kept safe once she's been liberated while we kill the rest. This may be a good job for Amalia, Sire. She could stay behind after we take the weapons and wait for one of us to deliver her. We all know Lenore won't defend herself if anyone catches her, so..."

Now that Amalia was a vampire, Raziel was far less concerned for her safety and was more than happy to have her out cutting her fangs on some real action. "I agree. Amalia, are you prepared to kill for the first time in defense of Lenore should you be discovered? We need to be able to trust you to look after her and do whatever needs to be done to keep her safe."

"...Are you seriously asking me if I'm going to run from a fight that someone else instigates?"

"...Fair enough," replied Raziel with a nod of his head. "Once we're armed, we move to quickly and quietly work our way in. Do you both remember the layout of the interior?"

"Mostly," replied Rahab. "Enough to see us to victory."

"I remember well enough, but seeing as I'm a good archer, I think I ought to find myself a bow and arrows somewhere and look for a good place outside to perch. I can snipe anyone who manages to escape before they can sound an alarm."

"What about the non-combatants?  Something has to be done with them," Rahab pointed out. "They had at least one woman in the dungeon with a babe still at the breast last time we were here."

"And they call us monsters," Tantallon scoffed. 

"The captives can be dealt with last," suggested Raziel. "Once we've got the place secured we'll bring them out and let them divide up whatever pickings they can find."

"Except for Lenore's jewels. I'll ransack the place just like I did last time, and this time I'll find them. They were gone by time we got here the first time, and we never found them in any of the markets. They're not going to sit collecting dust in some hoarder's collection for the foreseeable future; they're going back to her."

"I think we can all throw our support behind that. It'll be no trouble at all to climb up the walls so long as we avoid detection. Then we make our way to the building with the weapons."

"How many hunters are we dealing with?" Amalia asked.

"Thirteen," Raziel replied. "They're a ragged bunch of survivors of several separate bands we'd wiped out over the years. Apparently setting up shop in a fortress made them a bit overconfident."

"Shouldn't we still scope the place out first, even if you've been there?"

They stared at Amalia a moment until Raziel figured out what she meant. "Ah, reconnaissance. Yes, indeed, that's our first order of business. Let's go study the guards a while. We need to know their patterns."

Their "patterns" turned out to be remarkably simple, once they'd climbed up onto one of the walls and hidden themselves behind a pile of rubble to observe them. The main gate to the fortress had deteriorated and collapsed, barring any entry save through a small gap the hunters had cleared. No one was patrolling the walls and the only guards posted were one watching both the gap and the doors leading into the main hall and one leaning against the wall of the weapons shed, who was at present doodling in the dirt with a long stick. The first guard begin to pace agitatedly after a while, occasionally stepping back to look up at one of the building's upper windows. He finally threw his spear down and stormed back inside.

"Apparently his relief is late. What terrible discipline," Rahab commented disdainfully.

"If relief is due, then let's get behind that shed," Raziel replied. "Opportunity will soon knock."

Killing the man who eventually showed up to relieve the guard posted outside the weapons shed was easy as pie once the idiots stopped wasting time shooting the breeze before trading places. The moment there was a lull in their conversation Rahab threw a pebble against the wall, and the soft *clack* immediately drew their attention. A swift and silent snap of the neck took care of the relief, and his body was promptly dragged out of sight behind the building.

"Did you hear-" his companion trailed off as he turned to find no one beside him.

This was what Raziel was waiting for. "Just havin' a piss back 'ere, mate. Best not be late for supper; or there won't be nothin' left!" he called, in a flawless imitation of the dead guard's voice, accent, and dialect.

The noise was promptly either forgotten or shrugged off. "Ain't gotta ask me twice," said the guard as he strode away from the shed's door toward the main hall.

"What the fuck?" Amalia breathed, absolutely incredulous at her husband's hidden talent.

Raziel ignored her in favor of ushering his firstborn forward. "You're up, Tantallon." They followed him to the corner, and Amalia poked her head around just far enough to watch him pull out a set of lockpicks, bend his ear toward the door, and get to work. The lock sprung in less than ten seconds, and they silently filed through the open door.

"What? I was a thief as a boy," Tantallon said to Amalia upon noticing that he was getting the same incredulous look that Raziel had. "Stole a lot of jewels from lockboxes inside the houses of rich folk. Had a fence and everything. That's how we bought the farm, in fact," he finished with a bright smile.

"Boy, am I learning things about you guys tonight," she said, crossing her arms. "What about you, Rahab?"

"I know how to play the violin," he chirped over his shoulder as he pulled a sword out of a jumble of similar weaponry.

"All of you, stay focused!" Raziel hissed. "Here, Tantallon. Find a string and a quiver for it and get up high somewhere. Be ready to take out anyone who tries to make a break for the gates," he continued, handing an unstrung bow to him. "Amalia, take this spear, and wait here for us to deliver Lenore. She'll likely be quite upset; calm her as best as you can. Remember, she will not kill anyone who might find you, so it'll be up to you to keep her hidden and to protect her if you are discovered. Do you understand?"

"I'll take good care of her, I promise," she reassured him, and after a brief kiss he was out the door with the other two.

Tantallon went back to the walls, snuck around to where he had a shot at the guard who'd finally come out to watch the front, and put an arrow straight through his throat. Rahab and Raziel stole inside and began systematically and silently killing everyone they came across on their way to the dungeon... then it was time for the real action. Despite his brother's urging him to stay calm and focused, Rahab threw all caution to the wind once they reached the stairs. He'd fight his way through a thousand of these oafish layabouts to get to his bride if that's what it took; nothing would stop him. "Mind the puddle at the bottom," he hurriedly called back to Raziel as he leapt from the crumbling stairs to the floor.

"Rahab!? Rahab! Oh, don't let them do it! Please, don't let them burn me! Rahab, please!" 

It was as if time slowed to a crawl, then stood still. There she was, locked in a cell by herself, filthy and ragged with eyes wild with terror. She threw herself against the bars and stretched out her arm to reach for him before sagging to her knees and sobbing, still calling for him, begging him to stop them from hurting her.

"Get me out, please! I want to go home, I want to go home, I wish I'd never left! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

She yanked her arm back through the bars and ducked to the side just in time for him to lunge at the cell's door, at which point he took hold of it and began to pull with all his might, snarling as his feet scrabbled for purchase on the stone floor.

"Rahab, you can't! We've got to find a-" Raziel immediately realized that his brother was beyond his reach at the moment, and cut himself off in favor of flipping over a table to get to a floor to ceiling iron rack of various implements of torture, which tumbled every which way as he yanked it away from the wall. "Rahab, help me lever the door off the hinges!"

He didn't snap out of his rage until Raziel threw the rack against the bars of the cell and startled him with the loud *CLANG*. Then he leapt upon it and helped Raziel position it so that the wide feet that kept it upright caught underneath the bottom of the cell's door. 

"Stay where you are, Lenore, it'll fall inward!" Raziel gritted as they hauled the door off its hinges. He dragged the rack backward and threw it to the side, then stood back and simply watched as his brother fell to his knees, dragging Lenore with him, and sat rocking her as she cried into his shoulder. "You're okay, everything is okay, this was all just a bad dream, none of it was real, it never happened," he sobbed, and Raziel had to wonder if he was trying to convince Lenore or himself.

"Help us, please!" a weak voice called from behind Raziel, only to be shushed as he turned toward the opposite cell.

"Shut your mouth, you fool! He's one of them!"

"He can get us out, same as her!"

"They'll kill us-"

"No, we won't. We're here only for her, and to bring swift justice to those who've wronged her. We'll come let you out when we've finished dealing with your captors. You're free to ransack the place from there for all we care," Raziel replied evenly. "Rahab, Lenore, come. We can't waste any more time, the fortress isn't secured yet. Come, on your feet! We need to get her out of here!"

Tantallon met them halfway down the stairs, but rather than lose his composure at the sight of his sister he was all business upon seeing that they'd successfully freed her. His shirt was torn and bloody, and a broken arrow protruded several inches from his shoulder. "There are eight left. They're just outside, trying to muster up the courage to come in and get us, the fools. They seem to have finally realized that taking a woman who is of high enough rank to be wearing those jewels might have been a bad idea."

"It'll be their last mistake," snarled Rahab.

"No one else has to die," Lenore suggested, softly. She sounded as if she already knew what response she'd get.

"They'll keep doing it, Lenore," said Rahab with a shake of his head. "They'll only keep hurting people if they remain alive. Don't waste your kindness and mercy on these monsters; they cannot be allowed to go on as they have. They've brought this upon themselves."

Lenore simply fell silent, wishing the carnage could just stop with no one else being harmed but knowing deep down that her husband was right. Sparing them would only bring more suffering to innocent people.

"Your shoulder, Tantallon," Raziel pointed out as he followed him back up out of the dungeon, and Tantallon glanced backward, scowled, and yanked the arrow out with a soft growl of pain. It clattered back down the stairs as they emerged from the stairwell. The remaining soldiers were nowhere to be seen when they scouted around, and after a brief discussion it was decided that they'd stick to their plan to take Lenore to Amalia, then proceed to hunt them all down. Tantallon covered them from behind, bow drawn and ready to fire at a moment's notice as they marched her quickly across the open courtyard.

Knowing that Rahab would be loathe to part with Lenore even for a short time unless he was lured away, Raziel began to rile him up as they made their way toward the weapon shed where Amalia waited to receive her. "See how they've treated her, brother. Look at her clothes, her hair! They've taken her jewels and hidden them away, and they had the stake set up where she could see it out her cell's window! Imagine how she must have felt watching them pile it up with wood! They must pay," he growled.

The tactic worked. "Yes," Rahab hissed. "And so they shall. Lenore, you're going to hide in here with Raziel's bride."

Lenore stopped dead in her tracks. "Wait, what?" she blurted, incredulous. "You? Married?"

"It's a damn long story," replied Raziel as he reached for the door. "And a crazy one to boot. Stay here, and we'll come and get you when it's safe. She'll protect you until then."

Amalia stood and emerged from the shadows where she'd been crouched the instant she discerned that it was Raziel who'd opened the door rather than someone she needed to gear up to pounce upon. "You got her?"

"Yes, she's here! Take her and look after her. We've still got business to attend to, just as we expected. Lenore, this is Amalia." With that, the door slammed shut, and they were alone.

Despite her ragged state, even in the dim light that filtered in from the single small window, Lenore was every bit as beautiful as Amalia remembered from her portrait. She reached for her, encouraging her forward. "Come on. It's okay, I've got you. You're safe," she soothed. "It's all over."

Lenore edged toward Amalia until she was alongside her, then turned back toward the door. There was a moment's silence while Amalia tried to think of something else to say, but she didn't get the chance. The dam broke, and Lenore simply collapsed to the ground sobbing. Amalia knelt beside her and gently laid her hand on her shoulder, unsure of how much physical contact she'd be comfortable with. "We're gonna get out of here soon. Then we'll clean you up and get you nice clean clothes and you can rest with everyone by your side to look after you. I've got a stuffed toy that I think you'll like. It's the softest thing you've ever felt..." she trailed off, having run out of material. She didn't dare go into detail of how things would really be once they'd left this awful place, because thus far Lenore still believed that she was going home to the familiar, comforting walls of her and Rahab's stronghold.

Lenore took a few deep breaths, trying to compose herself enough to talk. "I... I like your accent," she stated simply, once she could manage.

Amalia couldn't help but laugh at the completely unexpected compliment. She often simply forgot how different her manner of speaking was to everyone else here. "Really? That's the direction your mind decided to run in?" she asked with a grin, her hand still on Lenore's shoulder.

Lenore only shrugged with a small smile of her own, then her smile grew as she began to process the sheer ridiculousness of... well, everything. Rescued from certain death, Rahab out of his pupation with a drastically changed appearance, Raziel of all people having abruptly decided to both sire another fledgling and get married (without even writing to let her and Rahab know, the bastard), Tantallon running around with an arrow sticking out of his shoulder without even noticing it, and now the oddly flat accent and frank sense of humor of this infant Razielim. By time her brain had worked through it all, she was full on laughing.

Amalia tried to laugh along with her... but she knew this wasn't going to last. Lenore had no doubt been deeply traumatized by all this, and would soon find out that she'd never see home again. 

"What is going on?" Lenore asked, still recovering from her laughter. 

"Too much, Lenore. Too fucking much."

Meanwhile, the hunt was on... but turned out to be rather short. The remaining soldiers were not particularly difficult to find, even though they'd split up. The last time around, they'd stayed and fought rather than run like cowards, but they'd bested them just the same. He and Tantallon had dragged the survivors to the dungeon and traded them for the human captives, setting the innocents free while the guilty took their place in the cell. Then, taking advantage of the fact that everything but the stone walls had been built of wood, they'd set the whole compound aflame and left them to their fate. As much as Rahab had wanted to stick around to hear them scream as they burned to death, he knew it wouldn't be their screams that would ring in his head the entire time.

This time he and Tantallon had to settle for the simple satisfaction of killing them all over again, even if they had to make it relatively quick and easy for them so as to finish all this and get Lenore away from here. "Rejoice, and be glad you didn't get around to murdering her," Rahab had told them once they'd been rounded up and sat terrified on the ground before him. "It would have been so much worse for you if you had. You can thank her for the easy death we're going to grant you. If she weren't nearby to be further terrorized by your screams... you'd scream."

They returned to the fortress covered in blood and gore. Rahab and Tantallon began the search for Lenore's jewels while Raziel went to free the captives from the dungeon. "Get out of the way," he warned as he hauled the rack into place, and the prisoners shuffled to the far wall and fell silent as if trying to disappear into the shadows. The door fell inward with a clang, and he stepped in. "Your captors all lie dead, and we have no interest in harming you. There's food and water aplenty in the kitchen and larder, you can take whatever you want. Where's the woman with the child?"

The prisoners shuffled away to reveal a haggard young woman holding a baby that couldn't be more than... Well, it was young. That Raziel didn't know enough about human development to discern the whelp's actual age was irrelevant. "You're going to need a heftier meal than the rest, I can only assume, since you're also feeding... that. Come, all of you. I'll point you in the direction of the kitchens and leave you to it. Make sure she gets a suitable share, or I shall be most displeased." In truth, he had absolutely zero intention to put any further effort toward making sure any of them got fed, but figured none of them would call his bluff. 

When he returned to the courtyard, he was surprised as well as annoyed to find everyone but Lenore standing around a human boy, who cowered on the ground at their feet.

"What's all this, then?" he asked, the irritation plain in his voice. "I think I've seen enough of their kind for one day, and there are three more back home yet," he grumbled.

"We found him in the Captain's quarters hiding under the bed."

Raziel sighed and went to haul the whimpering foundling to his feet. "What's your name, boy?" he asked, crossing his arms.

"J-Jack, sir," he replied tearfully.

"And how old are you, Jack?"

"Four... Fourteen, sir." His voice cracked in a way that suggested it was just beginning to change.

"You're not even old enough to shave," Tantallon sneered. "What are you doing here? Where are your mother and father?"

"Dead, sir," Jack replied, sniffling. "Slain by those who suffered your wrath tonight. That's... it's the only reason I'm here, I swear! I never wanted to be one of them, they're awful!"

"Ah, nothing like a little recruitment of child soldiers," said Raziel, sarcastically.

"Seasoned well with a little 'slaughter of said child's parents'," replied Rahab, arms crossed.

"Probably a bit of 'forced said child to witness the aforementioned horrors' for dessert," Tantallon chimed in.

They looked to Amalia to see if she had anything clever to add, but all she said was "Man, fuck these people. I'm glad they're all dead," before moving in to comfort Jack. "It's alright, Jack, no one here blames you for what happened. You were wronged by them just the same as us."

"I'm glad they didn't hurt your wife, sir... I wanted to help her... I wanted to steal the keys to her cell and let her escape, but I'm a coward," he choked out, promptly beginning to cry again. "I was afraid they'd do to me what they said they were going to do to her..."

"They almost certainly would have," replied Rahab, "And then they'd have killed her anyway. You needn't give it another thought. You're just a lad, you ought never to have been put in this situation by these cretins to begin with."

"Tell her I'm sorry," the boy sobbed, apparently unable to be swayed from his guilt.

"She's hiding in the shed; you can tell her yourself if it'll make you feel better. Would that we'd have been here in time to save her companions."

"Oh, no, sir. None of them even made it here. Just her. They killed them when they took her, I heard them talking. They brought her back because of the jewels, they knew she must be important. Wanted to ransom her, but the Captain wouldn't hear of it. Thought it taking improper advantage to leave a vampire alive for their own gain."

"And yet they happily took the very jewels that saved her life," Tantallon gritted, tightening his grip on the worn sack he was carrying. Rahab had found the jewels in a lockbox in the Captain's quarters which had been empty the first time they'd been here, and had dumped out a small bag of onions from the larder to put them in before handing them to him for safekeeping.

Jack shrugged, sniffling and scrubbing at his eyes.

"Where do you hail from? We'll make sure you're fed and get you going in that direction."

"A village south of here," he replied sadly. "But there's nothing for me there anymore."

"Hmm..." Raziel held his chin in his hand as he regarded the boy. "Tell me, child... how would you like to live forever?"

Jack's eyes widened, and he took a step back. "Please don't," he pleaded.

"Well, that settles that. Pity," Raziel shrugged.

"He's too young anyway, Sire. He wouldn't make it through the process."

"He'll get older. But I don't suppose I'm particularly keen on having another human mouth to feed in the meantime, now that I've thought through it, so we're certainly not taking him with us."

"We could take him back, release him into the wild, and let him grow. Perhaps he'll change his mind and return to us someday," suggested Rahab.

"Can we maybe not talk about him like this while he's standing right here?" asked Amalia.

"We can't take him back," Raziel replied, completely ignoring her and earning himself a scowl. "I don't fancy any more drama with Kain, and Lenore is likely going to be in a bad way for quite some time. We'll need to focus on her recovery. Let's get him on the road and go home."

When they retrieved Lenore from her hiding spot, Jack immediately dropped to one knee and hung his head. "I'm sorry, M'lady," he choked out as she blinked down at him, bewildered. "I wanted to help you, but I was too afraid..."

Lenore's characteristic kindness immediately became apparent. She dropped to her own knees with a gasp and hugged the boy, stroking his hair and reassuring him.

"Don't you dare," she began, taking his chin in her talons, being sure to mind her claws. "Look at me. Don't you dare spend another moment fretting about this," she soothed. "You're a survivor of this nonsense same as I am. How are we getting him home?" she asked, glancing up at Raziel.

"He's got a full belly and a sharp dagger to defend himself. I'm going to escort him to the road while Tantallon leads the rest of you toward where we tied the horses. I'll catch up, and then we can put this mess behind us."

He kept the fact that they were leaving this mess behind only to run straight back into another to himself. Everyone save for Lenore already knew. 

Chapter Text

The Timestreaming device, much to their relief, was indeed functional once it had cooled, and they returned hardly half an hour after they'd left. Vance ran out of the tavern's door beaming when he saw them drawing near.

"You did it! You got 'er!" he cried, bouncing on the balls of his feet in a way that Rahab found rather endearing, as much as he hated to admit to himself that his gratitude toward the good-natured human had by now turned into genuine fondness. Vance ran back inside, calling excitedly to Lorrelin and Stella, who had earlier been given a brief rundown of the situation by Raziel as he angrily saddled his horse to leave. "They did it! They rescued Lady Lenore!" Rahab didn't allow them to fuss for long; he chased everyone off within minutes so that he could get her cleaned up and settled himself.

Despite the warm welcome, the next several days were tense regardless of the lack of rancor between Rahab and Amalia (though everyone was immensely grateful to not have to put up with their fighting anymore). Kain was nowhere to be found and no one knew when or if he'd come back, and though Rahab was still angry enough not to care, Raziel was growing more and more concerned with each passing hour. Lenore's mental health took a sharp dive the instant she was told they weren't going home, and she'd vehemently resisted any attempt to introduce her to Amalia's devices, too overwhelmed to even be able to wrap her mind around any of it. She was tormented by nightmares of her ordeal and frequently woke up crying out and thrashing in Rahab's arms as he tried desperately to calm her. When she was awake, she remained desolate at the loss of the era she could never go back to and could often be found alone, silently weeping and avoiding everyone who tried to engage with her, refusing to even look at the blood she was offered until she was nearly mad with hunger.

Tantallon was at first over the moon at having his beloved sister back again, and immediately got to work trying to get things back to normal between them. He brought her Amalia's stuffed giraffe, which did seem to get her mind off things... but only for a few minutes. She quickly stopped gazing at it and petting it and simply sat hugging it. Fallen leaves were blanketing the ground by now, and he thought back to how they used to pile them up and roughhouse in them back in their human days, when they were still children. When he found her sitting under a tree outside, he tried to get her to play with him first by sidling up to her with a leaf and letting it drop onto her head, then by poking her with a claw. When neither of those got any response, he moved on to pushing her lightly, then tried blowing in her ear (she'd always hated that) and bouncing playfully out of her reach with a grin. She only got up, brushed the leaf off her head, and silently moved away without looking back, leaving him sitting alone in the leaves, fighting tears. 

She barely even acknowledged Rahab other than to cling to him for a short while after the nightmares, and it was scaring him to death. He hadn't been sleeping particularly well either, though it wasn't nightmares that plagued him so much as repeatedly waking up disoriented and immediately beginning to panic thinking that the rescue had been a dream, that Lenore was still gone. Either she'd be out of bed moping, in which case it would take several long seconds before he could convince himself that it had all been real, or she'd still be lying next to him, at which point it would all come crashing back just how badly she was suffering and how powerless he felt to ease her pain. 

He wanted so badly to bed her, and not out of selfishness, either. Lenore had always had a difficult time adjusting to change and would usually initiate a lengthy string of sexual encounters when things had been shaken up and she needed to seek comfort from him. When they'd moved from their quarters at the Sanctuary to their newly-built stronghold she'd cried most of the way there, daunted by the prospect of living away from Tantallon for the first time and knowing that before long, her husband would be expected to sire new fledglings, the future Elders of his clan. Until then, her life as a vampire had consisted mostly of Rahab, Raziel, and Tantallon, but soon there would be a string of fledges demanding both of their attention. It was difficult not to feel as if they were exchanging a relatively simple way of life, one that they'd been perfectly happy with, for something complicated and full of responsibility. "I just want to feel normal again," she'd said to him when he entered their opulent new bedchamber that first night to find her sprawled naked on their fancy new bed. "Give me something I know, Rahab."

If ever there was a situation where Lenore would look for reassurance in this fashion, this would be it... but she barely even spoke to him, much less indicate that she wanted him to touch her that way. "It's been nearly a week," he confided to Amalia one day. "Gone more than seventy years, and now I've had her back nearly seven days and we've barely spoken. I don't dare even try anymore; I can't take it when I get nothing but superficial responses. She's miserable."

"She's been through a lot, Rahab. You don't escape being tortured to death by the skin of your teeth and just bounce right back to normal. She's got some serious PTSD and she's having to cope with that on top of being ripped out of the existence she was familiar with and dropped into one that's completely alien."

"P-T... what?"

"Post-traumatic stress disorder," she explained. "It's the name we came up with for the effect this sort of trauma has on a person's mind. The nightmares, the crying, the inability to relax, the panic attacks," she said, counting them off on her fingers. "She has to process what happened in order to stop suffering so badly, and that takes time. She'll get there, it just... it'll probably take a while."

"But she's so distant... even to me! I feel as if I must be doing something wrong. There must be more I can do to help her," he replied, looking utterly lost. "But I don't know what it is, and no one else has any advice for me."

"You are her anchor in all of this nonsense. I mean, Tantallon and Raziel are too, to some extent, but you're both her husband and her sire. You're doing exactly what you ought to be. It just takes time."

Rahab wasn't happy with that answer. "Your people didn't have a cure for this?"

"I mean...not a simple one. There's medicine to dull the anxiety, but it only treats the symptom and it's very much temporary on top of being addictive. We have trained therapists who specialize in helping people move past this sort of thing and regain control of their lives, but I'm not one of them."

"Then perhaps we could... I know this sounds crazy, but..."

"You want to take her through the gate to get her help?"

"Couldn't we?" he implored. "Kain's not here to stop us and who the hell knows when he'll decide he's through with being a coward and running away from what he's done. If these doctors exist in your world, then let us make use of them while we can."

Amalia quashed the idea immediately. "Therapy takes months, Rahab. Sometimes even years. Even if it didn't, we can't just drop off a traumatized vampire at a human therapist's office and expect it to end well. I don't think I need to explain to you why that presents a problem in a world where supernatural creatures are supposed to exist only in myths and legends."

Rahab heaved a frustrated growl. "The medicine, then! Can we get it? At least then she could sleep more than an hour at a time without waking up screaming!"

After a moment of internal debate, Amalia sighed deeply. "I... may have some at home."

This time, they weren't going anywhere alone. They found Tantallon in Rahab's bed with Lenore, lying stretched out alongside her back with his head resting lightly on her shoulder as she slept. Stella sat behind him stroking his hair, doing her best to comfort him.

"Tantallon," Rahab began, "Get up. We're going to Amalia's world to get medicine for Lenore."

Tantallon stared up at him, baffled. "What? What kind of medicine?"

"It's something for anxiety," Amalia explained. "I have a prescription for it because I was in rough shape after my grandparents passed and could hardly sleep. They gave me thirty pills, but I only took three. She can't take it every night because it's addictive, but she can do one night on, two nights off, and she'll at least be able to get some actual rest. I think that'll do wonders to help her start coming around."

Lenore's eyes opened then, and she glanced up at Amalia and Rahab and then squeezed them shut again. "I'm sorry..." she whispered.

"Darling, whatever for?" Rahab asked, kneeling down beside the bed. It was the first time she'd initiated any sort of conversation since they'd brought her back and explained their situation to her.

"I'm just... I'm being so selfish," she began. "I know I'm being awful to all of you, and I want to stop, but I just..."

"It's okay, Lenore, we're not angry with you," Tantallon reassured her.

"You should be..."

"Well, we're not," Amalia replied. "You've been through hell, it's okay not to be okay for a while. We're going to go back to my world and bring you something that'll help you sleep, alright?"

"I heard..." she murmured. "Thank you. I'll try harder."

"You will rest and do nothing else," Tantallon chided as he got up. "The fact that you're actually speaking to us in complete sentences again already has me so relieved that I feel almost lightheaded. You don't have to keep doing it, we already know you're getting better now."

"You're leaving?" Stella asked, following him off the bed.

"Won't be gone long," he replied. "At least, not to you. Doesn't really matter how long we stay there, I guess, since we'll return to this world the instant we leave."

"I don't get it," she said as she wrapped her arms around him. "But I'll be here when you come back."

Rahab wore a disapproving expression as he watched Tantallon return the hug and kiss her goodbye, but said nothing as he leaned down to smooch the top of Lenore's head. Stella hopped back onto the bed and took Tantallon's place behind her. "I'll stay with you, Lenore. Vance will come by soon too. Lorrelin brought back some hens and little baby chicks from the market, did you know that? He's going to bring a few up in a box for you to pet once he's finished fixing the door to the coop."

Satisfied that Lenore would be taken care of while they were gone, they went to look for Raziel.

"Stop pacing and forget about Kain. Come with us," Tantallon said when they found him. "We're going to Amalia's world to get medicine for Lenore."

"What? Are you insane? We can't just leave everyone here alone for however long that'll take!"

"No, but we can leave them for the six or so hours that'll actually pass while we travel to and from the gate. What we do in between is of no consequence, remember?"

"We have to do something, Raziel. We cannot just let her flounder the way she's been doing. She needs help," Rahab insisted. "Come along or don't. We're going regardless."

Raziel sighed deeply, dragging his palm down his face. "We can't go like this, you realize," he said, gesturing broadly at them. "We're going to need those shapechanging potions to take human form if we're to move among them undetected. If they see us in our true forms it'll start a panic, and they've apparently got the ability to share information worldwide in an instant. We'll be tracked down within an hour, if that."

"Good thing we've got the whole batch, then."

"Says you," Raziel replied, rather testily. "I don't particularly fancy spending five minutes in that disguise, much less however long this will take."

"Quit moaning and let's go," was all Rahab said. "We don't have to change form until we arrive."

Each potion would theoretically last a full day, provided Amalia's world only lacked magic rather than being some sort of black hole that drained it (if that were the case, they'd simply have to come back and think of something else). The batch they'd made had been fairly large and had resulted in fifty-six vials, far more than they'd need for a brief jaunt, though Rahab insisted they take the time to go and find Lenore a suitable present to bring back rather than just grab the meds and return immediately. Four each would be more than enough to see them through, it was determined. They debated briefly over whether or not to take all the bloodskins with them or leave one behind for Lenore, but ultimately decided that it was far less problematic to risk her going hungry for a few hours than it was to end up needing to kill a human from Amalia's world should they run out before being able to return. Raziel explained where they were going to Lorrelin and reminded her to keep an eye on Lenore, earning himself an exaggerated eyeroll.

"Any other obvious suggestions? Perhaps you'd like to write me a note reminding me to dress each day?"

He only glowered at her and walked out the door, joining back up with the rest just as they finished repacking Amalia's electronics into her backpack so that she could add media to them at home. The trip to the gate was uneventful, save for a moment of panic when they couldn't find it and thought it had disappeared. Once they finally located it and made it safely through, they stood frozen among the trees trying to adjust to the lack of magical energy in the environment. Raziel spoke first. "Well, I don't know what I expected, having tasted your human blood," was all he said. Tantallon stood completely silent a moment with a disturbed expression on his face, his eyes darting around at the trees.

"What happened to make this place the way it is?" he asked. "Was there ever magic, Amalia?"

She only shrugged. "I have no idea. We have stories and myths but I just sort of figured we just have really vivid imaginations. There's really no way to know for sure."

"Come, let's make sure these still work. If they've been rendered inert by being brought here, we need to know now," Rahab said, handing each of them a vial. They all downed the liquid inside, and Amalia watched her sharp black claws retreat and disappear entirely, leaving her fingers tipped with normal human nails once again. She ran her hands through her hair as it turned from black back to red, watching as the others morphed right before her very eyes.

Tantallon's eyes were now blue, and his hair had turned from black to light chestnut. Rahab's eyes had shifted from icy cyan to a much more natural blue, though his hair remained black. Raziel's eyes and hair were much the same as Rahab's, though his hair was cropped off at the nape of his neck rather than shoulder length. Amalia blinked in surprise at how utterly bizarre it was to see them as they were in life, with human hands and skin that was pink and healthy-looking rather than the usual ashen gray (or mottled blue, in Rahab's case.) 

"Wow... you all had blue eyes," she observed. "How come your hair is short now, Raz?"

Raziel shuddered, shaking himself as if trying to rid his skin of some sort of filth. "Because that's the length it was when I was killed. It's like this naturally as a vampire as well, but I like it better long, so I extended it using magic. I hate this form. Absolutely hideous," he groused.

Amalia snorted. "Yeah, you say that, but I can guarantee all three of you are going to turn heads when we get out there."

"We're not here to socialize," Rahab interjected. "Let's just go. Where is your home from here?"

"I told you, it's a ways away," Amalia replied. "We're going to have to drive. At least with time having stood still while I was gone my car will still be where I left it. Let's round up the rest of my stuff, and we'll head that way."

Amalia figured Rahab would be fine in her world, but hadn't really given any thought to how Raziel and Tantallon would react to being hurled from the familiar simplicity of Nosgoth to the disparate complexity of modern human life. Getting them into the car took a bit of cajoling. Rahab growled in frustration from the front passenger seat, having simply watched what Amalia did to open the door on her side and repeated her actions on his own without the slightest hesitation. "Get in, you cowards!"

Raziel bristled. "I am not a coward! I am merely... overwhelmed," he snapped, eyeing the back of the car through the window.

Amalia rolled her eyes. "Come on, you ding dongs, are you gonna let yourselves be intimidated by something the humans here do every single day?"

That did it. With a huff, Raziel gingerly hooked his fingers under the door handle and pulled, exchanging a wary glance with Tantallon as he walked around to the other side. Once they were settled, Amalia pointed out the seatbelts and explained how to secure them before starting the car. Glancing back in the rear view mirror, she met a very nervous Tantallon's eyes. "You gonna make it, Tantallon?"

"I don't know," he fired back with a glare. "Am I?"

She only laughed as she put the car in reverse and pulled out of the parking lot. "Oh my god, we're going so fast," he said as he watched the fenceposts alongside the road whiz by as Amalia drove to the park's entrance.

"Dude, we're not even doing forty. You ain't seen nothin' yet."

"Forty? Forty what?" Raziel asked as the color drained out of Tantallon's face, leaving him nearly as pale as he was before the potion.

"Miles an hour."

"You can cover forty miles in the span of an hour in this thing?" Rahab asked excitedly. He seemed to have momentarily forgotten the unhappy reason for their journey and appeared to be having the absolute time of his life.

"You can do ninety if you want to be really unsafe about it. Technically more, but it would be bad for the car."

"Oh, fuck me," Raziel whispered as he dug his blunt human nails into the seat, grateful that this loathsome disguise at least had one thing going for it- without the claw-tipped talons of an elder vampire, he needn't worry about inadvertently shredding the upholstery.

"'Bad for the car', she says," Tantallon growled, resolving to simply close his eyes the rest of the way and becoming even more dismayed as he realized that cutting off his vision did absolutely nothing to stop the assault on his sense of balance and momentum. Their speed increased, then decreased until they came to a stop, then increased again only to repeat the process several times. Rahab asked questions the entire way about other cars, signs, poles, machines, buildings, marks on the road, and what this or that button did, but Tantallon was too anxious to pay much attention and only caught the occasional phrase, such as "power lines" or "air conditioning" or "semi truck". Before long he heard her say something about a "highway on-ramp", and his stomach lurched as they suddenly began to speed up at an alarming rate. 

Rahab was practically vibrating with excitement as he watched out the window, and he laughed out loud and whooped in exhilaration as they entered the highway and slid neatly into the nearest lane between two other cars. It was the happiest he'd been in decades. "Wait, do the windows open?" he asked, eyeing the buttons on the door.

"No!" came the frantic protests from the backseat.

He'd already moved onto his next thought anyway. "How long does it take to learn to operate these contraptions?"

"Don't get any ideas, Rahab," Amalia laughed. "I am not teaching you to drive."

Rahab was indignant. "Why not?"

"Because you don't have a learner's permit, which you need a whole bunch of government documents that you also do not have in order to obtain. Also, that isn't why we're here."

Feeling a slight pang of guilt at having lost his focus on their goal, Rahab sighed. "Just seems like fun, is all. But you're right," he mumbled. "I shouldn't be losing sight of-" he cut himself off as he craned his neck to look back at the much less enthusiastic occupants of the car, who both still had their eyes closed. "Are you two quite alright?" he asked, eyebrow raised, as he glanced downward to find them white knuckling one another's hands. 

"How long until we arrive?" asked Raziel, pointedly ignoring his brother.

Amalia winced, knowing he wasn't going to like the answer. "Several hours."

"You might as well settle in," Rahab said over his shoulder as Raziel groaned in dismay. "If you'd just relax, you'd realize how much you're missing back there. Look out the windows, for god's sake, or you'll be kicking yourself later for having passed up the opportunity for a brand new experience."

As much as either of them hated to admit it, they both knew Rahab was right, and once they'd resolved to try to relax they realized that their bodies had largely adjusted to the sensation of traveling at such a high velocity. They could still feel the changes in speed, but they'd become much more subtle now that they were on a road meant for efficient travel that required no stopping. And once they let go of one another's hands and forced themselves to look out the windows...

Gods above, they were going so fast, but there was so much to see in every direction. "My god... look at all of them! Both ahead and behind, the road is full of people driving these things!" Tantallon marvelled.

"Oh, just wait until we're closer to Chicago," Amalia replied. "Then you'll see just how dense traffic can get, especially since we're going to hit rush hour."

"Even on roads as wide as these?" Rahab asked.

"There are millions of humans living in this area, and the vast majority of them use cars to get around. These roads are major thoroughfares, so at the times of day where people are either going to or coming from work, it's gridlock. Honestly, if I didn't want to let you see the city up close I'd just take a different route and skirt the whole mess."

"Look, Tantallon!" Raziel gasped, pointing out the window at an airplane that was passing overhead, leaving twin contrails in its wake.

"One of the flying war machines?" Tantallon asked, alarmed. "The ones with bombs?"

"That's not a war plane, guys. It belongs to an airline, which is a company that specializes in air travel, and major cities all have airports where they take off and land. There are a bunch of people strapped into seats up there just like you are down here, just trying to get from point A to point B."

"Ha! See? Things could be worse," Rahab smirked. "Though I for one would be thrilled to try it. Imagine the view!"

"You and your god damned thrill-seeking behavior, Rahab. You're as bad as these idiotic humans are," Raziel sniped. "I suppose next you'll be wanting to visit that ridiculous place where they fork over their hard-earned money to frighten themselves half to death riding carts that race up and down along a track at a terrifying pace."

Rahab lit up. "Wait, what? What's he talking about, Amalia?"

Amalia hadn't ever shown any of those memories to Rahab, and she narrowed her eyes at Raziel in the rear view mirror. "Well, now you've done it."

"What's he talking about, Amalia?" Rahab repeated, more urgently this time.

She heaved a sigh. "He's talking about Six Flags. It's a big wide open place where people pay admission to ride a bunch of different kinds of fast-moving mechanical contraptions for fun. We're going to drive right past it to get to my house, so you'll see what I'm talking about then."

Rahab continued to chatter animatedly as they drove along, marveling at the various interchanges where the roads diverged and noting the signs that guided drivers to their destinations. "Look! There's a sign for that flag place! It must be nearby."

"That's it up ahead," Amalia replied, and the park soon appeared to their left.

"Oh, just look at them! Slow down, Amalia, let us look!" cried Rahab, his eyes darting wildly between the bright colors of the waterslides, the drop tower, and the rollercoasters.

"I can't just slow to a crawl on the highway, dude, it's dangerous and the police are assholes around here. None of the rides are running anyhow; the park is closed in the winter. When we get home I'll show you how to find recordings of them to watch. You'll learn more from those than what little you can see from the highway, trust me."

Rahab twisted around and leaned between the front seats to look back as they drove past the park. "How fast do they go?"

"Depends on the ride, but the ones you can see from here go pretty fast. People usually scream."

"Are there places like this one that are open?"

"We don't have time to indulge your foolishness, Rahab," Raziel snapped, annoyed at how obnoxiously elated Rahab was at the possibility of making a detour to one of these awful places. "Or have you forgotten why we've come here?"

This was a mistake. Amalia startled in the drivers seat as Rahab rounded on his brother, lunging partway between the front seats and hissing a sound that would have come out as a snarl if his throat wasn't currently structured as a human's rather than a vampire's. "I haven't forgotten a damn thing, Raziel!" he spat. "Don't attack me simply because you're afraid of this world and everything in it and I'm not!"

Raziel pressed himself back into the seat, his eyes widening in shock at the vehemence of his brother's response. There was no petulance in his voice this time, no indication that there were any hurt feelings that he'd sit and stew in like usual. Rahab's feelings weren't hurt at all, in fact; his tone conveyed nothing but challenge and pure, savage anger.

He shouldn't have been surprised, really, to see him assert himself so viciously, not after watching him tear into Kain for his mistreatment, but he had always known Rahab to be reserved, quiet, and prone to simply putting up with whatever abuse was hurled at him aside from perhaps a bit of snark. This was an entirely new side of him; it was the sort of fire that Raziel had always wanted to see in him, and ultimately... he was right. The truth was, Raziel was afraid of this place now that he was here. For all his desire for new experiences and knowledge, this was all just too much, and he was as overwhelmed as his brother was thrilled.

He continued to stare Raziel down, and for the first time in their entire existence... Raziel closed his eyes and calmly, deliberately bared his throat to him. When he slowly opened them again, he was once again caught off guard at the complete lack of surprise in his brother's expression. Rahab didn't appear shocked at all to see his eldest brother display such submission to him, in fact he simply continued to stare, as if to emphasize the fact that this was how things were now, like he was daring him to try and take it back. He finally turned back to sink into the front seat, glaring at Raziel the whole way until he finally broke eye contact and fixed his gaze out the front window.

Feeling immensely guilty for allowing his insecurity to get the better of him and spoiling his brother's elated mood, he immediately tried to make amends. "I'm sorry, Rahab. You're right... this place is just too much, and I'm having a difficult time adjusting."

"You saw her memories. You knew what to expect."

"I thought I knew what to expect. Reality, as it turns out, has far more of an impact than fuzzy images."

Rahab huffed irritably, knowing that Raziel had a point. He didn't expect he'd be quite this giddy at being immersed in this fascinating new environment, after all. "Well we've hardly been here two hours; perhaps you ought to try harder to relax and appreciate these wonders."

Raziel resolved to do just that, and the atmosphere in the car lightened, much to the relief of Amalia and Tantallon. In between answering Rahab's multitude of questions, Amalia told them a bit more about her grandparents, mentioning offhand that her grandfather had been a reptile enthusiast and had an entire room in the house dedicated solely to that particular hobby. Chicago's skyline was soon revealed, and traffic began to snarl up, which aided the two in the backseat in relaxing enough to take in more of the sights (which at the moment was mostly other cars, and what the occupants were up to.)

"That man is drinking something," Tantallon pointed out. "And the woman next to him has a flap down and is doing something to her face. Must be a mirror there."

"She's putting on makeup, and yeah. Those flaps are for blocking the sun from your eyes if you're headed straight into it, but the one on the passenger side usually has a little mirror."

Everyone save for Amalia craned their necks to watch a Metra train pull into a station alongside the highway. "What the hell is that?" Raziel asked.

"Transport. See those rails on the ground? Those trains run on them from place to place, stopping at these stations along the way to pick up passengers or let them off," Amalia replied. "There's a huge network of them throughout the city and the surrounding suburbs. Still not enough to keep traffic from piling up, though," she groused.

"This is beyond my wildest imagination," Tantallon stated. "I'd no idea what they could do if simply left alone to innovate."

"None of us did," Rahab replied, softly. "One has to wonder what our own world's humans could have accomplished had we not been around." 

"I try not to think about it," said Tantallon. "It... doesn't feel good to dwell on it. Although, clearly the presence of natural magic influences things as well. I mean, we've always known that we're intelligent, and we never did anything like this, never even imagined it. We relied on magic to accomplish our goals and assumed there was no better way."

"Someone still needs to teach Vance to read," Amalia piped up, prodded by the discussion of intelligence.

"I'll do it," Rahab offered. "I've no doubt he'll pick it up relatively quickly. His manner of speech gives one the impression he's some sort of dullard, but he's remarkably astute. He's the one who first thought of using time travel to go and retrieve Lenore. We ought to bring him a present, too."

"We should bring everyone presents," said Tantallon, glad for the opportunity to make the suggestion. He'd been planning to bring back something for Stella the entire time, but didn't want to have to answer any questions about why he'd want to. He wouldn't have had an answer anyhow. He just did.

Once Chicago was behind them, traffic let up, and the rest of the trip was relatively boring in comparison. With only a day left in November the sun set early, and it was fully dark by time they turned onto the long gravel driveway that stretched out through Amalia's property. The house was dark, but a light flicked on as they approached two big side by side doors in the front. Amalia reached up and pushed a button on a device clipped to her sun visor, and the others watched as one door opened so that the car could be parked inside the building.

"Man, I never thought I'd see this place again," Amalia said as she pushed the door to the main part of the house open. The lights in this room were harsh and bright. "This is the laundry room. Those machines there are for washing and drying clothes." No one was the least bit surprised that automatic laundry machines existed here. They began to explore only to end up huddled around a bottle of laundry detergent, floored by how insanely good it smelled.

"You said something in the car earlier about your grandfather having kept reptiles as pets?" Tantallon ventured as she led them into a roomy kitchen, flicking the light switch on just as he'd seen her do in the laundry room and grinning up at the fixture overhead. He began to amuse himself by flicking the switch up and down until Raziel told him to cut it out.

"Yep, they're in that room over there," she replied, pointing to a closed door on the other side of the living room, visible from the entrance to the kitchen. Tantallon made a beeline for the reptile room while Raziel walked over to a large upright box-shaped thing with doors and pulled one open. It was cold and full of human food, making its purpose apparent. He tried a smaller box with a door next, but it only had a round glass plate inside and buttons on the outside, which he knew better than to fiddle with without asking first. Rahab lacked Raziel's restraint and immediately went and turned a dial on a different appliance, pulling his hand back when blue flames erupted from one of the wells on top.

"Ha! I thought it looked like a stove of some sort. And look at this, Raziel. This looks like a sink; I'll bet if you poke around you can get water to come out of that spigot-"

"What the fuck, Amalia?!" Tantallon suddenly shrieked, backing his way out of the reptile room and scrambling to pull the door shut.

They all turned to look at him as he began to frantically brush at his clothing. "What is wrong with-" Raziel began, but he was immediately cut off by his firstborn's next outburst.

"There is an absolutely monstrous... She's got the biggest spider I've ever seen in a transparent box sitting on a shelf!" he cried, pointing at the door.

Amalia immediately burst into laughter. "Oh no, I forgot about her!" she exclaimed, covering her mouth. "I'm sorry, Tantallon, I'd have warned you if I'd remembered before you-"

"Why... do you have it... in your house?!" he demanded, cutting her off.

She threw her hands up. "Somebody was getting rid of theirs because they couldn't handle it, and my grandpa didn't want them to just release it into the wild! She wouldn't survive out there, so he offered to take her."

"Not survive?! It's a giant spider, who the fuck's going to eat her?"

"Parasitic wasps." she replied flatly.

Tantallon froze, his eyes wide. "Parasitic... what?"

"Yeah. There's one called the tarantula hawk," she informed him, failing to mention that that particular species lived nowhere near this part of the country. "That," she pointed at the door to the room, "Is known as a tarantula. The orange baboon tarantula, to be specific."

Parasitic. Hawk. Wasp. Tantallon blinked as he rolled those words around in his head. It didn't matter what order his brain spit them back out in, the problem was that they were together in the first place. He turned to Raziel. "I want to go home."

Rahab, of course, had walked right past them and ventured into the room to investigate, and at that moment he strode back out with his hands up, shaking his head. "Nope. Even I've got my limits."

Raziel snickered. "What, you don't want to hold it, brother dear?"

"Go look at it and we'll see who's brave enough to hold it," Rahab replied, nodding toward the door as he folded his arms over his chest.

Not about to back down from a challenge, Raziel immediately headed for the door to the herp room. Zephon's hideous children were capable of spinning webs for their victims even if they didn't look much like spiders otherwise, and he'd conquered them handily (though he had to admit that they had been significantly more of a pain in the ass than any of the rest of his brothers' monstrous offspring.) He'd seen real spiders in Nosgoth with legspans of at least three inches plenty of times, and it was said that they were more afraid of you than you ought to be of them. Considering that every time he'd stumbled across one it would immediately book it to safety, this seemed to be the case, and he'd never given them a second thought.

Thus, when he didn't make it two steps into the room before a hairy orange blur the size of his palm dashed toward him, thumped loudly against the side of its box, and stood with front legs reared in a threat display, he immediately stumbled backward and fell on his ass before lunging for the door and yanking it shut in much the same way as Tantallon had. He slowly turned toward his bride, glaring murderously at her.

"...Yeah, you do not want to hold that species. It's one of the most aggressive there is, they're insanely fast, and the bite hurts like hell," Amalia laughed. "They're commonly referred to as the 'Orange Bitey Thing' in the pet trade."

"That 'bitey thing' had better not be able to get out of that box," Raziel growled at her, pointing toward the door. Now that he knew what sort of behavior to expect from it, he would not fear it even if he found it disgusting... provided it was safely contained.

"Trust me, she's secure. I am not gonna risk having one of those zipping out from under my couch and attacking me. I told my grandpa he was nuts for even having one and was going to start looking for a new owner for her when I got back. I have to open the box to feed her, and it's nerve wracking every time."

"Take it out of there and put it somewhere else, Amalia," Rahab commanded. "I want to see the lizards and I am not going to listen to that thing skittering around in its box while I admire them."

Amalia immediately did as she was told and walked back out of the herp room holding the tarantula's container. She'd at least covered it with a towel so they didn't have to see it, but they could still hear its legs thumping against the plastic as it moved. She bore it away to the laundry room for the time being, since it was warm enough for her to be comfortable there a while.

"Did either of you see any more in there?"

"No, just the one, thankfully," Rahab replied as he ducked into the room again. 

Everything else about the herp room was a delight. A large upright enclosure housed a strange thing with a tightly coiled tail and eyes which darted every which way, completely independent of one another. That Amalia called a 'chameleon', and apparently they could change the color of their skin to match their surroundings. Smaller tanks on shelves housed a leopard gecko, a bearded dragon, and a handful of brightly colored frogs, and there was a long tank filled mostly with water that contained an aquatic turtle. 

"I'm going to need to call and cancel the pet sitter I hired to pop in and feed everybody tomorrow since I'm back already. For now, I promised to show Rahab roller coaster videos," said Amalia once they'd checked out everything the reptiles had to offer, prompting Rahab to light up like a Christmas tree (she'd introduce them all to that soon enough as well, since it was now officially Christmas season.)

"Come on, guys... Time to learn about the blessing and curse that is the internet."

Chapter Text

"I thought you said these things go fast? This doesn't look particularly exciting." remarked Tantallon. 

"Yeah, man, American Eagle starts with a lift hill. Give it a minute."

Rahab remained silent, his eyes fixed on the huge screen that sat on a narrow table across from the couch, which Amalia had connected to her laptop. They'd dispelled the effects of the potions and returned to their vampire forms, and now Tantallon, Rahab, and Amalia had settled in while Raziel stood with his arms crossed behind them, thoroughly unimpressed by anything he was seeing.

"It's carrying them quite high, I see," observed Raziel. "I still cannot fathom why anyone would do this to themselves."

The train reached the top of the hill and it became apparent just how steep the impending drop was. "Good god," Tantallon murmured.

"Oh, look, there they go!" Rahab said excitedly, and they watched with bated breath as the train roared down the hill. Raziel shook his head and looked away, while Rahab and Tantallon's eyebrows practically disappeared into their hairlines. 

"They're letting go and putting their hands up, look!" Tantallon laughed. "They're all insane!"

"You've got to admit that it looks like fun, Tantallon," Rahab commented as the train returned to the station.

"It really sort of does," he conceded sheepishly. "The first drop seemed scary, but the rest wasn't so bad, really."

"Oh yeah? Let's check out some of the steel ones and see what you think," Amalia replied with a grin. She pulled up a video of the Superman coaster and started it up.

"Where's the track?"

"Above you on this one. You dangle underneath it."

"Oh, god... Yeah, if we go to this place you might be on your own for this one, Rahab."

"I'm not af-" Rahab began, trailing off as the ride got going and the screen went topsy-turvy several times in rapid succession. He remained silent until the video finished, then turned to Tantallon, who was staring at him with his arms crossed.

"You were saying?"

"...Okay, but if they can do it!" Rahab exclaimed after a moment, throwing up his hands and gesturing at the TV as he reached for the laptop. "Let's look for more. There were several others visible in the background, they must be on here too."

Amalia suddenly noticed that Raziel had disappeared, and went to look for him. She found him back in the herp room, morosely staring at the chameleon as it hung upside down from a branch.

"Hey," she said softly, laying her hand on his arm. "You alright?"

"I am," he sighed. "It's just... they're suddenly talking as if they're making plans for an outing to ride those awful things, and I'll clearly be the only one who won't enjoy it, so I might as well stay behind."

"Raz, I'm not really a coaster enthusiast either. I've ridden smaller wooden ones, but that's it. If we ever do go to a place like that, which we won't on this trip because the closest one is closed for the winter, there are other fun things to do. No one is getting left behind on these adventures."

"We didn't come here to go on adventures," he grumbled. Frankly, he'd grown quite tired of adventuring by now, thank you very much, particularly the sort of adventuring that involved careening through the air from high places. The coaster videos had brought up memories of his fall into the Abyss and his time as a wraith having to rely on his ruined wings to carry him from ledge to ledge, and it had left him feeling quite unsettled.

"Are you saying that if I told you there are a million places to buy clothes in Chicago, you wouldn't want to make a day trip to the city tomorrow?"

He raised his eyes and blinked, clearly caught off guard by the suggestion and very much intrigued. 

"We want to get presents for everyone, remember? Can't get presents without doing a bit of shopping. And I've got more money than I know what to do with now, so..."

"...We could have one adventure, I suppose," he replied with a smirk.

They returned to the living room, where Rahab and Tantallon were watching a video about Fright Fest. "Oh, she told me about this! There's a holiday where they celebrate monsters and creepy things. This must have been recorded during that holiday."

"Nah, Fright Fest goes on for weeks. People love that shit," Amalia informed him.

"Clearly," said Rahab. "I suppose if monsters don't exist here, you can afford to make light of them. I see that most are in costume... do you suppose we could get away with-"

"No. No, you cannot," she replied flatly. "It's been over for a month, anyway, and I keep telling you the park is closed now. If the weather cooperates and it stays cloudy though, we're going to go to Chicago to go shopping tomorrow."

Tantallon lit up. "That'll be fun! Can we ride one of those transport things there?"

"I mean, I'm sure as shit not taking a car into downtown Chicago, so yeah, that's the plan. For now, we really ought to get some rest," she said, turning to lead them upstairs toward the master bedroom. "None of us has been sleeping particularly well lately."

The one thing Amalia had changed about her grandparents' house before leaving was replacing their old queen sized bed with a king-sized pillowtop, which she'd decked out with warm flannel sheets and a heavy comforter in preparation for her return from her camping trip. Rahab trailed his talons along the edge, delighted at how soft the bedding felt.

Tantallon simply dived onto the bed and buried his face in one of the pillows. "God, it smells like that stuff in the bottle in the entryway," he groaned pleasurably, squirming a bit to snuggle as close to the mattress as he physically could. 

"All four of us can fit in a bed this big," said Rahab as he sat down on the end, watching Raziel begin to strip off his clothes in preparation for sleep. With a shrug, he stood again and began to follow suit.

"Are we all just sleeping naked, then, or...?" Amalia inquired, eyebrow raised. Tantallon raised his head from the pillow and gave her a fiendish sidelong glance.

"Perhaps we should," he said suggestively as he sat up and started to wriggle out of his own clothing. "Anything worth doing is worth doing naked, right?"

Sensing where this was going, she glanced over at Rahab, only to look away upon finding him already entirely nude.

"Tantallon," Raziel warned. "Let's not push in a direction not everyone will be comfortable with."

"Oh, please. You know as well as I do that it'll do them some good, now that they're getting along. Surely Rahab is needing it by now, regardless." He ducked just as Rahab's shirt came sailing toward his head, grinning defiantly back at him.

"Yes, well, if I were fucking Stella at the same rate you have been, we'd have killed the poor girl between the two of us by now. I don't know how she keeps up with you," Rahab retorted as he climbed under the covers on the opposite side of the bed. Raziel settled in between them, leaving Amalia standing there fully clothed and feeling distinctly awkward.

"Nothing has to happen tonight, darling," Raziel soothed, sitting back up and reaching his hand out in invitation. "And Rahab will be more than happy to put his clothes back on if you'd rather."

"But he'd much rather you took yours off instead," quipped Tantallon, prompting Raziel to reach back and slap him hard right upside the head. "Enough, I said," he growled.

"You're such a little shit, Tantallon," said Amalia as she hopped up to straddle him on all fours. "I ought to bite your face right off."

The slap from his sire had certainly cowed him and would usually have prompted a lengthy bout of sulking, but Amalia's sudden proximity and aggression had him forgetting it almost entirely. "Well, seeing as I'm the only one here you haven't bitten yet, I am beginning to feel somewhat left out."

"Sucks to be you. All this bedding is brand new, and I'm not about to have your blood spattered all over it."

"I suspect they might need washing regardless once I'm finished."

"You planning on getting yourself off, then?"

"You speak as if I've never made you make a mess before."

"Bitch, please," Amalia scoffed, causing Rahab, who'd never heard that particular phrase before, to snort with laughter. "The messes have been quite mutual, as I recall."

"Do they always do this beforehand?" Rahab murmured to Raziel as he rested his head on his shoulder, still grinning.

Raziel turned his head and gave him a wry look. "Would it really surprise you to find that she considers verbal sparring a valid form of foreplay?" he muttered back.

Amalia overheard the remark, and she glanced over at him, still on all fours above Tantallon. "You're one to talk."

"Nope," said Tantallon, not about to let Amalia get distracted by her husband for even a second, lest her attention remain on him. He pulled her down into a kiss, and she laughed into his mouth as Raziel and Rahab scooted back a bit to give them room.

"Well, we're in for a show now," Raziel said with a smirk.

"Are you going to let him have all the fun?"

Raziel shrugged lightly, watching as Tantallon slid his hand under Amalia's shirt. "We'll see."

"Perhaps we ought to make our own mischief and heckle him for once," suggested Rahab, and they exchanged malicious grins and settled in to watch.

Tantallon was fully hard by time he got Amalia's clothes off, and he growled softly as Amalia reached down to wrap her hand around him.

"Careful, now," Rahab began. "Don't want to set him off too early and spoil the fun."

Tantallon cast a jaundiced eye in their direction. "I don't believe you've ever seen me get mine before my partner gets hers, thank you very much."

"There's a first time for everything," said Raziel. 

Tantallon only scoffed. "Please."

"Are you going to let that arrogance go unchecked, Amalia?" asked Rahab, eager to goad them on.

"Nope," she replied, smirking maliciously down at Tantallon's cock a moment before shuffling backward, nipping lightly at his hip and causing him to jump and let loose an amusing high-pitched yelp. Giving him no more time to prepare, she took him into her mouth.

"Fuck," he hissed, arching his back slightly and gripping the back of her head. "Not fair," he gasped, causing Raziel and Rahab to snicker.

"Do that thing with your tongue," Raziel suggested, and Tantallon's eyes widened as he vigorously shook his head.

"No, do not do that thing with-" His head tilted back into the pillow as she did it anyway, and he squeezed his eyes shut as Raziel and Rahab fought to contain their laughter. "God, Amalia! Whyyyy?" he half laughed, half whined, clearly torn between wanting to give in and not wanting to lose face after running his mouth.

She took her mouth off him just long enough to answer. "Because you deserve it," she retorted before getting right back to work. He was unable to continue protesting, and within thirty seconds let loose a low growl that she knew by now usually signaled his fast approach to the edge. She stopped again, huffing a soft laugh. "Getting close, are we?"

"Fucking hell, you know I was!" he growled. "Why would you stop?" There was an edge to his voice that signaled genuine frustration, and Amalia knew it was time to stop toying with him lest she spoil the experience for him entirely. She crawled back up to kiss him by way of apology, shushing him softly before moving back down to resume her task, this time intending to give him what he needed.

"It's really a shame he's not into men," Raziel commented to Rahab as Tantallon threw his head back once more, brow furrowed and eyes shut tight in ecstasy, letting out a shuddering groan as he came. "He's beautiful like this." 

Amalia took her mouth off him and straddled him again once she'd swallowed everything he gave her, and he stared up at her, exhausted and blissed out, reaching up to stroke her hair before glancing over at the other two occupants of the bed, who were staring back with smug expressions that indicated that they expected him to get huffy and defensive at being put in his place. Irrepressible as usual, he just shrugged and grinned at them, still fighting to regain his breath. "Worth it."

"Well, it'll have shut him up a while, at least," Rahab snarked. "I suppose it's up to us to finish what he started, then."

Raziel sat up and reached for Amalia, moving closer to Tantallon and coaxing her to lie down on her back between him and Rahab. Her courage evaporated in an instant, and she avoided Rahab's gaze as she did as she was bidden, covering herself as much as she could.

"I won't touch you unless you want it, child," he reassured her, keeping his hand close to his body as he propped himself up on his elbow.

"She's just shy because you've never been involved before," said Raziel. "She wouldn't have laid down between us if she were unwilling, and she knows her safe words."

"Is Lenore okay with this sort of thing?" Amalia suddenly asked, looking slightly panicked. "We got a bit carried away..."

"Lenore doesn't often engage with new partners due to her own shyness, but will on occasion. She lets me do as I please and is happy to do so, although I certainly don't have the sex drive that one does," Rahab snarked, nodding toward Tantallon.

"I don't think he's got much drive left at all at this point," Amalia laughed.

"Fuck off," Tantallon mumbled from behind Raziel. "Lemme sleep. You're in perfectly good hands."

Raziel rolled his eyes. "Luckily for you, my love, he is correct," he said, sliding his hand down her belly and causing her to shudder. "As always, we will stop the instant you say the word."

"I think it best if I simply watch for now," Rahab murmured, content to bide his time. Amalia's reluctance appeared to be born of nothing more than new-partner nerves, shyness, and perhaps lingering awkwardness from how long they spent as bitter enemies (which he was feeling to some small extent as well, if he were being honest with himself, though he was hiding it well.) If that were the case, then it would soon wear off, and he'd join in then. Not touching did not equate to not talking, however. "I'll bet she's already dripping wet from servicing Tantallon the way she did," he said with a smirk.

"Indeed she is," Raziel purred, sliding his talons through her folds for a moment before blunting them. "Do you think I ought to use my hands, Rahab, or my mouth?"

"Doing it orally usually goes faster," replied Rahab. "And I want to watch you fuck her."

"Oh my god, you guys," said Amalia, covering her face with her hands and blushing furiously as Raziel moved into place between her legs. "You're all gonna be the death of me."

"You're immortal, you twit," replied Rahab with another insufferable smirk. 

Amalia had no time to react before she felt Raziel's tongue on her. She swallowed down the moan that threatened to erupt, still feeling shy and inhibited with Rahab lying alongside her. Even if he wasn't touching, she knew he was looking, and she was daunted by his obvious, unabashed desire. It certainly wasn't as if she didn't find him attractive, because she absolutely did, and had from the start. That attraction had been buried under an avalanche of ill will and unpleasant interactions almost immediately after meeting him, however, and it was jarring to suddenly experience it again out of absolutely nowhere thanks to this unexpected encounter between the four of them. Well, three now, she supposed... Tantallon had clearly tapped out.

"She's awfully quiet, Raziel," Rahab observed. "Perhaps you're losing your touch."

"I'll touch you," Raziel retorted, causing Amalia to bite her lip in frustration at the loss of contact.

"Hmm... perhaps," Rahab replied suggestively, and Amalia's eyes popped open in surprise. It wasn't that the idea of them engaging with one another struck her as incestuous, because if familial relationships between vampires were anything like that of humans then she herself would be in an incestuous relationship, right alongside Lenore today and Raziel in the past. No, it had just never really occurred to her that it was a possibility that they'd ever gone that route, particularly since neither had ever talked about it. She couldn't say she was truly surprised, she supposed... after all, they were all proving right this instant just how outlandishly hedonistic they were, weren't they?

Rahab snickered. "Did I take you out of the moment by catching you off guard?"

"I'm going to take you out of the moment by booting your arse straight back downstairs if you keep distracting her," Raziel growled.

Rahab snorted softly, but otherwise ignored him, particularly since the entire exchange had clearly gotten Amalia's attention. She'd finally stopped seemingly pretending he wasn't there and had actually glanced up and made eye contact, and though she gulped apprehensively, she didn't flinch away when he slowly raised his hand to trail his clawtip across her cheek. This did not escape Raziel's notice, and, realizing that she wasn't going to be able to get into any of this until she adjusted completely to Rahab's involvement, he decided to help things along a bit.

"On second thought, brother... perhaps you'd like to take over for me?" he offered.

"Oh, I'd be delighted, provided she's willing," he replied, gently laying his hand along her jaw and stroking her cheek with his thumb the way he'd seen Raziel do when he was trying to calm her before. The tactic worked, and with another hard gulp and a moment's hesitation, she squeezed her eyes closed and nodded.
 
The two men traded places with the fluid movement typical of their kind, and within moments Raziel was stretched out alongside Amalia's right flank, reassuring her while Rahab gently coaxed her legs apart.

"Relax, my love," he soothed as Rahab slid his hands up the insides of her thighs. She took a deep, shuddering breath as he lowered himself to his belly between them, glancing up with a combination of heat and amusement in his eyes as he made himself comfortable.

"I don't think I've ever seen you look so genuinely nervous before," he commented. "You're really much like Lenore in regard to new sexual experiences."

"I'll wager she'll be just as enthusiastic once she's past the jitters, as well," chimed Raziel.

Unsure of how sensitive she was, Rahab started slow and gentle so as not to immediately throw her into sensory overload, but Raziel urged him on. "She's had time to adjust to the sensation, you needn't worry. She likes firm, constant pressure from the flat of your tongue rather than teasing from the tip."

"Mmm, quite the opposite of Lenore in that regard, then."

"Too much information," Tantallon mumbled sleepily. They all ignored him.

Amalia was definitely becoming enthusiastic now, and Rahab gave into the temptation to move downward a moment to allow his tongue to dip inside her, growling in satisfaction when her hips canted up to chase that sensation, then back down to chase the first one again. He gave her what she wanted, and her hands soon found their way into his hair as she came, breaths coming in ragged gasps as her orgasm took hold of her entire body. Rahab let loose one last deep, satisfied growl as she stilled, once again sliding his tongue inside her to lap up the aftermath of her climax. "Oh, fuck," she moaned. "Please..."

"Think she wants something else, Rahab," Tantallon murmured, his voice muffled comically by the pillow he was face down in.

Rahab snorted as he finally disengaged. "I'd hoped you were done running your mouth for the evening," he retorted.

"Never," teased Tantallon as he finally lifted his head, blowing his hair out of his eyes with a grin. "Move aside, I want a turn."

"Oh, I don't think so," replied Rahab. "You've had your fun with her. Go back to sleep."

"Somebody needs to fuck me," interjected Amalia. "I don't care who at this point."

"You're already in position, brother," suggested Raziel as he slowly sat up and shifted his weight to his knees.

"And what will you be doing during all this?" asked Rahab, glancing down at Raziel's cock.

"Putting her mouth to use, of course," Raziel purred, trailing a claw downward between Amalia's breasts.

"Her mouth has already done its job," said Tantallon with a malicious glint in his eye, seeing yet another opportunity to act as the devil on their shoulders. "I've got a better idea for where you could put it."

Mortified, Amalia immediately swatted at him. "God, Tantallon, shut up!"

Rahab gave him a wry look. "And here I thought you knew what you were doing in bed," he began. "If you did, you'd know that that particular act takes quite a lot of preparation beforehand."

"We've got time."

"I'm not entirely sure we could manage the logistics of both of us working on the same end at once," Raziel laughed.

"Not with that attitude," grinned Tantallon.

Amalia pointedly cleared her throat, glaring up at Rahab expectantly.

"All right, Amalia," he replied, shifting forward and reaching down to position himself properly as she bit her lip with a whine and laid her hands on his arms. "Far be it from me to leave a woman wanting."

Rahab was indeed smaller than both Tantallon and Raziel, but not by much, and once he was inside her she was hard pressed to feel any difference between any of them. She felt the head of Raziel's cock at her lips and immediately opened her mouth to take him in. "Good girl," he praised, reaching down to brush her hair from her face.

"Fuck, I knew you'd feel good," Rahab suddenly leaned down and growled into her ear, catching her completely off guard and eliciting a surprised little squeak. "Oh, yes, child," he continued. "You think I never thought about this, hmm? You think I never imagined what it would be like to have you in my bed, writhing beneath me like this?" he purred, eliciting a moan that had Raziel swearing under his breath at the sensation the unexpected vibration sent through him. It suddenly occurred to him that as insanely hot as this entire situation was, he was really going to have to work to stop himself coming too quickly. Tantallon didn't help, of course; true to form, he immediately set about causing trouble, this time by blunting his talons and reaching over to slide one over her mound to get at her clit.

None of them lasted long after that. Amalia was too distracted by what was happening to her to really concentrate on her own performance, but it hardly mattered because Tantallon's touch caused her to tense around Rahab's cock, which inspired Rahab to begin to fuck her harder, which prompted longer and louder moans around Raziel's cock. This domino effect led straight into the next; Raziel lost control with a loud snarl, the snarl combined with Tantallon's touch sent Amalia over the edge, and her pulsing grip on Rahab's cock sent him careening toward his own climax. Desperate to bite something, anything, he took hold of Raziel and struck at his throat, sinking his fangs into his brother's flesh and holding firm until Amalia had milked him dry.

Amalia turned her head away to get Raziel's cock out of her mouth once she could think straight again, and when she looked back, allowing it to slide underneath her chin and rest across her throat, the sight she saw was enough to send another immediate jolt of arousal straight down her spine. Rahab was still inside her, but was leaning forward with most of his weight being supported by Raziel, who'd wrapped his arms around his brother and was now holding him steady as he allowed him to drink from him. Unable to resist his own urges, Raziel had in turn bitten into Rahab's shoulder and held firm, unable to bring himself to withdraw his fangs even to get at the blood that would flow from the wound once he did. After several long moments, their instincts finally released their grip on their higher functions, and they pulled away just enough to lick the bites clean as they closed.

"That was wild," Amalia said as they let go of one another and set about figuring out how the hell to rearrange everyone now that they were all exhausted, sated, and relatively boneless. Tantallon had finally fallen quiet for good, and the meaningful look he gave his sire as their eyes met prompted Raziel to take charge of where everyone was going. "Rahab, take Amalia and feed her. Tantallon, with me," he said, and they shifted so that Raziel and Rahab were on the outside with the fledges lying between them, warm and happy, growing drowsier and drowsier as they took their fill from the wrists offered to them. There was no more conversation, no more banter. Only a storm of purrs which slowly began to subside as each fell asleep.

Chapter Text

The bed was amazingly comfortable, but the temperature in the room in the middle of the night was not. Amalia had the thermostat programmed to let the temperature drop several degrees at night, and they'd all fallen asleep on top of the covers. Tantallon was the first to wake, as he hated being cold, and he gently woke the others so that they could all snuggle down into the soft flannel sheets under the thick, fluffy comforter.

"This is absolute heaven," Rahab mumbled as he laid his head back down, briefly rubbing his cheek against the pillowcase.

"I thought we were privileged back home," Raziel answered with a yawn. "The silk sheets are nice in the summer, but our winter bedding wasn't nearly as soft as this."

"Definitely didn't smell as nice, either," replied Tantallon, his voice once again muffled by the pillow, which he couldn't seem to stop burying his face in.

"Shaddap and go back to sleep," grumbled Amalia.

They woke around dawn, but none of them could bring themselves to leave the warmth and comfort of Amalia's bed. Around 9 AM, hunger finally roused them for good and had them up and looking for their clothes. Raziel refused to put the ones he'd worn yesterday back on, and insisted on going back to the car to get the bag they'd packed, but never brought in.

"The bloodskins were in here anyway," he reminded the rest upon returning, eyeing them through the door leading to the master bathroom. Amalia was already fully dressed, and was busy brushing her hair and getting her first good look at herself since her transformation. Tantallon stood waiting for the brush, and Rahab was staring at the toilet.

"So it just... takes everything far away to a sewer, and no one has to deal with it again? How?"

"Push that lever on the tank down, you'll see," replied Amalia, reaching for her stash of makeup. "Raz, you're gonna like this room. It has a really big mirror."

Rahab took a hasty step back once he pushed down the lever as instructed, watching as the water emptied and refilled. "Well... it's better than a chamber pot by far. I take it that roll of stuff there is for... the aftermath?"

"Yep. Not gonna get much use now, though, is it?"

"Thank the gods for that."

Raziel had already begun to unpack the clothing they'd brought, but upon seeing the dresser against the wall and the door to the walk-in closet that adjoined the bedroom, he decided to see what sorts of human clothing was here. Amalia had commented last night that what they wore in Nosgoth would look like "something you'd never see outside a Ren Faire here," whatever that meant. They'd need to blend, and he was eager to see what was available.

What was available in the drawers were clothes that clearly belonged to Amalia, from socks and underwear to tops and bottoms. He left them and went to the closet, where the scent of unfamiliar humans lingered... no doubt that of Amalia's grandparents. Indeed, the racks in here had clothes for men on one side and those for women on the other, and to Raziel's delight, a full length mirror hung on the inside of the door. He began to look through the men's clothes, relieved to see that it looked like they'd probably fit him and Rahab well enough. Tantallon would be a bit more difficult owing to his height and slim frame. 

There were collared shirts in abundance, many of which had a little embroidered man on a horse wielding a hammer of some sort, a few of which had some sort of lizard with sharp teeth. He found one that was close enough to his favorite shade of red, and went to lay it on the bed. All the pants were folded and stacked on shelving above what was hanging. Raziel wrinkled his nose at the ones that were a boring shade of tan, and moved on to a few that were black. Next to those was a stack of blue jeans, followed by a stack of varying colors that turned out, confusingly enough, to have been deliberately made to cut off well above the knee, despite the fact that they were clearly outerwear, not underwear. Who the fuck would wear something so ridiculous? Amalia's grandfather, apparently. Shaking his head, he left the closet with his prizes and set them on the bed next to the shirt just as Rahab poked his head out of the bathroom and saw him standing in front of a mirror.

"Oh, he's found another," he said to the other two, who were still in the bathroom.

"That would explain it," Raziel heard Amalia reply. "He'd have come running like a cat to a can opener otherwise."

Scowling darkly at what he could easily infer was another dig at his vanity, he began to dress before the mirror on the back of the closet door, quickly finding that despite the shirt fitting him well enough, all of the pants were far too big. The black pants looked okay aside from that even if they weren't leather, but the lizard on the red shirt stood out like a sore thumb, and he'd obviously need a belt and some accessories if they were going to actually leave the house. Amalia confirmed that he looked ridiculous by bursting into laughter upon walking out of the bathroom and seeing him.

"Holy fuck, you're wearing a polo shirt," she laughed. "You should go try on some khakis while I find you some of his suspenders. You know, to complete the old man look."

"You insult your own grandfather," he snapped without even looking at her. "They're his clothes. I'm just trying to make do." 

"It's socially acceptable to dress like an old man if you're an old man," she replied, beginning to gather up the pants he hadn't bothered trying on. "Being centuries old doesn't count if you still look like you haven't even hit thirty. I'll run out later to get you guys something decent to wear until you can pick out your own stuff in the city. Unfortunately, it's bright and sunny right now, so no Chicago today. The weather report says it's supposed to cloud back up this afternoon and be snowing by tomorrow evening, though, so we should be good to go tomorrow."

"Right, I forgot that you all managed to find a way to predict the-" he cut himself off, blinking as he finally looked at her. He'd never once seen her in any sort of makeup, and it clearly made quite a difference. "You look... absolutely beautiful."

She huffed a shy laugh. "It's just makeup, but I thought you'd approve. Tantallon wanted me to put some on him as a joke, but I told him no. Come on, let's go have breakfast."

"Fine, but I'm changing back into my own damn clothes."

Amalia insisted on eating a few bites of human food before she took her fill of blood. "You guys can do whatever you want, but I'm gonna eat chocolate cake for the first time in ages."

Raziel perked up immediately at the mention of chocolate, remembering Amalia's memory of the dessert she'd thought she'd lost forever all those weeks ago. He was surprised to find himself almost tempted to have some, but knew he'd regret it if he did.

Tantallon and Rahab had the same reservations until Amalia got the cake out of the fridge, put it on the counter, and took the lid off the container. The instant they caught the scent they began to salivate. She cut a slice, laid it on a plate, and handed Tantallon the fork, and he stared at the cake a moment before finally working up the courage to have a bite. He'd tried the stuff in the blue metal can, after all, and while he hadn't much cared for it, it never made him sick. One bite wouldn't hurt.

His eyes fluttered closed as he withdrew the fork from between his lips. After a moment, he swallowed and gently laid it on the plate next to the slice of cake. "Right," he began, turning to Raziel. "We're giving this food thing another shot."

"Is it really that good?" Rahab asked, peering at the fork and clearly considering trying a bite himself.

"Yes. Yes, it is. Try it, both of you. I am genuinely tempted to eat the whole damn cake right now, knowing full well what will happen if I do. That is not an exaggeration, I want it."

"I got a faint impression of it from one of Amalia's memories," Raziel added. "He's not wrong... it's good."

"Gods above, you really weren't exaggerating," Rahab replied upon dipping the tip of a claw into the frosting and bringing it to his lips. "What is this made of, Amalia?"

"There are trees in warm, rainy places far from here that produce beans, and it's made from those beans, plus a lot of sugar."

"Sugar," Tantallon sighed dreamily.

"Okay, let's do this," Raziel began, holding his hands up. "We know from experience that if we eat too much too fast, we will become violently ill. We also know from the reports of those who actually went to the trouble of acclimating themselves to it that it does not sate our hunger, and eating a large meal will only make us feel heavy and sluggish no matter how good it tastes. Thus, I propose we eat a small amount of what we like whenever we need to feed and simply follow it up each time with blood. Perhaps having our true hunger sated directly afterward will prevent us from being tempted to... overindulge," he said, looking pointedly at Tantallon, who had just taken another bite of the cake and was about to pick up the plate with the rest of the slice on it.

"That actually sounds like a solid plan," replied Amalia. "Shall we try something else before we open a bloodskin?"

"What do you suggest, Amalia?"

"I dunno, there's not a lot in here since I didn't expect to be home for at least a week," she replied, opening the door of the refrigerator. "I was actually going to put the cake in the freezer and forgot, I'm surprised it's still good."

"What's in the freezer, then?" asked Rahab as he pulled open the other door, having correctly assumed that behind it must be a chamber that was cold enough to keep things frozen. "Surely you've a way to quickly defrost it."

"I've got some meatballs, I guess. Grab that bag there and I'll open a small jar of pizza sauce."

"Why not just eat this instead?" Rahab asked, holding up an individually sized frozen pizza.

"...That'll do."

"Pizza" turned out to be every bit as good as the cake was, but they still needed real sustenance, and after cutting the small pizza in half and eating tiny portions, they put the rest in the fridge and opened one of the bloodskins. Their stomachs rumbled uncomfortably for a little while after all was said and done, but Amalia sat them down on the couch to rest and the nausea soon resolved itself. No one noticed Rahab examining the remote to the TV, and they startled a bit when it suddenly turned on.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly, just as a Christmas-infused commercial for a local grocery store blared to life on the screen.

Amalia lit up instantly. "Oh man... we should put up Christmas stuff."

"Christmas?" asked Tantallon. Rahab was already reaching for the laptop to type the best approximation of the word he could come up with into that delightful "Google" thing that would lead him to information on the subject.

"How do you spell that?" he asked, "and what's the name of that internet encyclopedia you told me about again?"

"Wikipedia," she replied after spelling the word for him. "I'll just let you read what you find while I go up to the attic to get all the decorations."

"'Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world.' I didn't know Amalia was religious," said Rahab, looking mildly confused.

"I'm definitely not," she called over her shoulder on her way up the stairs. "Skip all that, the secular stuff is what we're doing."

"I'm not skipping anything," Rahab muttered, almost offended at the idea of passing up perfectly good information. Raziel stood and followed Amalia up the stairs to help her after noticing how heavy the plastic tub she'd carried down looked, while Rahab and Tantallon continued to enlighten themselves.

"Are all of those blue words links to more pages of information?" asked Tantallon.

"Yes, they are. She warned me about going down what she called an 'informational rabbithole'. Considering each of those pages likely contain just as many blue links as this one, I can see what she meant. It could go on forever."

"It was nice knowing you, then."

"Hush," replied Rahab as he continued to scroll. He was nowhere near the bottom of the page when Amalia and Raziel brought the last of the bins downstairs, plus a huge green bag that contained who-knew-what. "Religion seems to be completely woven into the fabric of this holiday, Amalia. I'm not sure how it can be avoided."

"Simple. We put up a Christmas tree," she said, nudging the bag with her foot, "Listen to secular Christmas music, watch secular Christmas movies, decorate the rest of the house, and then we don't go to church." She went to the large picture window that faced out toward the extensive property and pushed a chair out of the way. "Tree goes here," she said, going to unzip the bag.

"It's not a real tree," Tantallon observed, kneeling down and running his talons over the artificial boughs. "Though it certainly looks real at first glance. What are all these little bumpy things on wires? They're wrapped all around the branches."

"Oh, you'll see," Amalia grinned as she pulled the skirt and stand out and set them up. She soon had the whole thing put together and went to darken the room, grateful that her grandfather had napped in here often enough to have put up blackout curtains. "Tantallon, see that thing there with the three prongs? It fits into that thing on the wall. Don't stick your claws in there, it's connected to the power grid and you do not want to find out what happens when you expose yourself to it."

"Why did you close the curtains?"

"You'll understand in a moment. Stand over by the wall, you guys." She waited until they were on the far side of the room exchanging bemused glances. "Okay, watch!"

The lights were dazzling at first, and they all covered their eyes for a moment before looking again. Their jaws dropped at what they saw. None of them spoke, they simply approached the tree, absolutely mesmerized by the beautiful multicolored lights that had come on when Amalia pushed the button near the base.

"Pre-lit with 2000 LED lights, seven and a half feet tall. Beautiful, isn't it?"

"Amalia, this is... this is amazing. I don't think I've ever seen anything quite so beautiful," Rahab breathed.

Tantallon had covered his mouth with his hands, and he now laughed out loud, absolutely giddy.

Raziel simply teared up. He could never have expected he'd ever bear witness to anything like this, that he'd ever have such an experience as this entire trip to Amalia's world. By all rights, he ought to be trapped in a sword, slowly losing his mind to loneliness and sensory deprivation. If not that, he at least ought to still be inhabiting his gruesome wraith form, stalking Nosgoth's spectral realm fighting over souls with Sluagh and Vampire wraiths. He squeezed his eyes shut at the memory of the awful screech those things made as they faded to nothingness, shaking his head before opening them again. He'd never hear that terrible sound again. He'd never look down at his own exposed pelvis again. He'd spend his life from now on doing things like this alongside the people he loved, people who he never thought he'd see or talk to again.

Tantallon noticed his expression and went to lay his hand on his shoulder. Raziel covered it with his own. "I'm alright," he said, voice strained. "I was just... reflecting."

"Well, cut it out and come look in this box," said Rahab. "There are even more lights, and ornaments to hang on the branches."

Amalia rooted around in another box until she found an evergreen scented candle, breathing deep of the scent and immediately being overcome with a combination of intense nostalgia and genuine Christmas excitement. Once she'd lit it, she pulled up Pandora on her phone and put on a Christmas station before joining in with decorating the tree. "Once we're done with the tree and house decorations, we can watch movies until the sun goes down and I can go get you some clothes."

The next two hours were spent perfecting the tree, changing out table linens and rugs for more festive versions, hanging wreaths and garlands, and putting lights up in the windows. Amalia told them stories about Christmases spent here with her grandparents and how they did everything they could to give Amalia a break from her parents and sister, who they'd gone no contact with when Amalia was five after witnessing their scapegoating of her in favor of idolizing her sister. The music was delightful, the scent of the candle alluring, and once the bins were empty they walked the house taking it all in again. "Wait until you see the decorations the stores in Chicago will have," she told them as they walked back downstairs to watch movies, hyping them for the trip. "And once we have presents for everyone, just think of how they'll react to the shiny paper and ribbons we'll wrap the boxes with!"

"Ugh, I forgot we have to go home at some point," Tantallon groused, though he had to admit he rather missed Stella. Oh, how she and Vance would love all this. Even Lenore would love the tree, lights, and music, once she got past being in such an alien environment. 

"You said only last night that you wanted to go home," teased Rahab. Tantallon's only response was to wordlessly point at the Christmas tree, then through the door to the kitchen at the refrigerator, and Rahab laughed. "Fair enough. I can't say I want to leave either. Nosgoth seems so incredibly boring compared to all this."

"None of us can live here permanently, even after we save Nosgoth. I've nowhere to brew more shapechanging potions, so once we're out, we're out," sighed Raziel.

"We can start putting a lab together in the basement of the inn," Rahab suggested as Amalia connected her laptop to the TV again and began an internal debate over what to watch first. "It'll take a while, of course, but it can be done. The space is big enough."

Raziel was about to argue the point by reminding him that there was no extra large hearth in the inn's basement, but his thoughts were interrupted before he could do so.

"Let's start with an old classic," said Amalia. "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. So, this movie and a few others from the same studio are made by creating a set, making the dolls for the characters in miniature size, and then posing them, taking a shot with a camera, and then moving them slightly so that when you're shown the pictures in rapid succession, the movement appears fluid. The same thing is done with drawings."

"That's wild," said Tantallon as he parked himself on the couch. "Put it on, I want to see."

"This one's decades old, so the production values are honestly not very good, but most of us watch it every year from the time we're little kids, so we're nostalgic enough to overlook it. Santa's a total dick in this movie, though."

They all agreed, upon the conclusion of Rudolph, that Santa was indeed a dick and only treated Rudolph with any respect at all at the end because he suddenly became useful. Amalia showcased regular animation with the Grinch next, then followed it up with the Muppet Christmas Carol.

"These are all puppets, except for the actual humans."

"I cannot fathom the amount of work it takes to make all those puppets and the sets, and then have to have so many people working in perfect harmony to manipulate them properly," said Raziel. "Incredible."

"The stories have all been delightful thus far, as well," replied Rahab. "I can certainly see why this holiday is so dear to everyone who lives here."

"There's a live action version of the Grinch that was made years after the first one, too," Amalia informed them. "A lot of people who grew up with the original find it sacrilegious to have remade it, but it's fucking hilarious. Let's watch Home Alone first, and then it should be dark enough for me to go and get you guys some normal-looking clothes. Maybe can watch the new Grinch when I get back."

They all laughed the entire way through Home Alone, and Tantallon insisted it was his favorite out of all the ones they'd watched. Raziel and Rahab had to agree, mostly based on the fact that it was a live action film that showcased everyday human life here. The story was fiction, but the glimpse into American culture that it gave them was real, and it had them fascinated start to finish. Once it was over, Amalia admonished them not to get into anything, grabbed her keys and purse, and left to run to Walmart for some cheap temporary clothing to help everyone blend in.

Did Raziel listen to Amalia's directive? Of course he did. He sat himself down on the couch with a book he found on a nearby shelf, and quickly became completely engrossed. The other two promptly got bored and wandered off to find another way to amuse themselves. 

"Look, it's one of those obsolete phone things we saw in the movie," said Tantallon, waving Rahab over to where the old corded telephone hung in its cradle on the kitchen wall and grinning mischievously as he lifted the receiver. "Let's call someone."

"You have to put a number in, and we don't know any," replied Rahab. "And if Raziel catches us messing around with this he'll have our heads."

The warning about Raziel rolled right off Tantallon's back. "Let's have one of those pizzas brought here, like the boy in the movie did! I know we can't eat much of it, but we can take it back for the others."

"We still need a number."

"So ask the internet."

Raziel was so caught up in his book that he didn't even notice Rahab sneaking back into the living room to retrieve the laptop. A series of Google searches revealed enough about pizza delivery to allow Tantallon to stumble through the process, and they were excited until it occurred to them that the pizza would need to be paid for.

"She's got a purse lying around in the laundry room, and if not that, her backpack. One or both must have at least some money."

"Tantallon, we really shouldn't take it without asking."

"Her grandparents set her up for life, she'd never miss it. Not that it matters anyway, because she doesn't actually live here anymore and has no use for it now."

This was enough to convince Rahab, and he only shrugged when Tantallon returned from the laundry room with three $20 bills, which he recognized as money from the supermarket scene from Home Alone. "She took her purse with her, but these were lying on a table next to the door to the garage."

"You've not thought ahead to the part where we have to tell them where to bring the pizza, I take it?"

"Do you think this is it? Her name is right there." Tantallon asked, pointing to words and numbers written on an envelope on a small stand under the phone that contained a sympathy card for Amalia. "Huh. Apparently she has a surname. Rashkae."

"Well, I suppose if it isn't, someone else is getting a pizza tonight. Try the first number in the search results, I suppose."

Despite Tantallon's excitement to be engaging in such foolishness, when someone on the other end actually answered and asked if he'd like to hear their "specials", he panicked for several long moments before finally recovering and answering in the affirmative, waiting as the employee rattled them off, and quickly realizing that he had no idea what any of it meant.

"...Which do you recommend? ...Uh, yes, that one. Extra cheese sounds delightful, yes. ...Um, how big is extra large? ...Eighteen inches?" he asked incredulously, his eyebrows shooting up. Rahab only shrugged and whispered "We have three humans to feed back home."

Tantallon nodded. "Uh, yes, that will do. ...What sauce for the breadsticks? Uh..." He looked wildly to Rahab, as if he would somehow have an answer. Rahab simply threw his hands up. "Whatever most people like, I suppose. ...Yes, that price sounds fair, thank you. Oh, right, the address..." He read it out, listened a moment, then thanked the person once more before hanging up and bursting into giddy laughter. "Okay, it'll be here in forty-five minutes," he said once he recovered, looking immensely pleased with himself. "I cannot believe we pulled that off."

"How much money?"

"...Shit, I forgot what she told me. Hopefully less than sixty..." he trailed off, peering at the green paper bills. "...dollars."

Forty minutes later, Amalia found herself behind a Pizza Hut delivery car on her way home, following it for a few turns and promptly sighing deeply, facepalming, and muttering "You have got to be fucking kidding me," when it put its signal on and turned into her driveway. She intercepted the driver before he went to the door, paid with cash from her purse, and set the goods down on the washer. "Alright, fess up," she called as she strode through the kitchen into the living room. "Who the fuck ordered a goddamn pizza? Tantallon?"

"Why do you automatically assume it was me?!" he demanded, unable to stop himself from laughing as he did so.

"It was absolutely his idea," said Rahab, having no qualms with ratting him out.

"You helped, you traitor!"

"What the hell are you two talking about? What have you done?" demanded Raziel, who'd set his book aside the moment Amalia walked in.

"They watched one movie too many, that's what," replied Amalia, though she was unable to stop herself laughing either. "I should have known you'd go all 'monkey see, monkey do' as soon as you saw it."

"I don't know what that means, but I resent it," said Tantallon. "What did we order?"

"You don't even know? Fuck's sake, guys," Amalia said, facepalming. "It's way more than we can eat, obviously. By an order of magnitude."

"We wanted to take it back for the humans," shrugged Rahab.

Raziel was beginning to put together what had happened. "Did you contact the outside world to have this brought here?! Are you mad? How would you have received it without revealing your talons?"

Tantallon grinned. "'Leave it on the doorstep and get the hell outta here,'" he mimicked, imitating the movie gangster's accent and leaving no doubt as to which scene he was referencing.

"For the record," interjected Rahab, holding up a hand, "I wouldn't have let him light firecrackers in the house."

Amalia wasn't listening. She was staring wide-eyed at the small package of multicolored gummies that were sitting open on the coffee table. 

"Uh, did you three eat any of those?" 

"Oh, yes, we found them on the kitchen counter and had one each. They tasted sort of bitter for what we thought was supposed to be candy, so we didn't want any more. Why?" replied Rahab.

Amalia sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. How could she have forgotten that she'd left them out? A whole one would be more than enough; she usually cut them in quarters. "Goddammit, you guys. This is the last time I leave you here alone."

Tantallon was immediately alarmed. "Are we going to get sick?" 

"No, but you're gonna get real fuckin' high."

"Wait, what?!" demanded Raziel.

Rahab and Tantallon exchanged glances, Tantallon's expression apprehensive while Rahab's remained impassive. Then they turned back to Amalia and Rahab wordlessly picked up the pouch and offered it to her. She wondered for a moment whether or not he was high already.

"I can't, doofus," she hissed. "After what you've gotten yourselves up to sober I don't even want to think about leaving you to your own devices completely baked off your asses! Somebody is gonna have to babysit you three until you come down. How long ago did you eat them? Edibles take a couple hours to kick in, usually."

"Baked off our... what the hell does that mean?!" Raziel cried.

"What's going to happen to us?" Tantallon asked, deeply concerned by the implications of needing to be babysat through the effects of whatever they'd just consumed.

"Oh, fret not," she informed them, arms crossed. "You're probably gonna be enjoying yourselves."

She was wrong. Once the stuff hit, the effects were so disorienting and overwhelming that they did not enjoy themselves at all at first. All three of them sat on the couch, hunched over with their faces buried in their arms, moaning occasionally about being unable to think straight and repeatedly ensuring that she was aware that they did not like it. Amalia simply turned off the overhead light that was outshining the tree, sat them up and covered them with a blanket, lit the evergreen candle, and put the Christmas music back on at a low volume, getting them settled in to wait for it to wear off a bit. "Just sit and take it all in," she told them. "You'll start noticing how much more vivid everything is with this stuff in your systems. When you start feeling a little better, I'll cut you some little bits of pizza and you won't believe how good it'll taste. It'll start wearing off in a few hours, and you'll be able to function better."

They became significantly harder to manage once they did start feeling and functioning better, because Tantallon got the munchies and had to be repeatedly redirected away from the refrigerator and pantry, while Rahab and Raziel got it in their heads that it would be just wonderful to hang lights on the house's exterior the way they'd seen in the various media they'd consumed thus far. She found the pair of them in the garage eyeing up a large stepladder and had to beg them not to try to go outside with it, only convincing them when they realized, through their fog, that she was genuinely becoming upset. They went back inside only to find Tantallon walking back to the couch with his hand stuffed in a box of cereal.

"Never again, you assholes," she growled as he crammed a fistful into his mouth. "Never again. I'm putting on another movie, and you fucks had better sit down and stay put. We're going to bed afterward whether you like it or not." She coaxed them into bed after the movie by reminding them of how wonderfully soft and comfortable it was, and didn't dare close her eyes until she was certain all three of them were fast asleep.

Needless to say, they got an earful the next morning.

"You guys have no idea how goddamn obnoxious that was. If you so much as cast a glance in the direction of those things again-"

"We won't, Amalia," soothed Raziel. "And we're sorry. We've learned our lesson about eating anything unidentified without asking first."

"You sure about that? Because last night you would have gladly eaten an entire box of Lucky Charms between the three of you had I not taken the cereal bag away and left you with an empty box covered in pretty pictures. You then sat and passed said empty box back and forth for a good fifteen minutes, arguing about whether or not Lucky the Leprechaun qualifies as a demi-god based on the abilities the back says each charm grants him."

Tantallon snickered. "Right, I do remember that now."

"Where did we land on that, Raziel?" asked Rahab.

"I think we finally agreed that he does."

"Nevermind," snapped Amalia. "Let's get dressed and get ready to go. The clothes are in the bag sitting on the dresser in the bedroom."

They silently filed up the stairs behind her, exchanging wary glances and hoping that her mood would improve by time they left for Chicago.

Chapter Text

Tantallon and Rahab were pleased enough with the clothing Amalia had chosen for them, but Raziel was skeptical.

"Just try them on, Raz. The sweater is your favorite color."

"I like the sweater, it's the pants that I'm unsure about," he replied, holding up a pair of blue jeans similar to the ones Amalia was wearing when she first came to him, though obviously tailored to fit a man. "I never wear blue. That's Rahab's color, not mine."

"That's why I got Rahab a blue sweater. Watch those hooves putting the pants on, you guys. I know they're not as sharp as your claws but you'll still rip the fabric if you're not careful."

"Where's the belt?" Raziel asked as he turned to look over his shoulder at the way the jeans fit his ass. They were really quite comfortable, and didn't look as bad on him as he expected them to. "And I need a shirt to go under the sweater."

"There's a pack of white T-shirts in the bag that had the underwear," she called from the bathroom as she tried to come up with a way to remove the makeup she'd idiotically put on yesterday. It hadn't occurred to her that she wouldn't be able to use water to wash it off without taking the rest of her face off as well, and since she'd forgotten she had it on and slept in it she was looking pretty rough. "I didn't get you a belt, there's a hundred of them in the closet."

Tantallon only had a pair of boxer-briefs on thus far, and since Raziel was hogging the closet mirror, he followed Rahab into the bathroom with the rest of his clothing to dress and brush out his hair.

Amalia finally remembered that she had a pack of makeup removal cloths in one of the bathroom drawers, and after testing one on her arm and finding them to be safe, she began to clean her face off. "You guys can go downstairs when you're done," she said as Rahab finished pulling his hair back into the low ponytail he usually kept it in. "We'll be down in a couple minutes."

"Well, at least she's in a better mood. Sort of, anyway," commented Tantallon once they left the bedroom. He stopped in the middle of the hallway to look at a few framed pictures that hung on the wall. "Look, Rahab. I think this is Amalia."

"Unless her sister had red hair as well. Certainly looks like her, though."

"She's so little! And those two must be her grandparents."

"I don't see anyone who looks like her parents," said Rahab, eyeing the bare spots on the wall where nails protruded, unencumbered by frames. "Her grandparents must have taken them down when they disowned them for mistreating their own daughter. Can't say I blame them."

The phone suddenly rang downstairs, and they hurried to investigate. After a moment's hesitation, Tantallon picked it up.

"...Yes?" he asked. Rahab crossed his arms and glared in disapproval. Amalia had only just stopped being mad at them, and here he was messing around again.

There was a short pause. "...Who the fuck are you?"

Tantallon immediately bristled. He'd have gotten his hackles up over an unfamiliar vampire addressing him this way, much less a human. "Who the fuck are you?" he demanded.

"Boy, she didn't waste any time bringing men into that house to stay the night, did she? That'll stop soon enough. Put her on the phone, right now!" Rahab could hear the voice on the other end quite clearly, and he raised an eyebrow.

"You don't command me, human," he hissed.

Amalia and Raziel chose then to come down the stairs, and Amalia immediately noticed Tantallon on the phone. Again. "Tantallon, what the fuck are you doing?"

"There's a very angry, very rude woman on the other line who's demanding to speak with you. Shall I put this back in its cradle?"

Amalia stopped dead in her tracks, then closed her eyes and sighed deeply. "No. Give it here," she replied, wasting no time once the receiver was in her hand. "What?"

"Who's your boyfriend?"

"I told you if you want to contact me to do it through my lawyer," came Amalia's flat reply.

"We wouldn't need lawyers if you'd stop being so fucking selfish, Amalia! That money is as much ours as it is yours, and in fact-"

"If Grandma and Grandpa wanted you to have anything, they'd have left it to you instead of giving it all to me!" she retorted, voice rising.

"Grandma and Grandpa should have left it all to us!"

"Maybe they would have if you hadn't turned out to be such a disappointment to them," Amalia said coldly.

"The only disappointment in this family is you." Raziel and Tantallon growled softly, having guessed who it was on the other line. Rahab winced.

"Look, if you're short on cash maybe consider not buying Katie a new car every time she totals one."

"We're going to contest that will and get that money and that property."

"That will is iron clad, all you're going to do is spend money trying and get nothing while I laugh all the way to the bank."

"It's not iron clad if we can convince them that you manipulated two senile old people into-"

"They died in a car crash in their late sixties, you dumb bitch, they were sharp as tacks right up until the end. You're not convincing anyone of anything except how worthless you are as both offspring and parent. Tell your lawyer to call mine. I'll wait." With that, she hung up the phone and turned back to the others. "See why I went no contact?"

"Are you... okay?" Rahab asked. He knew how it felt to be treated poorly by a parent, and this was a genuinely terrible interaction even if Amalia had been significantly meaner to her mother than her mother was to her.

"I'm fine," Amalia shrugged. "They've long since lost their power to hurt me. Though admittedly, part of the reason I needed the Xanax is because I knew they'd pitch a fit and start a bunch of drama over this whole thing and I wouldn't even get a chance to grieve before having to interact with them again for the first time in years."

"Is that the medicine we're bringing Lenore?" asked Tantallon.

"Yeah, that's it," she replied, moving to an overhead cabinet and pulling out a small orange cylinder. "We should take these with us and leave them in the car so we don't forget them."

Rahab took the cylinder and peered at it. "They're just little round flat things," he observed, turning the bottle this way and that.

"They pack a punch, believe me."

"Like last night? I don't think Lenore will enjoy that at all," said Rahab.

"No, it's not like that. You'd have been way easier to manage if you'd had this instead of cannabis," she snarked. "It just calms your mind when it's racing with thoughts you can't control, and it makes you sleepy. Come on, let's down those potions and put coats and hats on, we want to get there as early as we can if we want to have a chance to do everything we want. I left socks and shoes out by the washer and dryer."

Once everyone was transformed, shod, and appropriately dressed for the cold weather, Amalia checked to make sure she had her purse, phone, and keys and they filed out into the garage. Tantallon and Raziel had adjusted completely to the car after the lengthy drive here, and Rahab agreed to let Tantallon sit up front this time. Amalia went to put her phone in the wireless charger she had clipped to one of the vents on the dashboard before pausing. "Actually, I've been to the station we're headed to so many times I don't need directions. Here, Tantallon, your human hands will work with this now. Pick out some music from this list," she said, handing the device off before opening the garage door. 

They were close to the highway by time Tantallon finally decided on "I Just Wanna Shine" by Fitz and the Tantrums. He and Amalia exchanged grins, knowing that they'd soon be cruising down the road belting it out together. The ride to the Metra station was a happy one for everybody, and when Amalia and Tantallon weren't singing, Rahab and Raziel were pointing to things out the window, admiring the sights and asking questions. Once they pulled into the parking lot for the station, however, Amalia got serious with them.

"Okay, guys, look. We are going to be around a lot of humans today. Do not talk to them beyond pleasantries, and if you have questions or comments for me that would raise eyebrows for the general population, for god's sake, Whisper it. You might look like you belong here, but you know next to nothing about everyday life in this world and that's going to become real obvious real fast if you try to carry on any sort of conversation with strangers. If anyone asks, you're from London and this is your first trip to America. No wandering off, no touching things that don't belong to you, and no chatting up the locals. We should be fine if you just stay with me and let me handle everything. Rahab, Tantallon, can I trust you both to behave?"

"Yes, Amalia, we promise," replied Tantallon, looking remorseful. "I'm sorry I've been such a shit since we got here. I don't want you to have to worry..."

"It's okay," Amalia assured him. "We're going to have fun today, we just gotta blend in. Rahab, you mentioned earlier that you made a gift list?"

Rahab pulled out a sheet of paper from his pocket, unfolded it, and began to read off what he'd written last night during Amalia's absence in perfect, flowing cursive (after practicing at length to adjust to the use of a ballpoint pen instead of a quill.) "For Lenore, a stuffed animal like your giraffe."

"There's a Build-a-Bear on Navy Pier. We can hit that first." None of them bothered to ask Amalia to elaborate; they were all used to not understanding half of the things that came out of her mouth. 

"For Vance, we thought he'd like some gardening tools."

"Those we can get closer to home, aside from maybe some fancy gloves or something. It'll be a pain hauling garden implements back if we buy them in the city."

"Stella gets an animal as well, so that's sorted. You three can find something for Kain if you insist; I want no part in it. What about Lorrelin?"

Amalia immediately broke out into a fiendish grin. "Oh, I've got something in mind for her. That store is near here too."

"Is it sex related?" Tantallon asked, very intrigued. "Because it sounds like it's sex related."

"Sure is."

"Lorrelin has no interest in sex," said Rahab. "She told me herself when she was drunk enough to speak little else but the truth."

"She has no interest in sex with other people. I remember her making it quite clear a very long time ago that she manages her own affairs," countered Raziel.

"Oh my god, how did it not occur to me that the humans here would have invented things of that nature?" asked Tantallon.

"Didn't occur to us, either," shrugged Rahab.

"We cannot give her a gift of that nature in front of the others," Raziel pointed out. "We'll have to get her something else for when we're handing the rest out, and then give her... whatever it is you have in mind, Amalia, in private later."

"Yeah, you're right. In fact, You and I will handle the whole thing. I doubt she'd want them involved in any part of it, particularly you, Tantallon."

They finally got out of the car and went to wait for the next train. "Game faces on, guys," Amalia muttered as they approached the platform and glanced around at the people waiting. She'd already bought everyone tickets using an app on her phone, and she watched, amused, as her companions struggled to keep the excitement from showing on their faces as the train pulled in. They followed along silently as she led them to a car that was empty save for two other people, who steadfastly ignored them in favor of scrolling on their phones. Then she settled in to continue to observe them, trying not to laugh at their childlike wonder as the train began its journey to downtown.

"My god," Rahab breathed as he looked up at the gigantic buildings that surrounded them on all sides as they neared the end of the line. The memories that had been funneled into Raziel's head while he was in the Reaver had more or less organized themselves by now, and he reached for Amalia's hand, sighing contentedly as he thought back to when she'd first revealed this place's existence to his former self. He'd been equal parts frightened and flabbergasted, pacing around until he tripped over Amalia's jeans, and now here he was, sitting in a pair of his own, looking with his own two eyes at the very same buildings that he hadn't even realized were buildings until she told him so. He wondered to himself just how often he'd find himself stepping back to contemplate just how surreal his life had become from here on out.

Amalia led them off the train when it reached Millennium Station, and their eyes darted wildly around at the streamlined metal surroundings and bright lights. She led them outside and gave them a moment to stare upwards, then ushered them toward Navy Pier.

"This can't be a lake. How could this possibly be a lake?" Rahab asked as he stared at Lake Michigan. "Lakes have opposite shores. This... does not."

"It does, you just can't see it from here. It's a very large lake. You could tell if you tasted the water, it's fresh water rather than salt."

"Maybe someday I'll be able to do just that," he replied hopefully.

"I wouldn't, actually. Any lake or river in this country is more likely than not contaminated with some seriously gross shit. Literal shit, in many cases."

"In that case, I'll simply take your word for it."

Nothing could have prepared them for Navy Pier. Humans everywhere, even with the cold weather. Christmas lights abounded, though even the weak light that filtered through the grey clouds overhead was enough to drown them out for the most part. There were restaurants, shops, and open spaces that had to look absolutely dazzling in the summer with everything green and blooming. And towering above it all was Centennial Wheel.

Rahab gazed upward at it, feeling almost faint for a moment once he realized what its purpose was, before turning to Amalia with a pleading look on his face.

She huffed a laugh. "Fine, but after Build-A-Bear. Come on."

"Will you be okay, Sire? You don't seem to care for heights anymore," Tantallon asked softly. He didn't understand the exact reasons Raziel was so subdued and reserved these days, but knew it must have to do with the awful future he'd lived through, and didn't want to risk upsetting him by asking.

"I'll do it for Rahab," Raziel replied, remembering their earlier spat in the car. There was no force in existence that would get him on one of those roller coaster monstrosities, but he could handle this if it would make his brother happy.

None of them knew what to expect out of this "Build-a-Bear Workshop" thing, but they certainly weren't anticipating what they found themselves looking at standing outside of it.

"It's... certainly something," Raziel said, eyeing the cutesy, brightly colored displays.

"It's full of small children," observed Rahab with obvious dismay.

"You'll be fine, childhood isn't contagious," replied Amalia as she led them into the store.

"Why do all the ones in these bins look as if you've run them over with your car, Amalia?"

"They're just the shells, there's no stuffing. The idea is that you pick one out and have it stuffed yourself right here in the store," she laughed. "Hence the name. They have plenty that are already stuffed and ready to go, so let's look at those."

The older vampires had genuinely expected this to be an enjoyable experience, but soon found it to be anything but. Most of the toys were downright creepy, in their opinions. The bears were hardly even bears, and many had garishly colored fur and wore silly outfits. Anything that wasn't recognizable as an animal they were familiar with was so outlandish that they were constantly doing double takes, and the worst part of it was being unable to tell which of the plushies here were creatures that actually lived in this world and which were simply the products of someone's deranged imagination. Every time they'd think something couldn't possibly be real, they'd think of the giraffe and find themselves wondering. Lenore had always liked stories about monsters and strange, make believe creatures, however, so Rahab was certain that something here would be right up her alley. He stood examining a rabbit in a bright pink lacy tutu, wrinkling his nose in distaste, and was just about to put it back when a tiny voice snagged his attention.

"Hi," the child said, staring up at him. Rahab was a bit more savvy as to the stages of human development than Raziel or Tantallon, and looking down at the boy, it was clear that he couldn't be more than four years old. Completely caught off guard, he simply blinked at him before looking wildly around the store for Amalia. She was clear on the other side with Raziel and Tantallon, and Rahab didn't have time to Whisper to her for help before the child spoke again.

"That one is a bunny and... and this one," the boy said, shuffling close enough to brush Rahab's leg and lifting a green thing with long legs out out of a pile of similar toys, "This is a froggy."

"Er... yes. Yes, it is," he replied, even if the silly thing looked very little like any frog he'd ever seen.

"That one's Stitch," the child continued, pointing to a shelf full of identical blue creatures with huge ears, black eyes, and a mouthful of sharp pointy teeth. Rahab blinked at it, intrigued.

"That's not a real animal, is it?" he ventured to ask, but immediately felt silly for even bothering. Would a child this young even know enough about the world to be able to tell the difference?

"Stitch is from Lilo," he replied, which only confused Rahab even more.

A woman suddenly appeared and took the boy's hand. "Oh my gosh, I'm sorry," she apologized, speaking with Amalia's accent. "He loves Stitch and has absolutely no concept of stranger danger."

"It's... quite alright," Rahab replied, trying to play it cool even though it was obvious that he was deeply uncomfortable and completely flustered by the unexpected interaction. "Don't really know what a Stitch is, but..."

"Oh, he's from that movie that came out years ago, Lilo and Stitch? It's a Disney film, I'm surprised you've never heard of it. He's a little monster, isn't he, Julian?"

"He's an alien," the boy replied with a grin. Rahab was quickly realizing exactly what Amalia meant when she said that their ignorance of the culture here would raise eyebrows, because he had no clue how to respond to any of this.

"You look sort of lost," the woman laughed. "Are you looking for something in particular?"

"I... we're here for a gift for my-" He cut himself off, remembering that humans used a different term for a female spouse. "Wife. She's quite unwell, and..."

"Oh, I'm sorry," she replied sympathetically. "Well, if she's got a favorite, it's probably here. Do you want Pikachu or Stitch, Jules? You said Pikachu when we got here."

"Stitch!" the boy replied enthusiastically, reaching upward for the shelf. Rahab plucked one from the assembly and handed it over to him, hoping that they'd both just go away and let him get on with his search before Amalia saw him talking to strangers.

"What do we say, Jules?"

"Thank you!"

"Alright, come on, let's leave the nice man alone, he's got a lot on his mind. Time to go get in line."

You good, Rahab? came Amalia's Whisper. Do we need to bail?

Yes, I'm fine, they're leaving. The boy just... walked right up to me. I'm sorry, I didn't know what to do without attracting attention. I'm not exactly accustomed to strange humans not being terrified of me. Are their children usually this oblivious?

You don't look like a vampire, you just look like another human to them. Some kids just like people.

Ugh.

Tantallon sidled up then with a smirk. "Made a new friend, did you?"

"Shut your mouth," Rahab growled. "Look at this and tell me what you think," he said, handing him a Stitch from the shelf.

"Oh, this is perfect," Tantallon replied with a grin.

Amalia joined them at that moment, and couldn't help but laugh. "Stitch? You think she'll like him?"

"Oh, yeah. Lenore loves weird shit like this," Tantallon replied, turning the stuffed blue alien over in his hands.

"He's from a movie," Amalia informed them, "So if she likes him, she'll probably want to watch it."

"That's what the child's mother said," Rahab said. "Can we take that movie back with us, then?"

"Yep, I'll put it on the laptop. What did you find for Stella, Tantallon?"

"I can't decide," he sighed. "She likes horses, but we have real horses. She also likes bugs and birds, but I haven't seen any of her favorites."

"Did she tell you her favorites in between rounds, or...?"

"Shut up, Rahab. She tells me lots of things," he replied defensively.

"I don't think they have any bugs, but I saw a peacock in that pile over there,"

Rahab and Tantallon both snorted with laughter. "A... what?" Tantallon asked with a grin as Rahab continued to snicker.

"It's a bird, dipshit," Amalia laughed.

"Well she's clearly got an interest in 'pea cocks'," said Rahab, still grinning.

"Oh, fuck you. You've seen it."

"Hurry up and find something, Tantallon. Raziel's already waiting outside. He's had his fill of this place."

Just then, another child jumped out from behind Amalia with a stuffed Toothless in his hands, waving it up at Tantallon and roaring at him.

"Graaaar!"

Rather than become flustered like Rahab had, Tantallon took being unexpectedly accosted by a small child in stride. "Pfft. He's not that scary," he replied coolly, crossing his arms. "And neither are you."

"Am too!" the boy growled, incensed. He then wound up and threw the toy at Tantallon, who simply watched as it bounced off his chest and fell to the ground. Amalia saw the dangerous glint in his eye when he glanced back up from the floor.

Do NOT scare him, Tantallon, we are in PUBLIC.

Ugh, you're no fun.

Instead, he picked the dragon up and dangled it just out of the boy's reach, leaning forward to stare him down. "Guess what? It's my dragon now."

Oh my god, you are such a dick.

The boy stuck his tongue out and ran off, and Tantallon smirked triumphantly as he admired his prize. "Yeah, this'll do."

Amalia facepalmed. "Good, because I clearly need to get you two out of here." She shooed them out of the store and went up to the counter to pay for the toys.

"Made a new friend, did you?" Raziel asked Tantallon when they rejoined him, eyebrow raised. Rahab snickered as Tantallon silently glowered at his sire. "What did you get for them?"

"This little fellow is apparently named Stitch," Rahab informed him, handing the toy over for his brother to inspect. "He's the main character in a movie, I guess. Hopefully this will cheer her enough that she'll want to watch it."

"Horrid little thing," Raziel commented before handing it back. "But Lenore did always like monsters. What about you, Tantallon?"

"His name is Toothless," he replied. "Also from a movie."

"A dragon with no teeth," mused Raziel, clearly unimpressed. "Interesting choices."

"And what would you have chosen in there for Amalia?" asked Rahab, arms crossed.

Raziel scoffed. "I'll learn to sew and make one myself before I set foot in that place again."

Amalia came out holding a plastic bag just then, grinning as she joined them. "They had gift boxes to put them in, so I went back to grab a couple. We can still wrap them, of course, but the box will be pretty too."

"This is going to make her so happy," Rahab murmured, suddenly feeling a pang of longing for his bride. He'd already been missing her to begin with, and between that and the overstimulation of this trip, he knew that he'd be happy to go back to Nosgoth once they were finished. For now, the gigantic wheel awaited, and he eagerly hurried toward it, leaving the rest to chase after him.

Raziel tried to hide his unease as best he could as they boarded the gondola and got settled, but everyone could read him well enough by now to know he was nervous. Tantallon sat next to him and leaned into his side in an attempt to calm him as best he could while Rahab slid excitedly back and forth from one side of the gondola's bench to the other, chattering animatedly.

"I just can't get over the size of this lake, or these buildings, or how many people live here. The transportation, the roads, the dedicated recreational areas... I couldn't live here, I could never, it's just too busy, too noisy, too much going on in every direction. But a day or two here and there..." He fell silent and moved back to the city side of the gondola as the wheel began to turn, nearly pressing his nose to the glass as he gazed out at the skyline.

Even Raziel was distracted from his nervousness by the view from the top of the wheel. The sky and lake were gray and so was much of the city save for the lights, but it was still a beautiful sight to take in. Tantallon rested his head on his sire's shoulder a moment before standing and moving to the window next to Rahab, allowing Amalia to take his place after she finished taking a panoramic video for everyone back in Nosgoth to see.

"You doing okay?"

"I'm fine, yes. The ride is smooth, and there is nothing about this view that could possibly dredge up traumatic memories of my past. Did you ever live here?"

"No, I grew up in California, hundreds of miles away near the coast. I spent enough time here with my grandparents that it still feels like home, though, especially since all my memories here are happy ones."

"What else will we do today besides shopping?"

Amalia considered this. "Well, if you want to hurry with the shopping, we could go to the museum or aquarium or something. The Field Museum is huge and honestly takes hours to go through, so we wouldn't have time to see the whole thing before it closes, but we could still see enough to completely blow your minds."

"We should go shopping, Amalia," said Rahab, not taking his eyes off the skyline. "Raziel deserves to have fun, too. We shouldn't rush it just so I can enjoy the aquarium. We'll come back some day, won't we?"

Raziel stood then, walking over to wrap his arms around Rahab from behind. "You've always been selfless when it comes to me, Rahab. I'm having fun now and I'll have fun at the aquarium. It isn't as if I'll have much occasion to show off any fancy new clothes, anyway. The squirrels and birds in the woods outside our inn have little interest in fashion. And, it's as you say... we'll come back some day." Rahab contentedly leaned his head back against Raziel's shoulder with a soft purr.

"The museum would probably be a good compromise, you realize," Tantallon pointed out. "What's there, Amalia? It must be full of interesting things to look at.

"And learn about, yeah. The exhibits have detailed information about everything on display. There are artifacts that are thousands of years old from cultures that no longer exist, and Sue is pretty cool..." She paused here, a slow smile spreading across her face. "Oh man... I never told you guys about dinosaurs."

When they got off the ferris wheel, Amalia pulled out her phone, typed "T-Rex" into Google image search, and showed them the results. "That monster actually used to exist, as did many others that are now extinct. We only know they ever existed because we've dug up their skeletons and pieced them together. The museum has a lot of those skeletons on display, including the largest specimen of this particular species that's ever been found. She could have just about swallowed any of us whole."

It was unanimously decided that they would head straight to the Field Museum, and it did indeed completely blow their minds even if they had to choose which exhibits they had time for and which could wait until next time. Amalia allowed Raziel and Tantallon to venture off on their own provided Raziel keep a close eye on his fledge, and she stayed with Rahab, even if she could hardly keep up with him at first. This last part of their adventure sapped the rest of their energy, however, and by time they emerged with a few dinosaur figurines, plushies, and T-shirts to add to the present pile, it was dark and they were too exhausted and overstimulated to want to do much else but go home and enjoy the Christmas tree.

"It's gonna start snowing soon enough anyway, so we need to get back to the car. My grandma had a ton of wrapping paper and ribbons and all that in the attic, so once we're home we can wrap presents to take back and watch another Christmas movie."

"And we get to admire the city all lit up at night the whole way back!" Tantallon grinned.

It was snowing quite hard by time they got to Amalia's driveway, making them grateful for the ability to park the car inside a garage and go straight in from there.

"Sometimes I really miss being able to play in it," Tantallon sighed. "Lenore and I used to build forts and hurl snowballs back and forth at one another. Usually ended in one of us getting pelted in the head and crying, or getting angry at one another and wrecking each other's forts, and our mother dragging us both back inside by our ears and threatening to whallop us if we kept it up."

"You're a pain in the ass now if you're not kept constantly occupied, I can't imagine having you as a kid. I'd have sold you to a travelling  circus or something," Amalia informed him.

"I'd have probably fit in," he shrugged with a grin.

"Alright," Amalia announced once they had everything inside and dumped on the floor of the living room. "I'm lighting a fire and making us hot cocoa before I bring down wrapping supplies. Then we should watch Christmas Story because it's another classic and funny as all hell. We won't get sick if we go easy on the cocoa and have a real meal after."

They never got around to wrapping presents that night. Between the soft glow of the fire on one side of the room and the tree on the other, the taste of the rich cocoa and the warmth of their full bellies, and their exhaustion from their busy day, they barely made it through the movie. Once they laughed their last sleepy laugh and watched Ralphie's mother and The Old Man curl up on their couch to watch the snow fall and the credits begin to roll, they crawled into Amalia's bed, burrowed in, and slept.

Chapter Text

"Full day today, guys," Amalia said to her companions with a yawn the next morning. They were still snuggled in her bed, and the three of them groaned.

"How can you ever stand to get out of a bed like this?" Tantallon asked. "Especially if you've then got to go out into the cold and go to work performing mindless repetitive tasks like answering pizza phones or taking money for toys?"

"It's not easy. I worked as a waitress in a restaurant to support myself before I came here. Made good money on busy nights, and sometimes it was even fun, but most of the time I wished I could be doing anything else."

"Well, you're doing plenty else these days," Rahab murmured. "What all do we need to do today? Are we going home?"

"We've got more shopping to do and presents to wrap, mostly. There are a lot of things I want to bring back just to improve the quality of life at the inn. We can get some nice flannel sheets like these ones for the beds, some cooking pots and utensils, and maybe some electric power tools. That'll help Vance out a lot since he seems to have taken on the handyman role."

"We should bring back some simple books that will aid me in teaching him to read as well," replied Rahab.

"I was thinking about that, yeah. There are books that are made to be written in to practice, but they're intended for very small children, so hopefully he won't be too insulted," she laughed.

"He'll get over it once he realizes what he's gaining by learning to read."

"Can we take back the soap stuff to wash the sheets with?"

"Sorry, Tantallon, I don't want to bring anything back that will contaminate the environment with foreign substances, and that detergent definitely qualifies. Which reminds me... We need to make sure anything we take that isn't completely biodegradable is contained and set aside for us to bring back here on the next trip to get rid of. Nothing that we no longer have use for is left lying around in Nosgoth. You've already seen what happens when that stuff piles up."

They eventually hauled themselves out of bed and dressed in clean white t-shirts, underwear, and some lounge pants Amalia had brought back with everything else. Tantallon took yesterday's clothes to the laundry room, insisting on running the washer himself under Amalia's guidance. "Should have washed them before wearing them, but whatever," she informed him. "Clothes go in, then you measure out the detergent and pour it into that dispenser there. Then you close the lid and push that button on this panel." 

"...That's it? Do we just come back when it's time to pull them out and wring them? How are we going to manage that, by the way?"

"No, it wrings them itself by spinning that barrel inside and slinging all the water out of the clothes. They'll come out damp, so we'll need to use oven mitts or something, but then you just move them to the dryer."

"Does the dryer fold them?"

Amalia laughed. "Nope, still gotta do that yourself."

When they went back into the kitchen, Rahab was leaning over the island counter writing another list. "Gifts: Books and tools for Vance, some sort of... aid... for Lorrelin as well as some kitchen equipment, and then bedding and clothing for everyone. Anything else?"

"I'll need to measure them like I did you before we can get them pants, but we can take back everything else this time. We should also bring food to the campsite and stash it. It'll be there untouched when we go back for it. Staples like flour, salt, and sugar mostly."

"And coffee," Raziel added as he sipped at a small mug. He'd sniffed out a bag of whole beans and was about to eat one when Amalia stopped him on her way to do laundry, and once she'd chided him for trying to eat something unidentified again she'd taken the time to show him how to grind them and brew a pot to drink.

"Is that what smells so good?" asked Tantallon, reaching for the pot.

"Yeah, but I'm not sure how much I want to let you have," Amalia groused. "It's full of a natural stimulant called caffeine. That's why everyone drinks it in the morning."

Raziel poured small amounts into a mug for the others and pointed to the cream and sugar that Amalia had set out.

"We are definitely bringing some of this back," Rahab stated, setting his mug down to add coffee and brewing equipment to the list.

"What about seeds for Vance?" Tantallon asked.

"Nope, no foreign plants or animals. Introducing a new species to an environment on a whim rarely ends well, you know that by now."

"Pity... he'd love some new flowers," said Raziel.

"Maybe in the spring we can bring him one in a pot if he promises to never plant it outside. We have enough wrapping supplies, including boxes," said Amalia. "Maybe we should get specific on the list with the clothes for everyone. They'll need underwear and layers for the cold as well as outerwear like coats, hats, and gloves," she informed Rahab as he scribbled everything down. "I'll have to measure them for boots too, unforunately, so those will also have to wait. Let's finish our coffee and get ready to go, we'll hit the adult toystore first." 

The adult toystore was almost more than they could handle, and Amalia had to repeatedly Whisper to them to play it cool and stop acting shocked at what they saw.

"There is truly something for absolutely everyone here," Rahab marveled as his eyes roved over the merchandise on the walls and shelves. Some of it he found quite off-putting, such as a box that apparently contained a ghoulish approximation of a woman which was meant to be inflated with air.

"This is all glass," Raziel breathed, staring at an arrangement of glass dildos in a case. "They're beautiful." He was already carrying a paddle he was intent on buying, much to Amalia's dismay, as well as a Magic Wand and some rope. He could certainly remember how to tie knots for this purpose, but he could not remember ever tying Amalia up, and was eager to do so, particularly if he could then torment her with something that vibrated the way this wand thing apparently did. He rejoined Amalia near the vibrator displays, tilting his head as he peered at them.

"I think it best not to get one of the realistic ones for Lorrelin," he suggested. "I don't know if she's ever seen one erect, but either way I doubt it's a visual she wants in this situation."

"Nah, I'm looking at these here," Amalia replied, pointing at a few different rabbit models. "I have no idea if she enjoys penetration, though. Maybe I'll get her one of those and her own Magic Wand."

"Perhaps one of the smaller models of the Wand... I think something the size of what we're getting might intimidate her."

Amalia paid for Lorrelin's gifts separately and hid them in the back of her car before rejoining the others. Rahab had a small bullet vibe and nothing else, claiming that Lenore would need to be introduced to this sort of thing very slowly. Tantallon had ventured to politely ask the person at the counter information on the "Satisfyer Pro", and once it was explained to him he immediately chose it for Stella.

"Can we play with these when we get back?" Tantallon asked when they were back in the car, waggling his eyebrows at Amalia.

"Not the ones intended for Lenore or Stella, but I'm fine with all of us using our stuff," Amalia replied, immediately narrowing her eyes at Rahab when he held the paddle up. "Except that," she growled. "Unless Tantallon's the one getting it."

"Fuck no, I've had the belt as punishment often enough, I don't need to bring a paddle into my sexual escapades."

"You'd best behave today, then," Rahab grinned, waggling it at him and earning himself a dark scowl.

"I didn't get that paddle for sexual escapades," Raziel informed Amalia, poking her in the nose. "I got it to aid me in keeping you in line, my little fledgling."

"I've been good lately!" Amalia retorted, swatting at his hand, which didn't exactly bolster her claim.

"No one has made you angry lately," he pointed out. "You've still got a temper to learn to control."

She huffily started the car and set her GPS to take them to the nearest Costco, where they bought bulk sized containers of the staples they'd put on their list along with the cookware, a cutting board and some knives, and some Pyrex mixing bowls. Socks, underwear, long johns, and hats and gloves came next, but it was decided that for shirts, pajamas, and coats they'd go somewhere with a little more selection so that everyone got something different. Rahab and Amalia sorted through the many books on display, and Raziel and Tantallon looked at the Christmas decorations, grinning when they spotted a display model of the exact tree Amalia had. Lastly came a few good bottles of wine and liquor, and by then the older vampires were tired of the crowds and ready to get out of there.

Walmart came next, and for a short while they forgot their irritation at being surrounded by oblivious and generally rude humans in favor of exploring every part of the store. Here they picked up Vance's gifts: Gardening tools, a battery operated power drill, a tool set and belt, a few kindergarten aged books, a blank notebook, and some pens and pencils to practice writing with, plus a picture book with simple labels for the contents. Tantallon decided on a whim that he would teach Stella to read and write as well, so they tossed an extra copy of each into the cart. They found Stitch pajamas for Lenore, much to Rahab's delight, and chose a few toiletries and some clothing and coats for Lorrelin, Vance, and Stella. Upon entering the electronics department, Amalia decided to get Raziel, Tantallon, and Rahab their own laptops and Kindles and another for the humans to share, figuring if they were interested enough to use it regularly they could come back to get them their own. She almost forgot Kain, and had to go back to grab him his own Kindle, which is the only thing she could think of that he might actually want.

"Lots of Christmas shopping today, huh?" the cashier said as they loaded everything onto the belt at the checkout, and Raziel flashed her a charming smile. "Something like that, yes," he replied as she blushed, clearly flustered at having three incredibly attractive men with accents come through her line. Tantallon and Rahab flirted shamelessly with her until the moment they left. Amalia simply laughed, happy that they were still enjoying themselves despite the crowds and overstimulation.

From there, they went to Cabela's to get extra solar chargers and battery banks for everything, irritating a nearby employee when they cleared out the rather limited selection. Amalia took them to show them the guns, but reminded them what Kain had said about bringing firearms back. They figured a hunting knife or two wouldn't go amiss, however, and Tantallon's jaw dropped at the selection of bows.

"We're going to have trouble carrying all this back from the gate if we get much else," Amalia said as they headed back to the car and squeezed their latest purchases in. "Let's head home and start wrapping."

The older vampires, being accustomed to having three talons instead of five fingers, were abysmal at present wrapping. Changing back and trying to use their sharp talons would only make matters worse, of course, so they had to make do with their human forms. Tantallon adjusted enough to do a passable job, having once had fingers without claws, but Raziel and Rahab had to try at least twice for each box and both somehow managed to tape their fingers together. Amalia collected the packages of comforters and bedding into a large trash bag since they were too bulky to wrap, and they divided up everything else according to the recipient, making sure to keep Lorrelin's toys separate to give to her later.

"Okay, I think we've got it all sorted to load onto the horses," observed Amalia as she stared down at the collection. "All the wrapped presents are in these four bags, but the cookware is too big and heavy, so one of us will have to carry it separate. We'll keep the extra Kindle and Lorrelin's toys in this little tote and I'll hide it in our room right away for later. The bedding, food, garden stuff, and electronics can go on the pack horse."

"I'll carry my new bow and arrows on my back," said Tantallon, "So that's sorted."

"I forgot the sex toys will need charging," Amalia replied to him,somewhat apologetically. "Me and Raz will go get those and the power banks juiced up. Then I'll set up all your laptops and load them with games and stuff."

"Books for the Kindles, too," Raziel suggested, and Amalia agreed to copy her library to them. They gathered up the various electronics and went to her grandmother's sewing room to spread them out across all the flat tables that were set up as work surfaces.

"We should write the humans notes," said Rahab. He then paused, brow furrowed.

It hit him all at once just how much their opinions of humans had changed, and none more than those of the three back home. After leaving the Empire, throwing a party in the woods, working alongside them on restoring the inn, and seeing how they welcomed and pitched in to care for Lenore, they'd come to see them as nearly equals, nearly friends by now.

"I didn't even care to learn their names before we left," Rahab murmured. "Now here I stand, having trekked all over the place to find gifts for them all, wanting to write them personalized notes and looking forward to seeing their reactions to all of it. What's become of us, Tantallon?"

"Tantallon only shrugged. "I don't know... but honestly, as much as I miss the hectic job of being Raziel's second in command... I think I'm actually happier."

"So am I," replied Rahab. "I knew I would be if I could have Lenore back, but never thought it would actually happen. I always preferred the quiet life we had before the Empire. Just us, Lenore, and Raziel serving the Master as best we could and avoiding the rest of them."

Rahab found another blank sheet of paper, and they worked together to come up with a few sentences for each. Then they signed it, took it for Amalia and Raziel to sign, and folded it to put among the presents.

Then came an exchange that both were quite lucky not to have been overheard by either Raziel or Amalia:

"I'm bored. Let's go find something to do."

"Agreed."

They closed the curtains in the living room and admired the tree, then decided to take the presents out of the bags and arrange them under it the way they'd seen so many times over the last couple of days. Rahab went to dig Amalia's phone out of her purse to take pictures of the display, but could neither guess the password nor unlock it with his thumb the way he'd seen Amalia do. They shrugged and decided to leave the task to her when she was finished.

Both were starting to feel hungry, so into the kitchen they went. Tantallon pulled the cake out of the fridge and Rahab followed with the remnants of the frozen pizza they'd nibbled. He'd seen a microwave on TV and quickly figured out how to use the one sitting on the counter, repeatedly opening it and poking at the pizza so as not to overcook it. Tantallon followed with a slice of cake, but to his dismay, the frosting popped and splashed onto the inside of the appliance and melted all over the plate. It still tasted good. They poured themselves blood from a skin into four glasses, drank two, and then stood regarding the dishes.

"She said this thing is a dishwasher. Is that the soap for it there?" Tantallon asked, pointing to the bottle of Dawn sitting up on the sink. "We can't wash them by hand, obviously." They narrowly avoided disaster when Rahab found a bottle of actual dishwasher detergent to use instead. They soon had it running with all of two small plates, two glasses, and two forks inside.

"I could get used to this modern life," said Rahab. "But I don't think I'd want to do it all the time. I'd miss our own world too much... it's so much quieter. I could only take it in small doses."

"Yeah, I agree. The house is full of neat things, but the outside world is just so... complicated, and bright, and noisy. I had fun, but it was overwhelming and exhausting. I'm glad we're not going back out except to go home."

They fell silent a moment, staring at the dishwasher before Rahab had an idea. "I wonder what's in the attic?"

To their delight, they found a tabletop Christmas tree which had fallen unnoticed to the floor behind a box of old clothes up there. It had a single string of lights wrapped around it, but was otherwise covered in nothing but dust. Tantallon gently shook it out and put it next to the stairs. 

"What's that?" asked Tantallon.

"I don't know," replied Rahab, turning the object over in his talons. "The multitude of bright colors caught my eye, and I took it out of this box to admire it. Mariokart Deluxe, it says."

"It must be a movie," said Tantallon, peering over Rahab's shoulder at the plastic case.

"No, I don't think so. I think this one's a game," said Rahab, pointing to the text on the back. "It says, 'Jump into the driver's seat'."

"Those don't look like any of the cars we've seen. I mean, those three on the front are driving upside-down."

"Hmmph. Zephon would have loved it, then."

"Did the back say something about racing? Maybe that's what it's about."

"Yes, and it also says 'Duke it out in a new-and-improved battle mode', which leads me to believe the rules allow for some rather underhanded tactics."

"Well, that sounds like fun!" Tantallon grinned.

"Yes, but I don't know what to do with this," Rahab groused. "It's clearly just a box. There's no screen and no input mechanism."

Tantallon had taken the box from Rahab and was peering closely at the details. "Look, though... that part says 'TV'. There's a thing sitting next to hers that has this same symbol; it's clearly meant to be used to play it. And look at this," he said as he pried the case open and held it out. "This thing here is the input device. We just have to find it and figure out how to get the game on the TV."

"This slot here looks like it held something small. I wonder if we'll need to find that, too."

"Lets go and look. I'll bet we can figure it out between the two of us."

They carried the tabletop tree down and took it to the living room. It was a matter of moments before they spotted the Nintendo Switch sitting on the floor next to the TV, along with two dusty pro controllers. "I think we can use these. They look just like the one in the smaller picture inside."

Rahab picked up one of the controllers and poked his claw at a few buttons, and within moments the light on the console lit up and the TV came on all by itself. He and Tantallon exchanged excited glances, and then they settled in with a controller each and started to push random buttons in an attempt to get a response. Unbeknownst to them, the game cartridge was already in the slot, and eventually they managed to blunder their way into the Mario Kart menu screen.

"Ha! There we go. That says 'multiplayer', so let's do that." Tantallon began to blithely push random buttons, taking them back and forth between other menus until Rahab stopped him. "Cut it out and let me read what's on the screen!" He got them as far as the character select menu, and they sat for some while trying to pick out a racer and car. From there, they chose a course and successfully started a race.

They quickly realized that this game was a lot harder than it looked. The muscle memory they needed to succeed at even staying on the track simply wasn't there. Rahab growled in frustration as the odd looking character with the fishing rod hauled him back up from a crevasse for the third time in less than a minute.

"I think he's making us pay him to rescue us, look! He's taking those gold coins as fast as we can steer into them to collect them!" Tantallon cried, indignant.

"This is impossible. How can any human enjoy a game like this if we can't even manage the coordination necessary to succeed at it?"

"What the- Are you guys seriously playing Mario Kart?"

They swiveled their heads around to find Amalia emerging from the hallway with a mixture of surprise and intense amusement etched into her features. "Why am I not surprised that you managed to figure out how to-" She stopped in her tracks, listening to the sound coming from the kitchen, her face falling. "Did you two run the dishwasher?"

"We warmed pizza in that other thing, first."

"Oh my god," she replied, rushing to the kitchen. "Which bottle of soap did you use?!"

"The one from under the cupboard, of course," Rahab replied dismissively, huffing as he tried to figure out how to reverse his way out of the corner he'd driven himself into. "It was labeled quite clearly."

"I seriously cannot leave you two alone for even a minute," she sighed, relieved.

"Well we couldn't wash them by- God dammit!" Tantallon snarled.

"Haven't figured out how to actually race yet, huh?" Amalia laughed as she returned to the living room.

"Trial and error is usually a reliable strategy," Rahab replied. "But at this point there seems to be nothing but error on our part. How can anyone expect to win against the automated racers? We can't stop driving into walls,"

"Or off the track trying to avoid those toothy things that bark!"

"And that greedy bastard in the smiling cloud is extorting us for every coin we manage to get!"

She snorted with laughter and went to the couch to plop down in between them. "Give it here," she said to Rahab, and he skeptically handed over his controller. "Ugh, you picked Cheese Land as your course? Should have gone with Rainbow Road, it has the best music."

"How the fuck-" Tantallon began, rapidly looking between the screen and Amalia's fingers as she skillfully manipulated the controls and began to move up in the ranks. He'd given up entirely, and the little green lizard he'd chosen as a driver sat in the middle of the road as the other racers whizzed past.

"Okay, she's clearly been at this a long time," Rahab observed. "That means we can do it, too. Leave us be, Amalia, and let us practice."

"Alright," she shrugged, handing the controller back to him. "Just to warn you, though, in case you haven't noticed-"

"Hey!" Tantallon suddenly exclaimed as a shell sent his kart tumbling across the road.

"...Yeah, that. The real fun in this game comes from sabotaging the other racers. Run over those item boxes and hit that button on the top left edge of the controller to use whatever weapon you end up with. You'll get more powerful ones if you're in last place, so it'll help you catch up. If you get a blue shell with spikes, let 'er rip and enjoy the show. It heads straight for whoever's in first place and will take out anyone else who gets in the way while it's on the hunt."

"Oh, I like this," Rahab grinned. "I like this a lot."

"Forget winning the race, let's just ruin it for everybody else!" Tantallon said with a savage grin.

"Starting with that cloud humping crook! How do we kill him, Amalia?"

"His name is Lakitu, and you can't," she laughed. "Tell you what, though. I can change the settings so the game keeps you on the track no matter how bad you steer. At least that way you can learn more about how it works, and you'll still get some practice. I'll show you how to turn it back off when you want to give it a go without."

"Lakitu," he sneered, voice dripping with contempt. "What a stupid name."

She returned to the kitchen to cut another slice of cake and collect their glasses of blood, then returned to Raziel, who was watching as Civilization 6 installed on his shiny new laptop. Amalia had described the game to him and he was very intrigued, especially since she'd put it on everyone else's computers too and informed him that they could play against one another if they took the time to set the necessary hardware up.

"They ate the frozen pizza," she informed him. "But I brought cake."

Raziel gratefully accepted it, and they chatted about what else to put on their devices as they filled their bellies. "The games still have to be installed on each laptop, but with that hardware I mentioned, the computers will be connected in a way that we can share things between them, meaning I can set my own laptop up with all the movies and music and the others will be able to pull them off it when they want something. Otherwise I'd have to copy everything onto each, and that would take all damn day."

"You have this 'hardware', then?"

"Yeah, it's in a box in the garage that I haven't unpacked yet. I'll make sure it comes with us."

They passed time playing games and gathering anything else they thought to bring back for a while, and then Tantallon suddenly remembered their new toys.

"That big one of yours, you said it vibrates?" he asked, receiving a nod from Amalia. "Then it'll work as well on us as it will on you," he replied with a fiendish grin. "Let's go upstairs."

All four of them shed their clothing once they reached the bedroom, and Tantallon sat with Rahab poking at the wand while Raziel neatly folded and stacked everything they'd just dropped to the floor. Amalia simply watched to see what happen when the toy was activated.

"Oh, god!" Tantallon exclaimed when he found the button that made it come to life, dropping it to the floor and laughing along with everyone else. "That thing is powerful!"

Rahab picked it up, skeptically placing his hand over the bulbous end. "A bit too powerful, I fear. It feels like it'll rattle our cocks right off our bodies."

"Only one way to find out," replied Tantallon as he shuffled backward to lay flat on the bed, meeting Amalia's eyes and patting the spot next to him.

"Why do you get to go first?" Rahab asked, eyes narrowed as he crawled up to lie next to him. Tantallon planted his hand on his chest and pushed.

"Too close. You men are lucky I even let you watch," he informed him. Rahab moved several inches back with a roll of his eyes as Raziel made himself comfortable behind Amalia. He drew in a shaky breath as she turned it back on, then let out a high pitched "Aah!" when she touched it to the end of his still flaccid cock, causing them all to burst into raucous laughter. "Put something in between, there's no way I can tolerate it otherwise!"

Amalia wrapped the end of the wand in a soft hand towel and tried again, causing Tantallon's hips to cant up slightly. "Holy fuck," he breathed. Two more soft gasps, and he laughed. "Yeah, this is gonna be quick." He wasn't wrong; he came within the next ten seconds, back arching as he spilled onto his belly and then quickly reaching down to shove the vibrator away.

"Atta boy," Amalia said with a grin as she unwrapped the towel and handed it to him to clean himself up with.

"I'm not entirely sure I can even get up after that," he stated, staring up at the ceiling, exhausted after the sheer intensity of his orgasm.

"You didn't 'get up' in the first place," laughed Raziel. "You weren't even fully hard before you spilled."

"Wait, really?" he asked, lifting his head to look downward at himself.

They all burst into laughter again, then Tantallon finally pried himself up off the bed and traded places with Rahab while Raziel gestured to Amalia to move aside and hand him the wand.

"And who said I wanted you to do it?" Rahab asked him with a sly smirk. Raziel glanced down to Rahab's own anatomy, which was very much at full mast already, and raised an eyebrow at him. "Fine," he agreed with a playful huff, knowing that there was no point in trying to lie about it. Amalia went and grabbed a clean towel along with a roll of toilet paper to clean up with, and Raziel wrapped the wand. He kept his touch as light as he could, but Rahab still nearly sat straight up once contact was made, inspiring another round of intense laughter. He performed no better than Tantallon, and in fact swatted the thing away too soon, resulting in Raziel having to use his hand to finish him off. "If the smaller one is anything like that thing," he gasped once he'd come down, "Lenore will not be able to handle it."

"Again, too much information," said Tantallon.

"Oh, hush. You know you're happy that she's as well satisfied as you are in that regard," Rahab retorted as he hauled himself up to allow Raziel to take his place. "I saw the way your face turned from concern to relief when you spoke to her the day after I married her."

"Then you'll have seen how quickly I stopped her sharing any further details as soon as I was certain the experience hadn't caused her pain."

"Both of you shut up and let me enjoy this," Raziel growled as he settled on his back. He wasn't surprised to find himself unable to last any longer than the other two, and both of them snickered once he'd finished. "Clearly a tolerance has to be built," he said as he fought to catch his breath. "That thing is a monster."

"It's Amalia's turn now," Tantallon commented. "Shall we see if she can make it to six this time?" he continued, watching her eyes widen as he took the wand from her.

"...Oh, no."

"Oh, yes," he countered with a wolfish grin as he crawled straight over Rahab toward her, eliciting an annoyed growl and a shove that nearly bowled him over, both of which he ignored.

"It's payback time."

Chapter Text

Things got much more serious once they had Amalia in place, waiting for what was ahead of her. She'd gotten nervous again, and Tantallon set the wand to the side and crawled over her to stroke her hair.

"You know your safewords, little sister. You know that we will either ease off or stop the moment you utter either one."

"I'll ask from time to time, as a matter of fact," said Raziel. "Just to be sure."

"We're probably going to have to hold her still if we're trying to wring multiples out of her, you realize," Rahab pointed out. "Particularly if we're doing it with that thing. Are you certain you won't panic if Raziel and I take hold of you, Amalia? A safeword may stop the games, but if you're already frightened or upset..."

"You guys can read me by now," she replied. "I trust you. I'm a hundred percent convinced I'm gonna tap out before six, though."

"We shall see," said Raziel. "Come, let me sit where you lie. I'll prop myself up with pillows and you can sit between my legs and lean back. I'll have you the whole time."

"I'm trusting you the most, Tantallon," she said as she allowed Raziel to guide her into place, tensing her thighs to keep them together. She'd always had a hard time with the vulnerability that came with opening up and laying herself bare, and that didn't seem to have changed no matter how comfortable she was with any of them.

"Now's not the time to be a shit, Amalia, I know that," he replied as he held the towel in his hands, considering whether or not he should wrap the end like before or simply lay it over her. "Pushing past your boundaries would inspire guilt, not amusement."

"Don't accidentally turn it up, either. I don't want to have to scrape myself off the ceiling if it ends up on high."

"This thing goes higher?! Good god!" he cried. He poked at it and succeeded in turning it up all the way, jaw dropping at just how powerful it became with every successive press of the button.

"Fucking hell, you could use this thing to shape stone!" laughed Rahab as he placed his hand over the end again.

"I'll be careful and mind my talons," Tantallon assured Amalia. "That's definitely not a mistake I want to make. It won't do to put you off this sort of thing, because regardless of my lack of attraction to other men, I still enjoy these group encounters. We ought to have been including Rahab more often before, really."

"I lived too far away," Rahab shrugged as he got up to sit on his heels next to Amalia, ready to help restrain her should the need arise. "But it would have been enjoyable, yes."

Tantallon opted to spread the cloth over Amalia, if nothing else just to get her to grant him access to the area without hemming and hawing about it the way she often did. Being covered did seem to dispel her unease, and once she'd made enough room for him to work, he laid his hand on her abdomen and gently lowered the wand until it made contact. She clearly had experience with the toy, because she only gasped softly and bit her lip. Her first orgasm came relatively quickly, and after a few seconds of respite she gestured for Tantallon to put it back where it was and then proceeded to surprise all of them by holding it firmly in place. "Don't know why it works that way," she said, breath shaky. "But for me at least, the sensitivity isn't so intense if you don't keep the touch so light after the first one." 

Raziel checked in with her after her second. "What color are we, darling?" he asked, ensuring that the answer was 'green' before allowing Tantallon to continue. She managed the third without help staying still, but once an attempt was made to bring about the fourth, Raziel had to hook his hands under her knees to hold her in place. "Hold still," he murmured into her ear, voice firm and commanding. "Hold still for him, you can do it..."

She called yellow afterward. "Just for a minute... I need to catch my breath."

"You're alright emotionally, though?" Rahab asked as he brushed a strand of hair away from her forehead and smoothed it back into place.

"Mild frustration at my own inability to keep still, but turns out it's kinda hot being held down and commanded to, sooooo..."

"You're doing well, my love," said Raziel, relaxing his grip on her legs to let her feet fall back to the mattress. "Take what time you need, and then you'll be good and open right back up for us, won't you?" he purred.

"God, yes."

Rahab helped Raziel restrain her as they began to try for the fifth, but let her sire do the talking. "Be a good girl and take it," he encouraged. "Keep trying, you can give us another..."

Number five was so intense she burst into tears directly afterward, but quickly assured them that it wasn't an emotional outburst. "I'm fine, I'm fine... My brain just doesn't know what to do with itself right now and apparently this is what it landed on when it spun the reaction wheel," she explained, wiping her eyes, sniffling, and finally taking a deep breath to calm herself. "Um... my hips are sore, though."

Raziel allowed her to stretch her legs all the way out, and Tantallon turned the wand off to give her another rest, as well as an out if she wanted to take it. "We can stop, Amalia. You've already outdone last time, these five climaxes were more intense by an order of magnitude," he said, using the towel to dry her face, careful not to end up smearing her own wetness across her cheek as he did so. They really ought to have thought to get a large towel from the bathroom to put under her, because after five orgasms the sheets were soaked. She seemed genuinely torn for a moment, but then slid one foot backward, bending her knee. It was apparently all she could manage in her current state. "Nah," she almost slurred, eyes closed and head leaned back against Raziel. "We can at least try."

"Tenacious little thing," Rahab grinned as Raziel reached for her knees. Six was a slog and was so weak it may as well not have happened at all, and Tantallon had to drop the wand and look closely at her entrance to even be able to tell it had. Weak though they were, the tell-tale contractions that signaled the aftershocks of an orgasm were discernible, and he confirmed her success to the others with a nod and a grin.

"Yeah, she did it."

The silence in the room was deafening as they waited for her reaction. Would she cry again? Have a giggle fit? Fall dead asleep? Growl in frustration because she felt it didn't count after all that work? Nope. After a moment, she slowly raised her fist in a gesture of triumph, causing them all to laugh.

"Guys, as much fun as that was," she said weakly after letting her arm fall heavy back to the bed. "I don't think I want to do it again. I've earned the six orgasm trophy, that's good enough."

"That's fair, Amalia," laughed Tantallon. "We were probably being a bit cruel, subjecting you to this sort of thing twice, but you took it like a champ."

"Are you going to be able to even walk the rest of the day?" asked Rahab, eyebrow raised. She seemed to be fading to sleep rather quickly, and Raziel began to shift them so that he could lie down next to her. "Or drive us back?" The only response he got was a shrug.

"Well, she's clearly tapped out and Raziel is looking after her, so neither of us is getting laid. I suppose we might as well go downstairs and find something else to occupy ourselves with, Rahab," Tantallon shrugged.

This roused her immediately. "Nope!" she cried, struggling to lift herself off the bed into a sitting position and opting to simply chuck herself off the side of it when she couldn't. "Nope, nope, nope. I'm getting up. You two aren't going anywhere unattended."

"Stay here, both of you," Raziel commanded, "while I get her cleaned up and... well, hopefully standing on her own two legs."

Raziel ended up carrying her down the stairs to the living room, depositing her on the couch where she finally noticed the presents under the tree. "Why'd you unpack them?" she groaned. "I had them ready to go."

"We wanted a picture for the humans," Tantallon replied, sounding a bit guilty. "You took pictures and video of everything else we've done to show them." Amalia couldn't stay mad about it if that was the justification, and she finally hauled herself up to get her phone. A few pictures from different angles and a closeup or two of the presents, and that was that. They were ready to go back home. Tantallon got the pizza they'd ordered out of the refrigerator as Raziel and Rahab sorted the presents into the proper bags again.

"I'm glad you found that little tree," said Amalia to Tantallon. "We can set that up first and then bring the presents in while they're gawking at it."

"I should dress as Santa to deliver them," he suggested with a grin as he helped load the last of the stuff into the car. "Fake beard and all. Maybe even do the chimney thing."

"Dude, you are way too skinny to be Santa and you'd still get stuck in the chimney," laughed Amalia, handing him a shapechanging potion in preparation to go out into the world. "Besides, they have no concept of Christmas yet, so you'd only frighten and confuse them... And probably piss Lorrelin off."

"That's not the disincentive you think it is."

Everyone sighed happily as Amalia backed the car out of the garage, and they fell into comfortable conversation about different aspects of the trip. Amalia was comforted by the knowledge that everything would be exactly as they left it upon their eventual return, and only felt a small pang of sadness looking back at the house through the rear-view mirror. The trip back to the gate was uneventful, though it took multiple trips to get everything from the car to the campsite. It hadn't snowed there, at least, or they'd have been in trouble. The staples were arranged several feet from the gate for safe-keeping, and then one by one they returned to Nosgoth, shielding their eyes from the flash.

"Ah, there you are," Tantallon said to the horses, patting each one in turn and ducking his head away when one tried to nose him right in the face. Aside from cracking jokes, he'd largely gone back into business mode, and hadn't caused any trouble at all since they'd begun preparing for their return. Unfortunately, three of the four horses were terrified of the shiny black plastic garbage bags they were using to carry their prizes, and Raziel had to Charm the poor things to calm them enough to be loaded up and ridden back.

"We have to be quiet getting them into the stables," said Raziel as they approached the old inn. "Amalia, you should run inside and make sure everyone is assembled in the tavern, near the hearth, perhaps. Tell them we have a big surprise and get whatever power supply the tree needs set up. We'll bring it in first."

"We should record everything, too," Rahab suggested as she hopped off the back of Raziel's horse. "I want to remember the look on Lenore's face when she opens her gift for the rest of my days." With a nod, she slipped out of the stables.

"Hey guys!" she said upon entering the kitchen to find Stella and Vance with the box of peeping chicks, about to head out back to return them to their mother in the coop. They immediately assaulted her with all manner of chatter and questioning, not even giving her enough time to respond.

"Amalia! Oh, Amalia, she smiled! The instant she saw them, she gasped and smiled!"

"And sat up to look at 'em, even!" Vance added, beaming. 

"How was it being home after so long stuck here?" asked Stella.

"How long were you actually there for?"

"I am immensely relieved to hear that, it was absolutely wonderful and we have so much to tell you, and we were there for four days." laughed Amalia.

"Say, you bring us anythin' back?" asked Vance, his tone implying that the question was a joke and that he expected absolutely nothing.

Amalia couldn't help but laugh. "Ohhhhh, man... Go put the chicks back while I find Lorrelin and Lenore. Meet us in down in the tavern by the hearth."

Vance exchanged an excited glance with his sister. "They're up in 'er room!"

Lenore was already up when Amalia got there, waiting patiently next to the bed while Lorrelin removed the sheets to be washed. "Hey!" she said, startling Lorrelin, who had her back turned to the door. "Come on down to the tavern, we have a surprise!"

"Lady Lenore is in no fit state for a bunch of excitement," Lorrelin retorted.

"It's alright, Lorrelin," replied Lenore. "I want to see everyone... they need to know I'm getting better. And I'd like to greet my husband now that he's returned."

"What's this about, Amalia?" asked Lorrelin once they were downstairs, standing with her arms crossed. 

"Oh, just you wait." Amalia sat one of the powerbanks on a large table and set up her phone nearby, hitting record as soon as she had it at an angle where everything would be captured. Raziel soon came through the door with the tabletop tree and sat it upright in its base, but when he looked up to see their reactions, everyone assembled was gawking at him.

"What?"

"You... your eyes! They're blue! And where are your talons? You look human!" Lorrelin cried.

"Oh, yes, we used shapechanging potions to blend in. I just forgot to dispel mine upon our return," he replied breezily before returning to his true form. "Nevermind that, look at this tree."

"Why is there a tree in the tavern?" Lorrelin asked with an air of longsuffering.

Raziel took the end of the plug, held it up for them to see, and then plugged it in to the powerbank, resulting in a collective gasp as the lights blinked on. Just then, Rahab walked in the door carrying the large wrapped box that contained Lorrelin's cookware, handing it off to Raziel before rushing to Lenore's side and pulling her into a hug. "You came down," he murmured into her hair.

"It's time for me to stop acting so foolish," she replied softly.

"Lorrelin, this one's yours. Well, one of yours, anyway. Tantallon and I will soon bring the rest. Don't open it yet, wait until we've got them all inside!"

"What... what is all this?!" Lorrelin demanded, completely flabbergasted. 

"Presents!" Rahab chirped, arms still around his bride.

One by one, the brightly colored packages were taken from the bags and piled on the table around the tree, and Rahab stepped forward to explain while Tantallon adorned it with a star that was sized just right for it. "There is a holiday in Amalia's world that is celebrated for weeks on end in early winter. According to tradition, an evergreen is brought into the house and decorated with lights and ornaments, and then wrapped gifts are set underneath until the family gathers to open them."

"You're our family now," said Raziel. "And we enjoyed these holiday traditions so much we couldn't help but want to bring it home to you all. Here now, Lorrelin, open the big one there. The ones beside it have your name on them as well."

"The paper... it's so..." Lorrelin breathed, sliding the box closer and peering at it. "You want me to tear this? But it's so pretty!"

"It's fastened on the ends there with little clear strips of sticky stuff," Amalia pointed out. "You can carefully undo it if you'd rather not just rip it."

Lorrelin did just that, and then stood there gawking at the box, which was unlike any she'd ever seen before. "It's... it's cookware? Cookware from Amalia's world?" she asked incredulously. Raziel opened the box for her and pulled out a pot and pan.

"Now I'll always know when you're behind me," he smirked.

She reverently lifted each piece out of the box and set them on another table, taking them in hand one by one and turning them this way and that to admire them, apparently stunned speechless.

"Lenore, darling... this is for you," said Rahab, plucking the box containing Stitch out of the pile and handing it off. She took a moment to gaze, spellbound, at the shiny foil wrapping paper her husband had carefully chosen for her gifts, then slit through the ribbon with her talon and held it up, admiring the way the light from the tree caused it to shimmer. She then proceeded to remove the paper every bit as carefully as Lorrelin had, a ghost of a smile gracing her face at the sight of the colorful gift box. Rahab opened that for her, and the instant she glimpsed inside to see the ridiculous stuffed blue alien grinning up at her she burst into raucous laughter, covering her mouth with both hands, doubling over, and repeatedly turning her gaze away only to laugh even harder every time she looked back inside the box. The laughter was contagious, and soon everyone present was overcome with giggles.
                                                       
"Oh my god, Rahab... what the hell is it?" she asked when she'd recovered enough to speak.

"His name is Stitch," he replied, voice shaking slightly as he fought to contain the tears that sprung forth the instant he heard her laugh again. "Do you like him?"

"I love him, oh, I absolutely adore him!" she cried, hugging the toy to her breast. "It's the most hilariously bizarre thing I've ever seen, and I love him!" She continued to giggle on and off for the next several minutes, unable to help herself cracking up every single time she looked at the toy's toothy grin and oversized ears.

"Stella, this one's yours," said Tantallon, handing off her own plushie box. "Hopefully you won't laugh yourself half to death like my sister the instant you lay eyes upon it."

Stella didn't laugh upon opening the box, she simply gasped and grinned. "He's a little black dragon!"

"His name is Toothless," Tantallon informed her, and she promptly set the toy on the table and threw her arms around him.

"Here, Vance. There are a few more outside that were shaped too weird to wrap, but these fit into boxes," said Amalia, offering him the packages containing his books, drill, and toolbox. Rahab stepped over to put his hand on his shoulder when he lifted out the books from the first box.

"We haven't forgotten about teaching you to read and write," he told him. "I'll tutor you personally, and I have no doubt you'll master it in no time with the help of what we've brought you."

"He certainly did when I taught him the first time around," said Raziel, watching a rather stunned Vance as he turned toward Rahab, shuffling closer to him while avoiding his gaze.

"Thank you, Lord... I'll... I'll do my best."

"There's a good lad," replied Rahab, throwing his arm around Vance's shoulders.

The next few hours were spent opening gifts, marveling at the contents, chattering excitedly, carefully folding the shiny paper for safekeeping, replacing bedding, and trying on clothing. Stella and Vance ended up having a sword fight with a hoe and a shovel until Lorrelin chased them outside brandishing one of her new frying pans. Rahab went to get Lenore's jewels and put them on her, leaving her standing in the middle of the room in a combination of priceless jewelry and Stitch pajamas that had them both cracking up. Tantallon took the pizza and breadsticks they'd brought back for the humans and laid it out in front of the fire to warm. Raziel and Amalia eventually cornered Lorrelin in her room while she was putting her flannel sheets and comforter on the bed, holding the small tote that contained her own toys. Lorrelin took the small wand out and blinked at it, and Amalia reached over and pushed the 'on' button, which only confused her more. Raziel took out the rabbit vibrator and turned that on, handing it to her and waiting for her to figure out their purpose.

"Do you really need us to explain?" Amalia asked with a smirk,  finally handing off a small bottle of water based lubricant. It seemed to suddenly click, and Lorrelin's eyebrows shot up.

"We figured you wouldn't want anything that was made to look like male anatomy," Raziel began, "But we weren't certain as to your usual... methods. So we got one that can be used externally, and one that's designed for both internal and external, simultaneously."

"To be clear, you don't have to use either, and we can never speak of this again if you'd prefer. We wanted to give them to you in private, for obvious reasons, and no one but us was involved in their purchase," explained Amalia, watching as Lorrelin blinked at what was in her hands. After a moment, she turned the toys off and cleared her throat politely.

"These will be... most useful. Thank you," she said, admiring her prizes while Raziel and Amalia exchanged grins and made to leave.

Back downstairs, Tantallon had begun gathering any unused bedding, pillows, and cushions from all over the inn, making repeat trips back to the tavern to dump them on the floor not too far from the table with the tree.

"What are you doing?" asked Stella, beginning to help him even as she asked the question.

"Those little stuffed monsters we gave you and Lenore are characters from stories," he replied. "Moving picture stories! We're going to watch them later. We'll do the one with Stitch first, then we'll watch the one with Toothless. We just need Amalia to set her laptop up, she's brought so much back! We'll all be entertained for months!"

"And she got us humans one to share, she said! We'll be able to use it once me and Vance learn to read!" she commented, glancing over at her brother. He had already sat down at a table with Rahab and was looking over his educational material.

"Here, this is the part of the note we wrote that's for you. Tantallon wrote it, actually. It says, 'Vance- Don't worry, we're going to teach you to read this on your own.'" Rahab informed him, pointing at each word as he read it. Vance huffed a laugh, staring down at the words.

"Don't look like nothin' but squiggly lines to me."

"That will soon change. Just think, you won't have to rely on anyone to teach you anything anymore. You can seek out that information for yourself and learn it just by looking at words like these. The ability to educate yourself is a power that you'll no doubt find yourself drunk on, once you've mastered the skill."

Vance sat back in his chair, absorbing Rahab's words. He'd been too terrified of being taught by a vampire to have ever really spent much time thinking about what the ability to read would mean to him. It felt good to finally be free of that fear, for the most part. "You sure I can do it? We humans ain't as smart as your kind."

"Vance, look at this book here, the one with simple words and pictures, along with the spaces underneath to copy those words for practice," said Rahab, picking the book up and flipping through the brightly colored pages. "Humans just like you invented machinery designed to mass produce books just like this. The book itself is clearly meant for very young children, you see? The humans in Amalia's world begin their schooling very early on. You could have picked this skill up by the age of six, had you only been taught."

After a moment's quiet thought, Vance spoke softly. "But knowin' how means power... and you lot didn't want to share."

Rahab sighed. "That... is true, yes. We knew some of you were intelligent enough to learn, Lorrelin is living proof, after all. But we convinced ourselves that it was beyond most of you... because it in our best interest to do so. But it isn't true at all, we've accepted that now. Our superiority lies in our physical abilities and our resilience, not our intelligence."

"So what now, then? What happens when there's more vampires than just you four and Lord Kain? How does us humans fit in to the next empire if we're supposed to be on equal footing? I don't blame yeh for killin' us, we all gotta eat, after all, and you didn't ask for your kind of appetite. But somethin' tells me we ain't gonna be equals for long, once your numbers are back to what they were. It's just like you said, we take a spear through the middle and die, we ain't poppin' up like a spring daisy as soon as somebody pulls it out. And that's not even gettin' into sickness, and childbirth, and old age, and everything else that kills us and don't kill you."

"I don't think there's going to be another empire, Vance," Rahab replied with a shake of his head. "As angry as I am at Kain right now, I do believe that he's going to excel in his role as Balance Guardian. I've heard him and Raziel talking, they seem to have come to the conclusion that our numbers must be kept low, to prevent us overtaking Nosgoth again. Now, how he's going to keep your numbers in check... I don't know. Amalia's world is in dire shape due to the sheer number of people living there."

"I reckon that's a problem for another day," replied Vance as he reached for the kindergarten book and a pen.

"Indeed it is. For now, let's just enjoy all this splendor and think no more on the future. Here, let me show you how to hold that. It's going to feel quite awkward at first, but you'll get used to it."

Soon enough everyone was curled up among the assembled cushions near the fire, luxuriating in the warmth and chatting while the humans gorged on pizza and breadsticks. Tantallon began to regale them all with a tale of a prank he and Rahab had pulled on Raziel a few decades prior, which soon had them all in stitches.

"So he had this shirt which was his absolute favorite at the time," he began, and Raziel promptly burst into laughter, knowing precisely which of the many pranks they'd pulled on him he was referring to. "It was red, of course, with gold embroidery and frilly sleeves. You know, the sort of thing that straddles the line between starting a trend and inspiring ridicule."

"Which is most of what he wears, really," Rahab commented, causing a round of giggles.

"So Rahab is visiting one day, and knowing that Raziel prefers to be utterly unique in his style, I get an idea. So I say to him, 'Rahab, how mad do you think he'd be if he were to walk into an entire room full of people all wearing his favorite shirt?' So what do we do? I sneak the shirt out of his wardrobe and take it straight to my tailor, and explain to him that I'd like him to make ten identical copies of it, which he was more than happy to do once I explained why." He had to pause here to wait for the raucous laughter to die down. "I hide them away until Rahab comes back for another visit, and then we round up all eight of the house servants he had at the time, give them instructions on what to do, and hand the shirts out. Then I casually mention to Raziel that I haven't seen him wear his favorite shirt in a while and book it back downstairs, knowing that he'd take the bait and come straight down wearing it."

"Meanwhile, we've hurriedly put on our own copies and are sitting in the chairs in the parlor trying not to laugh while we wait."

"Yes, we're just sitting there waiting. And he comes down... and I'm telling you, the look on his face."

Rahab snorted with laughter and immediately launched into an imitation of his brother's reaction. "'I suppose you two think you're remarkably clever,'" he says, but he's clearly trying not to laugh himself, because this was a damn good prank, and he knew it." 

"Yes, and then I glance up and one of the goddamned servants walks through the front doors wearing one!" Raziel exclaimed, throwing up his hands. "Then another comes out of the library, and another comes down the stairs behind me. I'm absolutely flabbergasted at their sheer commitment to this nonsense by now, and it went on for two more days. Every so often I'd hear a servant giggle, and I'd turn around and sure enough, there was the shirt. I was paranoid by the end of it."

They were all absolutely howling by now, and the humans had to leave off eating and set their pizza aside lest they choke on it laughing. Once it started to die down, Tantallon promptly sent them all straight back into fits by flatly stating "He got rid of the shirt."

Next on the night's agenda were the movies, which everyone absolutely loved even if they had to crowd around the small laptop screen to watch them. The fire had died down by the end of How to Train Your Dragon, and after a few more long minutes admiring the soft electric glow of the Christmas Tree, everyone began to shuffle off toward their beds, eager to snuggle down into their soft flannel sheets and sleep until it was time to get up and enjoy their new posessions again. Lenore hugged her stuffed Stitch to her breast as Rahab led them to their room, and once they settled in they simply lay and talked.

"Was I really gone for seventy years?"

"Yes," Rahab replied, voice tight. "The longest seventy years I've ever lived. Sometimes I still worry that having you back is a dream and that I'll wake up and have to face reality again."

"You already woke up from the nightmare, Rahab," she said softly, snuggling closer to him and tucking her head under his chin as he purred. "And I... I think I can get used to all this. Tonight was wonderful," she said, pausing thoughtfully before continuing with a smirk and a suggestive roll of her hips against him. "And I think I know how to make it even better."

Rahab gulped. "Lenore... are you sure? I can wait as long as you need me to."

"I think you've waited long enough, my love," she replied, leaning in to kiss him. With a flick of his wrist, he warded the room for sound... and that was that.

Chapter Text

Later that night, Rahab lay staring up at the ceiling with his bride wrapped up in his arms. She was snoozing lightly, probably even drooling onto his chest by now, but he was too lost in thought to sleep. He'd had to pretend, in order to get through it. He'd had to convince himself that she'd never been gone, that it was just another night like any other, that he'd just fucked her silly in their own bed the day before and they were now just on some little holiday somewhere, a short trip of only a few days like they'd occasionally take on a sudden whim. He'd have completely broken down before he could even begin to perform, otherwise, just like he had after they were finished. Her scent, the way she felt, the way she looked at him, the way she tasted... it was all too much. He made it to the end before losing it, but only just barely. She'd just held him and reassured him that it was all going to be okay, that they could be a team again now. They'd carve out a new life together, and they'd be happy. He believed her.

She suddenly shoved him away with a shout, flailing and getting tangled in the sheets before falling off the side of the bed. "Lenore! Lenore, wake up," Rahab cried, scrambling to the floor beside her. "Darling, it's okay. I've got you. It wasn't real. You are safe," he soothed, stroking her hair as she curled up onto her side and began to cry.

Amalia had heard the commotion and recognized immediately what was going on. She was at their side in minutes with a small glass of blood and one of the pills they'd brought back. "Can you get her to take this?" she asked Rahab.

"Lenore, my love... the medicine we brought you... It's here, it'll make you feel better. You just have to swallow this tiny little thing, and you'll be able to sleep all night. No more bad dreams."

Lenore sniffled, clinging to her husband for dear life and shaking like a leaf. "It'll just make me sleep?" she asked, eyeing Amalia's outstretched hand warily.

"It'll calm your mind, first."

"You've taken it before?" she asked.

"I have, yeah. I had a lot on my mind, couldn't stop worrying about all this stuff that was stressing me out. So a doctor gave me this, and just one of these was enough to stop the constant racing thoughts. The problems were still there, and I knew they were still there for me to deal with, but I kind of just... didn't care. I felt sort of like 'Whatever, it's all good. I can handle it. It'll all be fine,'" Amalia explained. "So I was able to distract myself with a book for a little while before I got too sleepy to focus on it. Slept like a baby all night. It works fast, too. Swallow it and give it twenty minutes, you'll see what I mean. You can't take it every night, but it'll still help."

Lenore finally ventured to try it, and Rahab helped her off the floor and back into bed.

"Here, Lenore," Amalia said, plucking the Build-a-Bear box off the nearby table. "Stitch will help."

Lenore couldn't help but smile a bit. "He does help. I keep imagining him making all the silly noises he made in the thing we watched."

"Should I get the laptop? We can watch something else until you fall asleep."

"How about those silly Muppet things?" Rahab suggested. "She'll love those."

"Mmm... are there any with monsters? Something like the dragon one... something that looks real?"

Rahab shook his head with a soft laugh. "You would want to watch scary monsters terrorize people while trying to recover from a horrible nightmare."

"I mean... I guess there's Jurassic Park, but you're not gonna be able to stay awake long enough to get to the scary parts."

"Can we just watch the scary parts?"

Two minutes later, the three of them were huddled in Rahab and Lenore's bed, with Lenore in the middle with the laptop in her lap and her hands covering her mouth as the T-Rex pulled the dead electrical wires out of the supports that held them up and stepped out of the paddock.

"What is that thing?!" she asked, wide-eyed, as the dinosaur roared and began its rampage.

"That one's real," Amalia informed her. "They're extinct now, but they lived in my world millions of years ago. This movie is about a man who came up with a way to bring them back to life and put them on display in big enclosures for people to go gawk at. It ends just about as well as you'd expect," she said, gesturing at the screen. "All it took was one guy getting mad at his boss and engaging in a little sabotage. Ooh, I'll show you what happens to him next."

Lenore made it through the Dilophosaurus scene, but the medication soon started to kick in. She was fading by time Amalia fast-forwarded to the first velociraptor scene, and decided to wait rather than have the excitement dampened by the effects of the drug. Recalling Rahab's earlier suggestion, Amalia pulled up an episode of Fraggle Rock she'd downloaded years ago and played the introduction as a bit of a palate cleanser, and Lenore giggled through the whole thing, as delighted as anyone could be while heavily under the influence of a benzodiazepine. Finally she curled up on her side with a contented sigh, closing her eyes.

"Rest now, my love," said Rahab, pulling the covers up over her as she snuggled down into the soft new sheets, burying her nose in Stitch's soft fur. "Amalia... thank you. I'd invite you to sleep beside us if the bed were a bit bigger, but..."

"It's all good, man," she shrugged as she walked to the door. "Raz would just be lonely anyway, 'cause you know Tantallon's sleeping with Stella. I'll see the two of you in the morning."

"Why do we sleep at night now, Rahab?"

"I... don't really know. We sort of just adapted to the humans' schedule, I suppose. They used to sleep during the day like we did, but gravitated back toward sleeping at night once released from their duties. They still work hard... they just set their own schedule now, and we just fell into it. All of us save for Amalia are old enough to withstand the sun if we have to be outside, so it hasn't really impacted us."

"Amalia's a miracle," Lenore murmured sleepily. "I don't understand even half of her story and still can't wrap my head around the things she's brought here, but it's not even that. Raziel loves her."

"That he does. Never thought I'd see the day. I was so angry at him when I found out he'd married a human. We fought bitterly over it. Seems silly, now."

"That's 'cause it was," Lenore smirked, poking him in the nose with her claw. "And now Tantallon," she yawned, trailing off.

"Tantallon needs to stop leading that poor girl on. He's in so deep now, he can't work up the courage to get himself out. I've been meaning to take him to task for it, but haven't had the chance. He's being downright cruel. We tried to tell her he'd never return her feelings, but it was already too late for her. Still, if he'd have followed my advice-"

Lenore snorted. "He's in love with her, you idiot."

"He's faking it, darling. I know you don't want to think of your brother as cruel or cowardly, and I myself am shocked at his behavior, but-"

"He's not faking it. He wouldn't, Rahab, you know he wouldn't. The only one he's deluding is himself."

Once she fell asleep, Rahab found himself staring at the ceiling all over again, mulling over his bride's words and thinking back to Tantallon's behavior since they'd left the Empire. He was trying to hide it, that much was clear. But he did slip up occasionally, now that he was thinking about it. Lenore was right, Tantallon wasn't cruel or cowardly enough to flat-out lie to a woman about the way he felt. That idiot was in love with a human. Like father, like son. He smirked to himself, shook his head, and turned onto his side to curl up against Lenore's back, happy to find himself relieved about the revelation, rather than angry. 

Morning came, and everyone was soon up and about, enjoying the Christmas tree and delighting once again in their new belongings. Vance begged Amalia to let him grow the things called 'tomatoes', which were apparently what the sauce from the pizza was made from. She said she'd think about it, as long as he promised to never plant them in the wild. It was as good as he was going to get for now, so he went to study with Rahab and Raziel, who took turns helping him write his name and copy some of the words in the kindergarten book they'd brought him. The pictures made it easy to remember their labels, and he rapidly began to make the associations between the letters and the sounds they made. After a few hours, they had him spelling out short words they offered based only on what he'd learned so far, without any pictures to help. Writing them wasn't coming quite as easily, but they knew he'd get there. When the vampires heard his stomach growl, they took all his material away and refused to give it back until he went to the kitchen to eat, knowing he'd sit there all day otherwise. As much as he wanted to complain, he didn't get the chance.

Raziel! Raziel, help me!

Raziel leapt up from the table they were all sitting at, knocking his chair back and rushing to the door as the other two stared after him. He had never in his life heard Kain call for him with such desperation in his voice.

I'm here, I'm coming! Where are you?

"The woods across from the old road!" Kain called out loud, and Raziel dashed toward the sound of his voice. "I've found him, help me carry him back! He's gravely ill, and I can't keep the spell up much longer!"

"Someone get the main door open!" Raziel called over his shoulder toward the inn as he made haste through the woods. Just how far had Kain brought him, if he'd exhausted his reserves to the extent that he could hardly keep up a simple levitation spell? "He's got Janos! Clear a path so we can get him inside!"

Everyone was standing outside by time the two of them bore Janos across the overgrown road, feathered wings dragging along the ground. Lorrelin and Tantallon exchanged surprised glances, then immediately sprang into action.

"This room here, it's the only one downstairs with a big enough bed!" Lorrelin called as she threw open the door and began to clear everything off the nearby horizontal surfaces, knowing what would likely happen when they brought a creature with two oversized extra limbs past them. Tantallon immediately began shoving chairs and tables toward the walls to make a path for the Ancient to be carried through. By the gods, he looked tall, and those wings were enormous. In fact, it looked as if he might not be comfortable in even the largest bed in the inn, which was still smaller than the one that Amalia had. 

"Lorrelin, he's not going to fit," he said upon sprinting back to the room. "He's going to have to go in the cushion pile on the floor until we can figure something else out."

"The old bedding, then, where is it?"

"I'll round it up!" he called over his shoulder as he took off.

"What's wrong with him?" asked Stella as the Ancient was hauled through the door. She directed them to the cushions just as Vance and Tantallon rushed over with arms full of sheets and blankets. "Is he sick?"

"I found him in the citadel in the middle of the lake," replied Kain as he and Raziel gently arranged Janos among the soft piles of bedding. Stella, who had been watching birds during her spare time most of her life and had plucked many a chicken, jumped in before they laid him all the way down on his back. "Here, his wings need to be unfolded first," she said, gently taking hold of one feathered limb and extending it. "They're like our arms, just with lots of feathers. They'll go to sleep if he lays on them."

"What's happened to 'im?" asked Vance, torn between marvelling at the sight of the magnificent creature laid out before him and wincing at the state he was in. Janos was drenched in sweat and clearly feverish to the point of delerium, completely unaware of anything that was going on even if he remained somewhat conscious. 

"He must have managed to wrest control of himself back for long enough to fly to the Ancient Citadel and chain himself up in the dungeon, both ankles and one arm," Kain sighed. "The key was lying near the door, where he threw it after he secured himself, out of his own reach. Apparently, he had no intention of allowing himself to be used to further the Hylden's plans to return, even if it meant languishing in eternal confinement."

Raziel sank to his knees near his erstwhile mentor, shaking his head. "A sentiment I can unfortunately relate to. A dreadful choice that one should never be put in the position of making. Yet, here we both are. Sometimes I still wonder if this rotten world is worth saving."

"Get out of the way and take your melodrama somewhere else," growled Lorrelin as she stepped around him and dropped to Janos' side carrying a bowl of cold water and a cloth. "Does anyone know if he can withstand water's touch?"

"He can, yes, though I'm not sure why. I saw him wash and dry his hands at one point during the brief time we were together," said Raziel once he'd moved out of the way.

"Good," she replied, wringing the cloth out and laying it across his forehead. "Well, we know he won't die at least, if what you said of his race is true. Hopefully after a few days of misery we'll have him back on his feet. The dampness and chill of a dungeon certainly did him no favors, but he'll be warm and dry now. Oh, shit! Did we remember to pack the thermometer when we left? I can't even remember!"

"You and that thermometer," Amalia groused from behind Raziel, unable to stop herself taking a jab. "You know those things work just as well in someone's mouth, right?"

"Amalia, that thermometer has never been in anyone's mouth before," Lorrelin snapped as she tried to figure out how to get Janos' filthy tunic off without first removing both wings from his body. "Did you really want yours to be the first? Nevermind it anyway, we already know he's running a hell of a fever. Go and get a beaker so I can try to get some water down his throat, and bring your phone so I can use the light to look in his mouth first!" She then addressed her fellow humans. "Stella, go get one of the prepared chickens I brought from the market and start making soup. Low and slow with plenty of garlic and herbs. We want a good, rich broth in case he can't handle solids right away, and judging by the sound of his breathing he won't be able to taste much until his nasal passages clear. Vance, get some more water from the well for Stella and bring me whatever you don't use. After that I want you both to stay well away from him, or you might end up with whatever he's got, and you lack his immortality. Ugh, gods only know how we'll clothe the poor man, he's every bit as tall as the Master, with extra limbs to boot!"

"There may be clothing tailored for Ancients back in the citadel, but the ages have no doubt rendered them brittle and easily torn," said Raziel.

"Patterns," Vance immediately suggested. "Just pop the seams as best we can without completely destroyin' em. We can look at the way the cloth's cut and put together and get an idea of how to make new ones."

"Vance, what would we do without you? Kain, should we-"

Kain was already out the door, no doubt to run straight back to the lakeshore. Raziel took off after him.

Lorrelin continued to work her magic, and by evening Janos had recovered enough to become aware of his surroundings. Bleary-eyed and weak, he lifted his head a few inches to look over at his human caretaker, who was sitting on the floor a few feet away eating a bowl of some kind of soup. For a moment he panicked, realizing that he was no longer chained before remembering that Kain had... Well. Kain had reluctantly acquiesced to Janos' demand that he kill him and stop him being used to open the gate. Whatever had happened when he impaled him with the Reaver, it had all but destroyed his enemy, sending him straight back from where they'd put him and likely incapacitating him for some time. Good. Hopefully it would let him linger a while and then kill him. Perhaps then he could focus on trying to find a way to return himself to the Wheel, since apparently the Reaver somehow wasn't enough.

"Shh, hush now," the woman with the soup said as she set it aside and moved closer. "You are most unwell. We're all glad to see you've cast that demon out, but you've apparently caught one hell of a cold in the process."

Janos snorted derisively. "He wanted a 'stronger vessel'," the Ancient sneered, coughing a few times before continuing. "Well, he got one! The bastard hasn't been able to hold on to me, and I held him off until I got to that dungeon to lock myself away. I won't be used to open the way for our enemy's return!"

"So you shackled yourself to a wall to stop him?"

"Yes," Janos sighed weakly, sounding as if his outburst had exhausted him. "Threw the key across the room, well out of reach. He tried to compel me to gnaw through my own limbs to free myself, and his fury upon realizing that his own curse now stands in the way of his carefully orchestrated plot has been most gratifying indeed."

Lorrelin couldn't help but grin at that. She liked this one already. "How's your throat? I pried your mouth open earlier, and it looked like it must be quite painful."

Janos suddenly realized that he had no idea who this woman was, and that she likely had no idea what he was talking about. "Painful indeed, though I've had worse. You're very kind to indulge my ramblings, though you must think I'm still delirious. Sort of wish I still were, if I were being honest. My name is Janos."

"Lorrelin," she replied, reaching for a beaker and moving to help him sit up to drink. "And you're not rambling. I know exactly what you're talking about. Kain and Raziel explained everything."

"You know Raziel?!" Janos asked, more excitedly than he really had the energy for.

"Unfortunately, yes. I'm his chamberlain, so I know him better than most. Here, drink. How's your stomach? Can you keep it down if I let you have the whole beaker?"

"Chamberlain?" Janos asked, thoroughly confused. What on earth could a lonely wraith possibly need a chamberlain for? "Are we... speaking of the same Raziel?"

"If you're talking about the arrogant prettyboy who's never met a mirror he wouldn't admire himself in front of for hours, then yes, we most certainly are."

Janos' heart sank at that. "We... are most certainly not, then. The one I know is not what most would call 'pretty'."

Lorrelin looked perplexed. "I was only joking. We are indeed speaking of the same Raziel. He knows you, practically reveres you from the way he talks. He's told us all about you."

Janos only furrowed his brow. "... I may still be more feverish than I thought."

"Can you eat? A hot bowl of chicken soup will do you a world of good."

"I don't know that I have much of an app-"

Just then, the door opened, and Raziel walked in carrying a bundle of threadbare clothes. "Janos!" he cried upon seeing the Ancient sitting up, rushing to his side and nearly bowling Lorrelin over.

"This soup is hot, you oaf!"

Raziel ignored her. "Janos, you're awake! Oh, you've no idea how happy I am to see you again..."

Janos simply sat there staring at him, dumbfounded. His voice was certainly recognizable, but nothing else was, save for the black hair and talons. This man was no wraith, but a human-turned vampire through and through. Golden eyes, fangs, pale skin, tridactyl hands... it was unmistakable. 

"Janos, it's me. I'm as I was before... well, before all this. I know I look different, but it's me."

"How is this possible?" Janos asked, weakly reaching up to lay his hand on Raziel's face, studying his features. "You were... my God, Raziel, you were destroyed! I was shocked when I first saw you!"

Raziel huffed a laugh as he reached up to cover Janos' hand with his own. "You appear to be shocked now," he replied.

"Quite so, yes! Now I understand what your chamberlain said about you being... well, attractive."

Raziel immediately turned to Lorrelin with a wolfish grin, knowing exactly what she had likely meant when she said it, but fully intending to give her hell nonetheless.

"Why, Lorrelin! And here I thought you lacked such-"

"Oh, fuck right off!" she growled. "I did not use the word 'attractive', I called you an arrogant prettyboy. And just in case you're too dull to infer, it was not intended as a compliment. Go away and let me nurse this poor thing back to health. He needs to eat."

"Forgive me, child, I did not mean to give him the wrong impression. You seem to have a rather... contentious relationship," he observed, glancing between the two of them and looking mildly uncomfortable.

"Oh, she loves me. In fact, I have it on good authority that I'm her favorite person," Raziel teased.

"I will dump this entire bucket of water over your head, so help me," came her stone-faced, deadpan reply.

"Oh, hush," he laughed. "You'll do no such thing. Go and look at the clothes we brought back, see if they'll be any use as far as sewing patterns go. Oh, and somebody needs to make sure Vance eats before he dives back into his studies. I'll look after Janos... We've much to discuss."

Chapter Text

Janos insisted on feeding himself once they'd finished warmly greeting one another, but he did allow Raziel to hold the bowl for him while he spooned the soup down. Then came the questions.

"How is it that water's touch doesn't burn you, Janos?"

Janos swallowed a bite of chicken before he spoke, grimacing as sharp pain lanced through his throat. "Our enemy's curse never affected us that way," he shrugged. "Nor did it keep us from the sun, or from eating our usual food. In fact, we had to keep eating and drinking so as not to enter a state of perpetual dehydration and starvation. When we modified the curse in order to pass it onto the human Guardians, however, there were... negative effects. I pushed the Council to try again, to keep tweaking it until these problems were solved, but they refused to risk ruining the whole thing or inadvertently killing the Guardians, which would have required us to track down the new ones and retrieve them, and then begin their training all over. It was inevitable that the humans would eventually grow to hate us and rebel for doing this to them, and I tried to tell them, but..."

"So it's this modified curse we've inherited from Kain."

"Yes. Any vampire who was born human rather than Ancient suffers these limitations. There are some benefits, such as the invulnerability to illness that my race obviously lacks, but it hardly makes up for what is lost once turned."

"How do we protect you from being possessed again?"

"He... something happened when Kain tried to kill me. The Reaver drove him out. It did not kill him, but his strength was but a flicker when he disappeared back into his own realm. Considering the energy it takes to project his soul from where he's at, I suspect it'll be a while before we have to worry about him, and frankly, I'd like to put him out of mind until then."

Raziel set the now empty soup bowl on the ground, but before he could ask any more questions, Janos started asking his own.

"What is that?" he asked, pointing to the Christmas tree. "It's unlike any magery I've seen. We could make pretty lights, of course, but the glow was much softer, never so vivid."

"That's just it, it's not magery. It's human technology. Let me introduce you to my bride, though she's no longer human," said Raziel, sending out a Whisper to Amalia. 

"I'd no idea you were married," said Janos.

"A recent turn of events," replied Raziel, raising an eyebrow at a nearby window as two figures charged past it. The sound of rustling leaves and laughter floated in from outside the door, and then Amalia and Tantallon practically tripped over one another trying to get through it at the same time, breathing hard and covered in dead leaves. Raziel dragged his palm down his face. "What on earth are you two up to now?"

"Racing," Amalia grinned. "I won."

"You did not," replied Tantallon. "You tackled and tripped me before we rounded the corner of the inn and I still got in the door ahead of you."

"Debatable."

"Get over here," Raziel growled, as Janos began to laugh weakly. "Janos, this is my firstborn Tantallon, and my bride Amalia."

"Hi," the young vampire woman said as both of the newcomers sat down on the floor next to the cushion pile. "It's good to finally meet you."

"How are you feeling?" the boy asked, wincing. He clearly already knew the answer and was only asking to be polite.

Janos' laughter quickly devolved into a coughing fit.

"Oof. About like that, huh?"

He blinked at Amalia once he recovered. "You... have a very foreign accent. Where do you hail from?"

"Oh, boy... that's a really long, really crazy story."

Janos chuckled again, but this time only coughed twice. "Well, I haven't exactly got any plans for my evening, aside from laying here while this cold ravages me," he replied.

"Okay, fair enough," Amalia laughed. "I'm from a different world, completely separate from this one. There's some weird portal that connects the two, and I inadvertently blundered into it and ended up here. Where I'm from, there's no magic and nothing supernatural. Only lots of humans, along with their advanced technology. That's where I brought the tree from."

"A... portal? To another world?" Janos' jaw hung open. 

"Yes," Raziel confirmed. "We'd hoped you might have some insight as to its nature and origin."

"This is something that only the Guardian of Dimensions could have created... it must have happened when they all went mad. I can think of no other explanation for such an anomaly."

"The portal itself is stable," said Raziel. "Capable of two way travel. But it's in the middle of nowhere in both cases, and no one seems to have stumbled upon it save for Amalia."

"This is more than my mind can sort out at the moment," Janos sighed, wincing again as his head began to pound. "And I don't have much information to offer anyhow. If only Aubrex hadn't abandoned us... His guidance would have proven invaluable in this matter."

Raziel, Amalia, and Tantallon all exchanged glances.

"Aubrex? Do you mean Aubrexis? The lizard from the fairy tale who became a dragon?" Tantallon asked.

This got Janos' full attention, though his malaise was clearly beginning to get the better of him. "Lizard? Heavens no, child, Aubrex was no lizard. He's a dragon, and always has been. Dragons are no fairy tale, they're powerful demi-gods. Our kind used to be very close with their race, many years ago, long before my time. We've worshipped them since the very beginning, and they elevated us to god-like status ourselves. But... how on earth do you know of them? Dragons haven't flown our skies for thousands of years; we had their favor once, but they abandoned us when we became immortal. I thought for certain that by now, they'd faded from memory entirely, the same way our entire race has."

Tantallon went to retrieve the book of myths that Raziel had so often read to them from, and he showed Janos the relevant story upon his return. He only laughed (and coughed), shook his head, and facepalmed as he read through it.

"Well, he didn't fade from history, but this myth is just that. A myth. The only things that were passed down correctly are the names, though Aubrex's was still changed slightly. This haughty eagle that spurned the little lizard was no ordinary eagle, she is in fact the goddess Arta, and she never spurned Aubrex... in fact, she was his mate, though she was no dragon herself. She manifested as a black eagle with golden eyes, and it was she who gave us our wings."

"Ancients didn't always have wings?" asked Amalia.

"No, we were quite similar to humans before we found the favor of the gods. Arta blessed us with black feathered wings just like hers and taught us to fly as a reward for our tireless service to them."

"I... don't even know where to begin, Janos." Raziel said, softly. "Dragons are indeed no myth, they were occasionally seen up in the mountains surrounding Nosgoth far in the future. One of my brothers nearly tracked one down, in fact, though it had gone by time they found where it had been roosting, and never came back."

"Dragons have returned to Nosgoth?!" Janos asked, looking completely poleaxed.

"They were present in the future, though rarely seen. I'm not sure whether or not they're here now. We only ever heard reports of them flying around up in the mountains, particularly the northern range. They were elusive and never once interacted with anyone, as far as I know. "

"It was not always so. Aubrex himself was the hub of the Wheel of Fate, and taught my ancestors of it. Our priests communed with him in our Citadel." He peered at Raziel, who suddenly looked as if he were about to be sick. "What's wrong, Raziel? What do you know?"

Raziel did not want to answer that question. "...I know that it wasn't Aubrex who was feeding you that business about the Wheel," he said, hesitantly. "I don't know why the dragons left you, but it wasn't because you became immortal. Please, don't get angry, I don't mean to challenge your faith, I know it's important to you-"

"Raziel, if you think my faith hasn't been shaken from the highest branches to the deepest roots by now, you are mistaken. I am heartened just knowing that our gods have been seen in Nosgoth since they left, but too sick and exhausted at the moment to delve much deeper into anything we've discussed."

"We should let you rest-"

"What are you three doing?!" Lorrelin suddenly demanded as she stormed over to loom over them, gesturing wildly in agitation. "Leave him alone and let him rest, all of you! Can you not see how ill he is? Out, out, get away from him right now!"

"Oh, fine, you grouchy old harridan!" Raziel groused as he hauled the other two to their feet and began to usher them away. "We were leaving anyway!"

Janos didn't get a chance to argue in anyone's defense; they cleared out immediately, and Lorrelin huffed as she bent down to pick up the empty soup bowl. "Forgive me, Janos, I should have been keeping a better eye on you. I didn't expect Raziel to be so thoughtless as to gather a crowd over here. We'll move the bed out of one of the rooms here and set up all these soft cushions and blankets in it, and at least that way you'll have some peace and quiet."

"Thank you, Lorrelin, but please, don't be too hard on them. I've been alone for so long... their company is welcome."

"As you wish," Lorrelin sighed. "But I'm still going to limit the visiting to certain hours of the day. You're far too ill to be spending this much energy conversing. Look at you, you can hardly sit up now, and I know that fever hasn't broken yet."

She wasn't wrong. "I do appreciate it. It has been a long time indeed since anyone has taken care of me... You're really very kind," Janos replied, tiredly shrugging his heavy wings to spread them enough that he could lie back down. Lorrelin helped him extend them and turned to retrieve a pitcher of water she'd set on a table on her way over to chase everyone off.

"Hah! I'm going to tell them you said that. I really ought to have been doing more for Kain before he left," she said, eyeing him as he came down the stairs looking haggard and exhausted. "But he's a bit... prickly. I generally just try to avoid him unless he asks for me. I'll have Amalia bring some entertainment over here for you so you won't get bored when you're awake; she's brought some things from her world that will absolutely blow your mind, and you can rest while you enjoy them."

"Later, perhaps... I would very much like to sleep for a while."

Now that he had the attention to spare, Kain was taking his first good look around the inn since the last time he'd been here. Confusion etched his features at what he saw. A miniature tree with incredibly bright multi-colored lights and a gold star on top, empty boxes made of sturdy paper material with pictures on the exterior like none he'd ever seen, more outlandish stuffed animals... and what on earth was Lenore wearing? The others seemed to have new clothing as well; coats and hats were piled near the door alongside some scrap wood, a few pegs, and a device he didn't recognize. Strange books and writing utensils lay on one of the tables.

Realization dawned on him, and his anxiety spiked. These things were all from Amalia's world. She'd gone to the portal, returned to her world, and come back with a pile of foreign objects, none of which he understood and any of which could be something that would somehow fuck things up around here. Making her take it all back would only make everyone else hate him as much as Rahab did, and for some reason he couldn't bear the thought of it. He didn't even have it in him to be angry with her... she only wanted everyone to be happy, after all. Wordlessly, he turned on his heel, took her open laptop and the attached dangly whatever-it-was from another table, and retreated to his room to see if he could glean any information from these 'videos' he'd seen her showing off. She may have brought back recordings from her world along with everything else, and they might grant him insight into Nosgoth's potential future should the humans take over rather than the vampires.

Looking at the screen, it became apparent that she'd already been showing one, but the image was frozen and his talon still wouldn't move the little arrow when he poked at the place the humans usually put their fingers. But wait, he'd never seen this corded thing before... Another poke revealed its purpose, and it was a matter of seconds before he noticed the buttons. One last poke and a clicking sound, and the image began to move.

What he was seeing hadn't been recorded in Amalia's world, however. This one had been made when they'd returned, it looked like, which meant it held nothing of value to him. His first instinct was to growl in frustration and slam the thing shut, but he hadn't the energy to do even that, so he simply sighed and watched the scene before him unfold. There was the tree with the lights, along with the humans' shocked reaction. There were the boxes, wrapped in shiny paper and tied with ribbons and bows. And then came the gut punch.

"You're our family now," said Raziel. His voice was warm; he was grinning like a loon, and he spoke so fondly to all of them. They began to open the gifts, one by one. Lorrelin moved off to the side to gaze at her cookware, Lenore nearly laughed herself straight to oblivion when she opened the box with the monster toy she'd been carrying around, and what's this now? They're going to teach Stella and Vance to read? Kain collapsed back in his chair, unable to tear his gaze away as the happy family had their fun, ate their... whatever that was, and listened to Tantallon's silly story. They laughed, they leaned against one another, and finally Amalia remembered that the phone was still recording and came over to stop it before they started the entertainment.

They did all this without him. No one even mentioned him. He clearly hadn't been missed, or even thought of. Sure, once Janos had been settled he was greeted warmly by everyone save for Rahab, who continued to pretend he didn't exist, but there had been no gift wrapped in shiny paper waiting for him here. None of these people needed him, not even Raziel. He was no longer a presence in their lives. They had no leader, and they were getting along just fine. It was more than he could take, and he simply pushed the computer away and dropped his head into his hands. He hadn't cried since the day he'd thrown Raziel into the Abyss, but that was then. That was when the corruption still tainted his mind. His mind was clear now, and he could barely hold it back. Was this what he was reduced to? A non-entity? A minor background character in his own story, working tirelessly while everyone else forgot he was around? You're our family now. Those words played on repeat in his head as he sat.

"Master?"

It was Amalia. 

"What?" he responded, his voice flat.

"Holy shit, what's wrong?" she asked, dropping to her knees next to his chair and looking up at him.

"Nothing, Amalia. It's nothing. I just need some sleep."

"Bullshit."

"Just let me go to bed," he insisted, standing up and moving away. Amalia saw then what he'd been watching, and quickly put two and two together.

"You weren't back yet," she said as she hopped up next to where he'd collapsed on his bed. "We'd have included you if you were, you know that, right? I mean, I don't think we would have expected you to engage much, but I'd have insisted you come down to see what we'd brought back. The distraction would have done you some good."

He didn't respond, and she huffed and hopped back to the floor. She was gone only a few minutes before she returned and dropped to her knees in front of him again.

"Look. This one is yours. We've just been so caught up with Janos that I forgot to give it to you when you came back. I'm sorry."

He blinked at the small, flat box that Amalia was holding out to him with both hands, but made no move to take it. It was as if his brain were suddenly full of molasses, and he was slow in processing the fact that she'd brought him a present after all. "I even picked out special paper for you," she continued. "You're the only one who got this pattern and this fancy ribbon with the gold edges. Raziel, Rahab, and Tantallon were about to use it for their presents, but I wouldn't let them have it."

"I suppose Rahab was rather put out by that," he murmured, still not reaching for the gift.

"Rahab is a problem for another day. Here, come on. Open it."

With a deep sigh, Kain hauled himself up to sit on the edge of the bed. Amalia hugged his legs and rested her chin on his knee exactly the same way she had months back, when he'd first brought her to the Sanctuary, and he again found himself fighting tears as he untied the ribbon (which he had to admit was quite pretty, even in his current state) and cut through the paper with one talon.

"I know we only brought you one present, but I had no idea what else you'd possibly want besides your own Kindle. I put all my books on it before I put it back in the box. Do you feel better now?"

He nodded dumbly, and it was true. He didn't feel much better, but knowing he hadn't been entirely forgotten was somewhat heartening.

"No one's been taking care of you," Amalia huffed. "I'm sleeping with you tonight."

"I'd rather you didn't," he replied, which was not true in the slightest. She saw right through him again.

"Bullshit. Let me get my computer, we're going to watch something for a while to get your mind off all this."

"Is that how you expect me to solve all my problems? Mindless distraction?"

"No, dummy," she replied, to his irritation. "We expect you to relax once in a while and recharge. You're not a machine, Kain. Especially now that you're sane again. You're running yourself into the ground, and I don't know if you're doing it to punish yourself out of guilt or what, but you gotta cut it out. You are our leader, and you're not only part of this family, you're the heart of it. I'll make sure you're attended to now that you're back, I promise."

"I don't need coddling, Amalia," he growled, pulling away as she sat down on the bed next to him.

"Oh my god, shut up and stop being such a contrarian," she replied irritably. "Keep it up and I'll make you watch My Little Pony."

Instead, she turned on The Lion King. At first Kain seemed completely unmoved and showed no reaction, but she knew that he was coming around when he began to berate Mufasa for simply shrugging off Scar's threat. "Idiot," he sneered. "His brother's just all but told him he's going to kill him, and insulted him to boot. He asks what to do with him? Should have torn him apart on the spot. I expect this 'lion king' won't be king for long." He made her skip through that awful brat of a prince singing his obnoxious little head off, but shortly afterward Tantallon caught wind that there was a movie playing. 

Within minutes, everyone save for Lorrelin, Janos, Rahab, and Lenore were in Kain's bedroom, the humans on the floor and the vampires on the bed, crowded around him while they watched and engaging in relentless commentary. Tantallon ended up sliding off the bed to console Stella, who burst into tears when Mufasa was killed, and he ended up having to sit through all the rest of the songs, every one of which made him want to claw his own ears off the sides of his head. The story itself was solid, but the ruthlessly evil, murderous brother lion reminded him of himself not too long ago. The king was the very definition of the 'just, honorable ruler' trope, and he ended up the same way every truly good ruler inevitably did, but he did understand the meaning of Balance, and once the other one took over and let his horde overrun the land... it ended up just like Nosgoth. Yet still... he couldn't bear to make them turn it off and leave. After all, wasn't this sort of thing exactly what he felt like he'd missed out on watching Amalia's video? Wasn't being included in their silly bonding rituals what he wanted?

Maybe he was wrong about them. Maybe he was just letting the stress of his situation and his rift with Rahab bite too deeply. He'd probably had the right idea when he'd allowed that party in the woods and just sat and let himself enjoy a good drink and a good book. This lion movie may not have been his idea of good entertainment, but it did take his mind off his exhaustion and loneliness for an hour and a half. 

When all was said and done and the humans had wandered off to go to bed, Amalia moved the laptop back to the table and went to fetch him a meal. Tantallon, who could always tell when someone needed cheering up, ventured to put his hand on Kain's back, and when he didn't get so much as a growl, rested his head on his shoulder and wrapped his arms around him from behind, urging him in a gentle voice to take some time to rest now that Janos had been found. Tantallon had always been such a bright ray of sunshine, a hard worker with what seemed like boundless energy and relentless good cheer. 'Who needs the sun when we've got you, Tantallon,' Raziel used to say to him when he was a newly turned fledge. In fact, watching Nupraptor's corruption slowly strip the boy of this trait of his until he was nearly as stoic, cruel, and lifeless as the rest of them was one of the first things that had forced him to accept that his Empire was now truly in decline, and that maybe he ought to see if there might be a way to stop the world falling to ruin. He still remembered the unease he felt the first time he noticed the change in personality, looking at Tantallon's dull thousand-yard stare as he stood to the side silently waiting for orders from his sire. No silly jokes, no bright smile, no enthusiasm whatsoever. It was exactly what happened to them all, in the end.

Raziel shook him out of his unhappy reverie with one simple phrase, one that ended in a word he'd never thought he'd hear from his firstborn again and gave him the most comfort of all.

"It's good to have you back, Sire."

"Raziel," Kain murmured as his fledge made for the door. "...Stay." It wasn't a command, but a request.

Wordlessly, Raziel went to sit on the bed next to where Kain lay sprawled. He only spoke after a good long look at his sire.

"You've exhausted yourself," he chided. "It's time for you to rest a while. Janos has been found, and he says that the demon has been thrown back from whence he came for the time being. Besides, I have much to tell you, and it will take a while."

"Tell me, then," Kain replied, reaching up to pull Raziel down to lie next to him. 

"What's this, then?" he asked with a baring of fangs and a soft growl, sounding deeply unsettled. "Why do you embrace me like this? We haven't shared this sort of affection for centuries, so why now?"

"I don't know," Kain replied with a shake of his head. "I'm weak, Raziel. I am weak, and not only physically. I've found myself in less than stellar shape in that regard plenty of times, though I always found a way to recover. This, however... I don't know how to recover from this. My own mind is foreign to me these days, and I simply don't know how to handle it. I never knew what it was like, to feel such... such affection." He said the word with an expression of utter distaste.

Raziel pulled sharply away. "Kain," he replied, voice stern. "If you think that just because you're suddenly capable of experiencing romantic love that we can just... just pick up where we left off-"

"That isn't what I meant!" Kain growled. "I would never ask such a thing of you, even if it were. No, Rahab hates me, and that bothers me. Everyone here seems to be enjoying life without me, and that bothers me. I feel like an outsider among you, no matter how pleasant you've all been to me tonight, and that bothers me. Tell me, does that sound like me? Why should I even care what you all do when I'm not around? Why must I endure yet another complication to all this madness? Are my responsibilities not taxing enough on me, without this sudden longing to belong among you all, when you're all perfectly happy the way things are? I am not a family man, Raziel! I never was!"

"Neither of us are who we used to be, and both of us know it's ultimately for the better," replied Raziel, relaxing a bit now that he'd been reassured that Kain wasn't suddenly wanting to give a romantic relationship another go. "Yes, it complicates things. But would you really rather be as you were before, just so life would be easier? That would be cowardly, and that's what isn't like you. You will adjust to this. It may take time, but you will adjust. In the meantime, you need to rest and recover, and allow us to look after you instead of tearing yourself up over wanting us to. Janos is dreadfully ill, so he's not going anywhere for a few days at the very least. Take this opportunity to refresh yourself, and then we will chart our course from there. As for feeling like an outsider... I suspect your rift with Rahab is at the heart of it, rather than just coming back to see everyone acting like one big happy family without you. Talk to him."

"What can I possibly say that would make up for everything I've done to him?" Kain sighed.

"Mere words will not make up for the past, no matter how honeyed they are. They may, however, pave the way for the future. You want my advice? Start brainstorming, and then watch for an opportunity to approach him. He can't hold a grudge forever."

Kain side-eyed him. "Are we talking about the same Rahab?"

"Rahab has changed quite a lot as well, Kain. He's grown since the beginning of this journey. Please, just talk to him. Things will likely never be the same as before, but he will forgive you even if he no longer worships the ground you walk on." 

Raziel spent the night in Kain's bed, and though it was obvious that sex or romance was very much off the table, he did allow Kain to show him open affection as they conversed, because it was clear that he needed it. He told him all about the trip to Amalia's world, and it seemed that just knowing the details and being made aware that there was still a wealth of information for him to sort through was enough to ease his mind. Eventually they slept, and Kain woke feeling as if he were ready to take on the world again. First, however... he needed to mend a bridge.

He completely ignored Raziel's advice to plan a speech in advance and wait for the proper moment, of course; one thing that hadn't changed about him was his tendency toward recklessness when he'd decided on a certain course of action. Fortunately, when he sought his son out, he found him alone in his room playing a game on the laptop Amalia had given him.

"Rahab?"

Rahab's gaze became steely, but he didn't look up from the screen. "What?"

"Can we talk?"

"Never knew you to be one to ask permission."

With a sigh, Kain stepped into the room and shut the door. This might have been a mistake, because Rahab's hackles immediately went up and a low growl escaped his throat.

"I'm not going to harm you, Rahab. I came to apologize."

"Well, you're just a completely new person, aren't you? I suppose that settles it all, then."

Kain grit his teeth. This was not going the way he'd hoped it would. "May I tell you something?"

"Don't know how I could possibly stop you."

"You did it, Rahab. You learned to swim."

Now that got his son's attention. His icy blue eyes snapped up from the laptop's screen to meet Kain's.

"You did. You kept casting those spells, and exposing yourself to water, and one day... you did indeed walk out of a lake. With gills. I didn't see that first moment of triumph, but believe me when I say that when you demonstrated your new ability to me a week later, I was astounded. I was pleased. I was proud. My gaze was not on Raziel when you emerged. It was on you, and you alone." Kain slowly approached the bed, and when he heard no warning growl, he ventured to sit on the edge. "And do you know what else, Rahab? In the end, when all of you had devolved into monsters, you were the only one who remained truly loyal to me. You were the only one I kept in touch with, once the clans were scattered and the Empire had fallen." 

Rahab's eyes welled with tears, and he set the laptop aside and pulled his legs up, hugging his knees and sniffling a bit. "Truly? You're not just making things up because you want things to be as they were?"

"No, Rahab, this is no fabrication, nor is it an exaggeration. Despite the decline of our entire race, you went on to be one of the greatest vampires to ever live. None who came after you could boast invulnerability to water, much less having earned it through a sheer effort of pure will." After a pause, he continued. "I know that things will never be as they were between us. I don't deserve your devotion and I don't deserve your love. I never did. I don't want to go back to the way things were, because nothing good ever came of it for you, and now that my mind is whole I feel sick every time I look back on the way I've treated you all this time. I'm sorry, Rahab. I should have appreciated you more, and I should have considered your feelings when you came to me instead of staying in my own head, wrapped up in the problems I'm facing."

"I don't really know what to say to any of this... but I suppose I appreciate what you've told me."

They sat in silence a moment before Kain decided to lighten the mood by offering a tidbit that he knew would please his son immensely. "Turel took over that abbey, you know. The one on the edge of your territory?"

Rahab snorted, scrubbing at his eyes. "Of course he did. He was always doing everything he could to diminish me."

"Well, he regretted it this time, because you flooded it, you and your kin. You flooded it, and you wiped out a third of his clan in doing so. It was yours and yours alone ever after, and none of your brothers ever picked on you again."

That actually got a laugh out of him, which was more than Kain expected. "Good, the insufferable cunt. Pity he wasn't in it to turn into soup right along with his ugly spawn."

"Oh, he was furious. He demanded I punish you or allow him to wage war, and I did neither. I told him to go home and learn some respect and humility, because you were clearly the better vampire."

"Do you still believe that?"

"Rahab, that is a fact," Kain replied, daring to reach over and stroke his son's hair with a soft purr. "Nothing will ever change it, and no one can take that truth away from you." With that, he stood and began to walk to the door.

"Kain..." said Rahab, reaching out his hand. "Stay."

Chapter Text

For a moment, Kain could only stare at his son, caught completely off guard by his request. How the fuck was he supposed to handle this? It wasn't that he didn't want to stay with Rahab... he just had no idea how to actually relate to him, because he'd never tried before. Knowing he was on the verge of hurting him again if he didn't figure it out, and fast, he began to wrack his brain for something to say, some sort of conversation to start. His eyes landed on the laptop sitting on the bed, and he had his answer.

"Very well... what were you doing with that, anyway?"

Rahab twisted around to grab the laptop and shifted to the edge of the bed. "Playing a game that Amalia set up on all our computers. Raziel likes it more than I do, I think, but he's always had more of a head for actual strategy. That's what it is... a strategy game."

"Strategy?" Kain asked as he sat down next to Rahab and peered at the screen. On it was a representation of landmasses, labeled cities, and various little men and machines scattered around.

"Yes... you choose a civilization out of the many that exist or existed over the course of human history in Amalia's world. Then you build it from the ground up... starting with the earliest technology, and putting various resources into research, building new cities and improvements for those cities, and an army. Or an armada, if you choose to go that route."

Unlike the silly animated movies or obnoxious music, this actually interested Kain. "It sounds most complicated... which, I can only assume, is why you're enjoying it so much. How do you win this game?"

"There are several paths to take. You can focus your civilization on taking over the entire world using force, you can found a religion and convert everyone, you can put so much effort into science that you overtake everyone else and become the first to build a spacefaring ship that will take some of your population to a completely different planet to start a colony... there are others, but I haven't looked into them very much yet."

Complicated indeed. More complicated than Kain could afford to spend time learning about to the full extent, but still intriguing on the surface. 

"To be fair, I wasn't even playing when you came in... I got sidetracked by the included encyclopedia, which tells you everything about everything. Not just how to play the game, but background on the various civilizations, explanations of the units you build and move around the board, and descriptions of the improvements you can build in your cities, all of which are real, or existed at some point in their history. Granaries, for example, or aqueducts in the early parts of the game. Airports for flying machines come later. And there are unique things, special things that are called Wonders. I built the Pyramids here, for example, and now no one else can build them, because I did it first. They grant bonuses that aid your civilization."

Kain had no idea what "The Pyramids" were, but the fact that this in-game encyclopedia could tell him about them got his attention. "You're making it sound as if I could learn the whole of human history in Amalia's world just from this. Is that the case?"

"Certainly not all... but the highlights, to be certain. I never really dived into the game until last night, but I've learned quite a lot. The things they've accomplished are nothing short of astounding."

"Show me, Rahab. Show me everything. I need as much information as possible about what they're capable of if left unchecked. What I've learned so far already disturbs me greatly. The weaponry in particular, but also the things they're doing to the environment."

"Nothing good, at this point. Amalia is more or less convinced that the humans of her world will bring about their own doom. But there's no magic there, and from what I can tell, if there are any gods, they are completely hands off... there's nothing to keep humanity in check."

"Keeping everyone in check is now my responsibility to our entire world. I cannot allow what's happened there to happen here. It's not just our race that needs to be held back. Clearly, if someone doesn't rein them in, they'll eventually destroy everything, and we'll be no better off than when I was corrupted and willing to allow Nosgoth to decay so long as I got to rule until it did."

"Do you want to take the computer for a while so you can read this? I'll show you how to use it. I need to go and find Lenore anyway, I've not checked in on her since she got up this morning."

"I would appreciate that, yes... I didn't really understand what I was doing while poking at it earlier," replied Kain. "How is Lenore, anyway?" He blinked upon realizing that he wasn't just humoring Rahab by asking... he actually cared. It struck him that part of his discontent with feeling estranged from everyone stemmed from a sudden compulsion to manage them all, to shepherd them. To do that, he needed to know how they were all doing, and he knew from now on that he would be anxious and restless if he didn't. Ugh.

"Still has nightmares," Rahab shrugged, "but the medicine we brought back works very well to stop her panicking and help her sleep. It's a start."

Lenore had been downstairs looking after Janos and helping with chores since early that morning, and she wasn't feeling panicked at the moment. She was feeling annoyed. Tantallon, true to form, was being the obnoxious little shit she'd always known him to be, and she was close to losing her temper. If he popped up behind her and sang that god-awful song one more time...

"'Narwhals, narwhals, swimming in the ocean, causing-'"

With a snarl, she lunged, and her brother wasn't fast enough to dodge her attack. Rahab crossed his arms as Tantallon was thrown halfway across the room and tumbled to a stop at his feet, clutching at the bleeding gashes on his face where Lenore had struck him with her claws. "Go annoy someone else for once!" she shouted before flouncing out the front doors.

Tantallon examined the blood on his hand, then shrugged. "Eh. Worth it," he grinned before rolling to his feet, only to find himself caught by the collar and staring wide-eyed into Rahab's menacing glare.

"Don't do that again. She's not the only one who's sick of hearing that stupid song. You are, in fact, annoying everyone else," he growled before shoving him roughly away. "Now go and find something productive to do."

Tantallon was successfully cowed. "No one around here is any fun," he groused as he moved to obey the command. Perhaps he'd go and see if Stella was up for some bedroom mischief if he couldn't make any on his own. That was plenty productive as far as he was concerned, and foolish Rahab had made the mistake of not being specific.

The commotion had woken Janos up, and he couldn't help but laugh. "That boy needs a job," he said to Rahab. "He's constantly causing trouble left to his own devices."

"He had one before we left the Empire. He was Raziel's second in command, and was busy almost constantly with the duties and responsibilities that come with helping to manage an entire vampire clan. It's been a very long time since he's had so much time to himself. We'd all forgotten just how obnoxious he gets if his energy isn't channeled properly."

"Lenore... she was his sister in life, yes? I was a bit shocked to see her attack him like that... while playfulness certainly seems to be in Tantallon's nature, violence does not seem to be in hers."

"Indeed not. You'll likely never see her so much as bare her fangs at anyone else. I don't reprimand her when she has a go at him," Rahab replied, sitting down on the floor next to Janos to keep him company a while. "And not out of favoritism, either. He just deserves it."

Janos improved over the next few days. Unfortunately, all three humans caught his cold, and ended up just as miserable as he had been (though at least they could fit into beds.) Amalia promptly decided to return to her world again.

"I don't know how, in the course of buying basic toiletries, it didn't occur to me to get cold medicine. Should have just gone as soon as Janos ended up here, sick as he was," she grumbled. No one went with her this time. Janos was daunted by the very idea and felt obligated to look after the humans regardless. The humans wanted to go but were just too sick. Raziel and Rahab weren't really keen on subjecting themselves to the chaos of modern life again so soon if they weren't going to do anything particularly fun. And Kain flat out refused, reminding her of his concerns about what effect leaving Nosgoth might have on his connection to the world. Tantallon asked to go, but Amalia was feeling less than charitable toward him after having the Narwhal song stuck in her head all day even when he wasn't singing it.

"Nope. Go away."

"What?! Why can't I come?" he whined.

"As a punishment for crimes against my sanity."

She returned that night with several bottles of thick, foul tasting liquid, various painkillers, and ten cans of soup, claiming that the medicine would work rather quickly if they could just get past the taste, which was, as expected, universally hated. Kain overheard their complaining and ordered them to take whatever Amalia told them to before commanding Amalia to warm the soup and get them fed. He really seemed to be coming around and taking charge, as well as showing interest in what everyone had going on. Rahab and Tantallon were both asked how Stella and Vance were coming along with learning to read, and he tossed Lorrelin an extra blanket once she'd spooned down some of her soup. Finally, he removed a bed from one of the rooms and helped Janos move in. Janos, however, had a suggestion to make.

"We could simply move to the Citadel, Kain," he said as he carried an armful of jumbled blankets and tossed them onto the floor in the corner. "It's more or less a small self-contained city with a residential district. There are lavish living quarters with private baths, kitchens, and libraries as well as centralized workshops and laundry facilities. It will need some work, but it appears your charges are more than capable, judging by what they've done here, and my magical prowess concerning basic domestic activity is still plenty sharp from maintaining my aerie. What's more, there are blood fountains which will relieve us all of the need to hunt."
 
"The Citadel is practically in ruins, Janos, and full of feral humans to boot."

"The humans can be cleared out easily enough, you know that. Much of the exterior walls are crumbling, yes, but the fortress is still on an island with steep cliffs, which makes it far more defensible than this inn. The interior is dusty, most of the magical runes which run the amenities will need to be reactivated, and furniture and linens will need replacing, but it is otherwise solid. The place was built out of stone for a reason, after all. You must consider what will happen when someone inevitably stumbles across this place and finds it occupied."

"We've already had a few brigands and bandits; they generally keep us well fed for several days whenever they show up, in fact," Kain replied with an air of smug satisfaction. "You do have a point, however... wayward soldiers and vampire hunters who don't realize their crusade has been all but won in this era will pose a problem should they find us here and spread word to others. I just hate to uproot everyone again," he sighed. "They need a permanent home, one they can feel safe to grow attached to. We all do. Besides, how will we get everyone there? Are you able to carry full grown men all the way across the lake and up the side of the cliffs with your own wings? I don't particularly relish the idea of dangling over a large body of water, frankly. Particularly if I can't trust you not to tire halfway across."

"I can, actually, though admittedly with great difficulty. But there is no need. There are tunnels from the shore that go under the lake. The teleporters there will likely need to be powered on and reactivated, which will take some time, but the passages wind their way upward through the island into the stronghold regardless. The entrances and checkpoints are magically sealed, of course, but I can certainly open them, as well as close them behind us. We will be safe there, and you will be all the better equipped to carry out your duties. In time, it can once again become a base of operations for the maintenance of the Pillars and the Binding. "

Kain sighed again, defeated. "Very well... I hate to admit that you're right, but you are. Once Vance is well, I'll have him fix the axle on the cart sitting outside the stables. At least that way we won't have to make ten trips just to haul off all the modern nonsense Amalia brought here. They're no doubt going to be quite upset, you know."

"We'll break the news to them gently, and once we arrive, they'll be thrilled. Everyone can have an entire apartment to themselves; the best ones are obviously all vacant. There is an enormous courtyard with containers and beds filled with soil for growing; it can be kept warm using magic and used year-round. That should make young Vance happy, at least," said Janos before pausing a moment in thought. "Perhaps we ought to find something for Tantallon to focus on as well. That will make... well, everyone happy."

"I've already had a little chat with Tantallon. He'll behave from now on, believe me."

Tantallon was already sulking due to Amalia's rebuff and being reprimanded by Kain, and being called down to the tavern alongside the other vampires and informed that they were leaving the inn did little to improve his mood. Once dismissed, he trudged up the stairs to his room, where Stella lay in his bed, and flopped sullenly down beside her.

"We're moving again." he stated flatly.

Stella opened her eyes and wrinkled her nose when they immediately landed on the bottle of cough syrup sitting on the bedside table. It was about time for another dose, and she knew Tantallon would make her take it. "Moving? We're leaving the inn?" she croaked.

"Yes. Apparently we're relocating to the Ancient Citadel in the middle of the lake," he replied, curling up against her and throwing an arm over her. "Janos made it sound like it's amazing, but we already put so much work into this place, and I've come to regard it as home."

"I suppose it'll be safer," Stella replied after a brief and rather painful coughing fit.

"That's what Kain said," Tantallon sighed. "I know he's right. I just want to be settled for good. Also, he snapped at me earlier, and now I feel terrible."

"Why did he snap at you? Were you singing that idiotic song again?"

"Nevermind why," he huffed defensively. He was beginning to wish he'd never come across the stupid thing on YouTube before they'd come back to Nosgoth. "Isn't it about time for you to take more medicine?"

"I already took it," Stella chanced. She was a terrible liar, but maybe he wouldn't press her about it.

"Don't lie to me, Stella," he chided. "I may not be much interested in bossing you around any longer, but you know I'm right about this."

"Uuuuugh," she groaned. "Fine, give it here, but I need water to drink directly afterward to wash the taste out. I can't fathom how Amalia's people managed to invent all the things she's shown us in those videos, but making medicine that isn't gag-inducing is somehow beyond them. It helps and all, but I'm really not certain whether it's actually lessening the symptoms or just knocking me out so I sleep through them."

"Both, according to the label," Tantallon replied, peering at the print on the bottle before pouring a dose into the provided cup. "And you do have my sympathy... I can guess how bad it tastes just by how bad it smells." He carefully poured water from a jug he'd been keeping for her into a beaker, then set it on the table before hopping back into bed behind her. "Poor fragile little human," he teased as she choked the liquid down and scrambled to chase it with water.

"Oh, give it a rest," she growled before collapsing back onto her pillow. "My head hurts."

"I know, sweet girl," he soothed, reaching over to stroke her hair. "Go back to sleep, I'm here. You'll be better soon."

Between waiting for the humans to fully recover and waiting some more for Vance to fix the cart, it was a week before they loaded up their belongings, saddled their horses, and reluctantly left for the tunnel entrance that would take them to the Citadel. Vance was every bit as sulky as Tantallon about abandoning the inn, and together they trailed along at the end of the line on the horse they were sharing, quietly complaining to one another about it all. The sight of Janos wheeling overhead eventually distracted them from their melancholy, however, and by time he dropped lightly to the ground in order to lead them the rest of the way to the secret entrance to the tunnel, they were back in relatively good spirits, particularly since Janos never stopped talking the place up the rest of the way.

"Once we arrive, I will not rest until the necessary enchantments are restored. You may all have an apartment of your very own; there are at least thirty of them entirely separate from the dormitories in the residential ward, so you will have plenty to choose from," he informed them. This was a foreign concept to the humans, who'd spent their entire lives as servants before leaving the Empire and even at the inn hadn't had anything more than single private rooms.

"What do you mean, apartments?" asked Stella. "Surely you don't mean entire homes to ourselves?"

"Homes indeed. You will each have your own bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, and living area. Many of them have at least four floor to ceiling bookshelves if not an entire room to use as a library, though anything made of wood will likely be crumbling to dust and will need to be replaced. The living area will have a fireplace to sit by, and we will eventually replace the furniture. Most have private balconies overlooking the lake. The bathrooms all have large tubs which can be filled with hot water to soak in once I get everything up and running."

"Won't we get lonely all by ourselves?" she wondered out loud. Living alone, even in luxury, sounded a bit daunting, and she knew better than to think Tantallon would allow her to live with him regardless of how close they'd seemingly become.

"Don't be ungrateful, Stella," snapped Lorrelin. "You-"

"I'm not being ungrateful, Lorrelin!" Stella shot right back, having grown quite bold under Tantallon's protection. "It sounds wonderful, and I know it will be wonderful, but some of us actually like the people around us for some other purpose than dominating them all the time."

"I like you all just fine," Lorrelin replied, sounding uncharacteristically subdued and uncertain. Her former charges had never talked back to her before, and the realization that the others might actually believe she disliked them shook her far more than suddenly becoming aware that her iron grip on them had officially slipped.

"The living quarters are all quite close together," Janos quickly interjected, eager to smooth things over, but blood was in the water now, and Vance dived right in.

"You never liked any of us, you old grouch," he retorted. "Tolerated us at best. We was never anything but tools to you!"

"That's not true-"

"Bullshit!" exclaimed Stella, who'd begun to occasionally borrow words from Amalia's vocabulary. "Your job was the only thing that ever mattered to you, and you were happy to stomp all over us if it meant you got to stay in charge. Everyone was afraid of you, and that's exactly the way you like it!"

"That is enough," Janos snapped, cowing them both. "Whatever issues you all need to sort out between you, this is not the way to do it. We will revisit it later, calmly and constructively, and you can all be heard and make peace then. Petty infighting is not something we are going to waste time and energy on. Now, as I was saying about the living quarters..."

At the front of the line, Kain quietly smirked to himself. The other vampires had stayed out of the dispute instead of jumping in and making it worse, and now he knew that Janos could apparently be relied on not only to intervene in their petty squabbles, but to mediate until harmony was restored. Good. Even changed as he was, he still hadn't the disposition or patience for that sort of thing.

As Janos predicted, the teleporter that sat in a small alcove near the tunnel entrance was not functional, and he was unable to restore it. Fortunately, the one that would take them upward past more staircases than any of them cared to climb gave him little trouble, even if he had to fly up to the other end and restore its mate before it would work.

"Place has seen better days for sure," murmured Vance upon their emergence. Bits of carved stone were scattered in fragments everywhere, the tapestries and curtains were moldering, threadbare, and moth-eaten, and the dust was so thick in places that they left footprints in it as they shuffled into the main courtyard. Janos shepherded them off to the residential district before any trouble with the feral humans that still roamed unchecked could befall them.

"We've got a lot of cleaning to do..." commented Stella as she peered through the door to one of the residences. "But it's going to be worth it. Look at this, Vance!" she cried. "It's like Raziel's old place! And we can both have our own! I don't even know where to start, how will I decorate? How does anyone even use all this space?"

"Definitely gonna need new furniture," he replied as he touched the arm of a chair next to the fireplace only to watch it fall completely apart. "This ain't good for much else but firewood. Hate to burn somethin' so old, though... wish I could fix it all."

"There is, unfortunately, no fixing anything here that was made of wood or cloth," shrugged Janos as he followed them through the entryway. "The magical wards that protected this place from the elements have long since faded to nothing. You'll be sleeping on piles of blankets for a few days until we can get proper beds, but I will try to ensure that you have hot water for baths before you settle down tonight."

Raziel had been completely silent the entire time they'd been here. Kain put his hand on his shoulder as he stood hugging himself while staring down the vast hallway outside the apartment.

"We never once came to this part of the Citadel, Raziel," he pointed out. "There are no bad memories of this place, only the potential for good ones. We need not ever even go into the rest of the stronghold; it can remain nothing but a memory to us. Perhaps one day we can tear it down and rebuild to our liking, but for now, let it crumble and decay, we have no further use for it."

It actually cheered him somewhat, and Tantallon finished the job by grabbing his wrist with both hands and practically dragging him off to a door that led to an apartment with a library. The books were all ruined, of course, and it would pain him to clear them out, but he could get new books. Within minutes, he was off exploring the rest of the dwelling, walking in and out of each room imagining how he would furnish and decorate it once he and Amalia cleaned it up and moved in. They could act as a proper couple now; living together as husband and bride rather than pretending to be master and pet. And oh, how happy Lenore would be once she and Rahab settled into their own quarters! 

By nightfall everyone had chosen their new homes, and the inn was no longer even on anyone's minds. Lorrelin had also been almost completely silent and sullen since they'd arrived, but she still kept busy making lists of what to buy or trade for.

"Or steal," suggested Tantallon. "I've certainly not gained any misgivings about liberating fancy goods from the homes of those who wallow in excess luxury."

"You mean the way we did back home?" Raziel chided, pointing out his hypocrisy.

"Ehh, I'd have robbed us blind too if we didn't already have everything," he grinned with a shrug.

"There's your job, then, Tantallon," said Kain. "Once Janos has the teleporters fixed, take a cloak and those lockpicks of yours out into the world and get to work. Try to bring back useful goods when you can, but if that isn't possible, gold and jewels which can be sold or traded wouldn't go amiss."

"Make your way to a library, first," suggested Raziel. "Look at area maps to determine where there are large manor houses."

"I know how to do my own reconnaissance, I was thieving by the age of ten," Tantallon replied with a roll of his eyes. "You just want me to steal books."

"Yes, good ones, preferably those with pretty covers. I've got a lot of shelves to fill."

Janos needed only to engage in a bit of trial and error to jog his memory before he had all the basic amenities back up and running. Magelights lit both halls and residences, dry, dusty fountains once again flowed with rich blood to sustain the vampires, water filled a massive boiler and began to heat, and the temperature in the residential ward began to climb until it was quite comfortable regardless of how close to a fireplace anyone was. Ancient magic was truly awe-inspiring, beyond anything Kain and his brood had ever been capable of, and the fact that Janos alone could rejuvenate these complicated enchantments after centuries of dormancy was a testament to just how well-engineered they all were.

Too excited to sit still and always eager to sate his curiosity, Rahab left his own quarters after helping Lenore get settled in and went to explore the rest of the residential district. He followed the widest, most ornate corridor he'd seen and was unsurprised to emerge into a large central plaza, lined with what appeared to be small shops. Dead trees stood over stone benches, awnings hung in tatters from their supports, and though the large blood fountain at the center was now flowing freely, thick dust coated the edges. The blood that poured into the basin tasted slightly off from what he was used to, but could be adjusted to easily enough. Licking his talon clean, he proceeded to explore the shops.

None seemed to have tills, though each had a counter with a moldering book, all of which fell to pieces when he tried to lift a page no matter how careful he was. Any shelving or displays which weren't carved from stone were crumbling as well, and the floors were littered with decrepit goods, such as ancient armor and weapons, dusty bones that he recognized as those you'd find in cuts of meat intended for consumption, and stoppered bottles with dried, discolored residue at the bottom. Moving on, he walked to the opposite side of the plaza, where much larger buildings were carved out of the stone. The first seemed to be a carpenter or woodworker's workshop, judging by the sawblades and piles of dead, dry boards laying around. The second was clearly a mill, with a large millstone at its center along with the broken remains of the mechanism required to turn it. Next to that was a blacksmith's shop with a dark furnace and an ancient anvil which still had a hammer lying upon it. What he discovered in the building at the corner of plaza and street had him running as fast as he could back to the residence hall to find Raziel, who found himself being dragged away by the wrist for the second time that night. What he saw when Rahab shoved him into a darkened building in a dusty old plaza had him speechless.

It was an extensive alchemy lab with equipment that took up the entire first floor and dedicated spaces for research, experimentation, and storage above. Rahab was practically levitating, he was so excited.

"I can keep going, Raziel!" he exclaimed. "Kain told me I gained my immunity to water; that I could swim and stay under indefinitely, even! Look at the size of that tank along the wall there! It was clearly intended to keep what few types of fishes have alchemical value, but it's big enough to stand in and walk around! I won't even have to trudge down to the lake for my experiments with full immersion! I can pick up where I left off and keep going!" He paused suddenly, screeching to a halt in front of the tank before turning back toward Raziel. "Wait. Is there a well here? Or a fountain which flows with water rather than blood?"

"There's likely a tap or valve somewhere if that tank is meant to hold water. Inside, perhaps, or maybe above?"

Why hadn't he thought of that? "Of course!" he exclaimed, springing catlike up onto the ledge which surrounded the tank and then lightly hopping inside.

Raziel watched with concern through the glass as his brother found a valve a few inches above his head and began hauling on the wheel, grasping with both hands and applying all his weight. "Rahab, you might want to exercise caution... if you've not attained full invulnerability yet-" 

Too late. The wheel slipped, water rushed forth with enough strength to send Rahab stumbling backward, and by time he regained his footing he was drenched. He scrambled to the side with a shout.

Raziel rushed forward, putting his hands on the glass and peering through as his brother suddenly burst into giddy laughter and plunged his arm up to his shoulder into the rushing column of water only to yank it back out with a full-body shiver. "Is it... is it not burning you?" he asked, his own excitement rising. Rahab's laughter ended in some rather girlish giggles, which considering his usually deep voice would have made Raziel laugh were he not so distracted by his own elation. 

"Gods, no!" he exclaimed, still laughing. "It's fucking freezing!" 

Chapter Text

Still grinning, Rahab shut the water off again and began to examine the tank's interior while Raziel looked around nearby.

"There must be a filter mechanism of some sort, as well as some way to heat the water. That's how they keep fish in Amalia's world. I know, I looked it up while we were there!"

"We could simply ask Janos," Raziel replied as he knelt down to peer at a handle connected to a pipe that exited through the side of the tank at the bottom. "I'm certain he would know something about it."

"Perhaps," Rahab shrugged, immediately changing the subject to avoid having to break away from his discovery, which he wanted to figure out for himself. "Is that thing you're looking at parallel to the pipe, or perpendicular? I can't tell from here."

"Parallel, which means it's open. Must be the drain. Shall I close it?"

"Not yet, let's rinse the gunk out of the bottom first. Then we'll fill it!"

It took a good half hour for Rahab to get the tank's bottom relatively clean, during which time they were discovered by Stella and Vance, who had also become curious about the rest of the stronghold (and were immediately chided by Raziel for wandering around unescorted with danger potentially lurking about). They clamored outside the tank as it filled, grinning up at Rahab as he paced excitedly back and forth along the ledge above. Only the front of the tank was see-through; the other three sides and bottom were made of glass as well, but were set into solid rock with only small grates on the back wall and a drain on the floor. Soon enough, icy water sloshed against the top edges. Rahab was torn between his desperation to finally know what it felt like to be fully submerged and his unwillingness to plunge himself into what might as well be a partially frozen lake. He finally relented and agreed that Janos should be summoned and consulted on how to warm the water to a temperature that wouldn't drive his breath straight out of his lungs.

"There is an enchantment that heats the surrounding rock, yes," he informed them as he approached the tank. "The water isn't piped from the boiler, it comes directly from the lake. The enchantment is designed to quickly raise the temperature to the correct degree and hold it there. Here, let me see if I can restart it. You're quite certain, Rahab, that the water hasn't caused any damage at all?"

"I've not experimented with exposure for months now, but I only stopped the regular spellwork when we left the Empire. It's entirely possible that I lost my vulnerability weeks before. My skin isn't even tingling, much less swelling or blistering or sloughing off. Last time I tried, I knew right away that it was still affecting me. This is the first time water has ever felt cold to the touch."

The rock wall at the back of the tank suddenly lit up with a set of complicated runes and went dark in the next instant. "That's done it," said Janos. "Give it five minutes and the water will be bearable. Perhaps we should use the time to round up everyone else... I'm certain they will want to see this."

Vance was off like a shot, and just as the water finished warming, Kain led the others in to watch Rahab's big moment.

"Go on, Rahab! You worked so hard, you've earned this!" urged Tantallon.

"Be careful, my love... I'm excited for you, and very proud... but you know I worry."

"I know, darling. I'll worry too, when your own time comes," replied Rahab, kneeling down to reach for Lenore's hand only to think better of it when he realized it was wet from testing the water just a moment ago. "But one day you will join me and have nothing to fear in doing so."

"I suspect you'll want a hot bath after this," said Tantallon as he pressed his forearm against the glass to see how it felt to the touch. "The water may be somewhat warm, but I don't think fish temperature is warm enough for us."

Rahab hadn't ever thought about what a hot bath would even feel like. Vampires didn't produce sweat or shed hair or skin, so the need for bathing was relegated to the removal of dirt they picked up through going about their usual business, which could be accomplished with distilled alcohol when needed. He had noticed how pleasant the humans tended to smell after bathing with whatever Amalia brought back for them to wash with, however, and like most of his kind, he very much preferred heat to cold. "Perhaps," he shrugged, dipping his foot in the water and wiggling it a bit. "It doesn't seem too bad now, but we'll see."

"Go on, my son. Show us all what you've worked so tirelessly to achieve," Kain encouraged. He held his breath as the water slipped up over Rahab's foot past his ankle, then past his calf to his knee as he sat down on the ledge. Once both legs were submerged, Rahab planted his hands on the edge and hauled himself the rest of the way in, closing his eyes as he slipped under the surface. Then, he panicked. Instinct drove him to kick off from the bottom in a frantic surge upward, and Janos barely had enough time to leap forward and spread his wings to shield the rest of the vampires before he broke the surface with a splash and floundered until he found the front edge of the tank, where he clung with one arm over the top, gasping for air.

Lenore cried out in dismay and rushed the tank only to be caught around the middle by Janos before she could get close enough to get burned.

"I'm alright, darling, I'm alright. I promise," Rahab soothed, having quickly regained his cool once his head was above the surface. "Probably ought to have taken a breath before going in," he said, wiping water out of his eyes with the back of his hand.

"It's impossible to anticipate what it feels like to be fully underwater," Janos chuckled, releasing his hold on Lenore. "It's no surprise that you panicked for a moment. Try again, you'll soon adjust. I reacted much the same way the first time I went for a swim... although in my case, my cousin shoved me off a ledge when I was eight years old and too young to fly."

Rahab huffed a laugh as everyone present began to encourage him to try again, then he focused his attention on what his senses were telling him. He could feel the slight pressure which made it just a bit more difficult to fill his lungs. He noticed the sensation of weightlessness and the greater difficulty of movement, and spent a moment testing the resistance of the water against the webbing between his talons. His toes weren't yet webbed, and would aid him little in swimming, but he expected that would change in his next evolution. Perhaps that's when he'd get his gills, and then he wouldn't even have to worry about breathing! Finally, he took a deep breath, let go of the ledge to allow himself to slip back under the surface, and... floated? No, that wasn't right. He pulled his legs up to ensure he had enough room beneath him to sink, but only succeeded in rolling backward a bit before his head breached the surface again. Apparently he'd have to let some of the air out of his lungs if he wanted to stay under.

Everyone stood and watched as Rahab did what he did best. Trial and error soon gained him the knowledge of just how much he needed to empty his lungs if he wanted to sink and how much to fill them if he wanted to remain near the surface. Rahab was just barely short of six feet tall, but the tank was only eight feet deep and was just wide enough for him to kick off the wall with one foot and meet the opposite a second later with the other. It was enough room for him to gain a familiarity with the sensation of submersion and a basic understanding of how to move, but not enough to truly swim. For that, he'd have to brave the lake. Finally he realized that he'd begun to shiver, so he kicked lightly off the bottom, broke the surface with hardly a ripple, and glided to the tank's edge once more, grinning like a loon as everyone cheered. He'd done it. He'd finally done it.

Stella had snuck back to the residence hall to retrieve a soft towel for him, which she walked forward to offer as he hopped down from the ledge with his clothing and hair slicked to his skin and dripping. "You're going to have to lose the wet clothes if you want to get dry," she laughed as he took the towel. Knowing she was right, he handed it back and began to strip. Janos stepped in front of him and spread his wings again in what he assumed to be an attempt to preserve his modesty, which, just like the rest of the vampires, was pretty much non-existent. Rahab appreciated the gesture anyway. "I think I'd enjoy a hot bath, after all," he stated as he wrapped the towel around his waist.

Kain caught him as he walked past. "Rahab... Twice now have I been invited to watch you demonstrate your hard-earned ability. The first time, I missed your first experience. This time, I was able to bear witness. Know that I am indeed proud."

This would have brought Rahab to his knees before, but as things were now he just grinned with a shrug. "How'd I do it the first time, since I had time to stage it?"

"You did exactly what you said before. You called me to the edge of a lake, and while I stood there tapping my foot and growing angrier and angrier thinking you were late, a ripple broke the surface and suddenly there you were, walking out of the water to stand dripping on shore with head held high."

"Really?" Rahab replied, wrinkling his nose with disdain. "I gave that ridiculous example because I was angry. Good god, that sort of pageantry is Raziel's thing."

Kain only laughed.

Fifteen minutes later he was in Vance's new bathroom, up to his chin in fragrant, steaming water with the soft sound of popping bubbles ringing in his ears. The sensation of hot water against his skin had reminded him of the burning damage he was used to and was at first difficult to overcome, but overcome it he did, and now he wasn't sure he'd ever want to leave the tub.

"You lot have no idea what you're missing out on," he sighed happily as Stella playfully piled the foam which had sprung forth from some flowery-smelling liquid she'd added to the water onto his head. He didn't care. She could dump whatever pink perfumed nonsense she wanted on him, could even take a cloth and bathe him head to toe like a newborn babe for all he cared... the relaxing heat of the water and the wonderful smell of the products used had him absolutely pliant. 

"Suppose I can't really complain that you got the first bath in my fancy new tub," Vance teased as he sat at the edge. The tub was indeed fancy; it was set into the floor with steps leading down and ornately carved bucket seats to sit in, and could easily seat at least eight people (though perhaps only four Ancients, what with the wings and all.) The water poured down out of the mouth of a carved dragon's head which was set high into the wall and jutted out enough to allow for a shower rather than a bath, if preferred. "You've earned it, after what all you put yourself through to get here."

"Join me," Rahab suggested, though his words were somewhat slurred from how languid he was feeling. "There's room enough. Might need someone to stop me falling asleep and inadvertently drowning myself in here, anyway." Vance immediately went red and shuffled off mumbling something about not imposing, and Rahab shrugged. "Guess it's on you, then, Stella."

"I do need a bath and all, but I've got my own tub," Stella replied, blushing slightly herself. "I wish you could come in with me, Tantallon."

"You can bathe here, if you like," Tantallon shrugged. "I'll sit with you, even if I can't get in. It's not like Rahab hasn't seen you naked before."

"What is it with you all and being so cavalier toward nudity?" Stella demanded, flustered at the reminder.

"We haven't had a sense of shame about it instilled in us since childhood," shrugged Rahab. "We awakened to this world as grown adults who saw one another in various states of undress since day one. Your kind seems to insist on conflating nudity with sex, is the problem. We're so used to looking upon one another's bodies it just doesn't register as sexual unless overt sexual activity is occurring."

"Are you trying to tell me you don't find yourself lusting after someone when you're looking at them naked?"

"Lust happens," replied Tantallon. "Happens a lot, really. But it happens regardless of whether or not clothing is present, if I'm being honest, and it's really not that hard to privately acknowledge and move on from. It's just not that difficult to control yourself if you're not a selfish cunt, and I say that as the horniest bastard here."

"For the record, Stella, you're really very beautiful, but it's as Tantallon said," Rahab reassured her. "Unless you indicate otherwise I'm going to operate under the assumption that you're not interested, and that's the end of it. I can appreciate your beauty without being a pig about it." He yawned widely before continuing. "I honestly only suggested it because I am genuinely concerned that I may fall asleep in here."

"You won't drown, silly," Stella replied. "You'll wake as soon as the water touches your face, believe me. I've done it before after a long shift working. Here, use this to wash your hair, and then after it's rinsed, you put this other one on and leave it a few minutes. I never knew hair could get so soft and shiny until Amalia brought us this stuff."

Lenore came in then, and with a soft snort of amusement she sat down at the tub's edge near her husband. "You look ridiculous with all that foam on your head."

"Blame her," replied Rahab, jabbing a thumb at Stella. "Though you're one to talk, with those Stitch pajamas," he teased.

"You gave them to me, if you'll recall," she laughed, wagging a talon at him. "I brought your boring, plain ones in for you to change into once you come out. Are you going to come out?"

"Eventually."

"Will it be before I enter my own state of change, or will I have to simply wait until I can come in there in order to be close to you again?"

"I'll come out, Lenore," Rahab laughed. "For now, indulge me. After all, I literally cannot remember the last time I had a hot bath."

"Fair enough, my love. I can remember my baths, but we never had anything like this. I'm looking forward to inheriting this gift so I can indulge myself. For now, I'm going to go and see if anyone needs any help getting settled."

"Don't overexert yourself," Rahab called after her as she left. "You've become quite an early riser, and it's well after dusk by now. Go to bed at a decent hour."

Lenore waved her hand in flippant dismissal, but Rahab knew she'd be compelled to obey him regardless of her usual disdain of his commands, which were always mild and well-intentioned. He'd get out soon enough, and more likely than not she'd already be fast asleep on their blanket pile and he'd lay there for hours with his thoughts torn between getting a proper bed and fucking her in it and diving into the lake to truly swim.

The lake came first, though the experience was dampened by both the water's temperature and its remarkable ability to prevent light from penetrating very far down. Janos had said something about an actual swimming pool somewhere in the Citadel, though he wasn't particularly hopeful that it would still hold water and was certain that the entire area surrounding it was crawling with feral humans. Tantallon left that morning to restart his career as a thief, Janos rounded up all three humans to get to the heart of their earlier dispute, Kain began to establish protective wards and mentally map the entire residential district, and Amalia decided to do her husband a kindness and start to clear out the ruined books on his library's shelves herself so that he wouldn't have to. That left Raziel and Rahab to get to work on the alchemy lab. They cleared out all the clutter and broken equipment, swept it floor to ceiling, rewove the magic that provided the magelights, made lists of what needed to be replaced, and began to brainstorm how to arrange everything to their liking. It soon became apparent that between acquiring vital things like beds, filling the larders, and replacing the equipment in the various workshops so that they could be put to use, they had a very long, very expensive road ahead of them.

Fortunately, Tantallon returned two days later with a list of relatively close manor houses and a detailed plan to hit the ones which were least likely to get him into any trouble. One even had a safe visible through an upstairs window, but Tantallon immediately brushed it off after mentioning it, and when pressed for a reason later that day by Amalia, Stella, and Vance, ended up delivering a rather wordy lecture on the subject.

"You don't get it," he stated, shaking his head. "Gaining access by picking locks is burglary. Cracking a safe with a combination lock is a heist. It's complicated and takes a lot of time, which means you need a detailed plan and the skill to execute it without fucking up and getting caught. Not to say I haven't done it, but it's almost never worth it."

"Why is it so much harder to crack a safe than pick a lock?" Stella asked.

"Well," Tantallon replied, pulling his lockpicks out of his kit. "First, you have to understand how both types of lock work. Locks with keys have vertical chambers with free-moving pins of varying length inside which all have to be raised to the correct position in order to allow the barrel of the lock to rotate. The simplest locks can be picked by putting this wrench in to turn the lock while raking this particular pick here back and forth," he explained, holding the tools up for them to look at. "Turning the wrench just enough to apply a tiny bit of pressure catches the pins and holds them in place, and you basically just fuck with it until, one by one, they end up where they need to be. Then the barrel turns, and the lock springs. Some locks are far more complicated, but if I can rake it I can open it in seconds and the tougher ones I can generally spring in minutes with the right tools. The longer it takes, the more likely you are to get caught, however, so most of the time encountering a complicated lock ended in me abandoning the attempt and getting out of there because it was taking too long."

"But safes are different?"

"Very different. Safes usually have combination locks, which aren't opened with keys. You turn a dial back and forth to three different numbers to unlock it. The mechanism involves three rotating discs with notches cut into the edge. All three of those need to be perfectly aligned so that the latch can move all the way into the space created, and thus out of the way. Then you can turn the handle and open it. Turning the dial to the proper sequence of numbers lines the notches right up. But figuring out how to get those discs aligned properly if you don't know the numbers is a lengthy and involved process."

"What if it's written down somewhere?" Amalia suggested. "Like in an office or something."

"Doubtful. Usually it's known only to the master of the house. I've never once found a scrap of paper with a combination on it, and I've opened a lot of lockboxes."

"How's a job like that done then, eh?" asked Vance, clearly intrigued. "If you was gonna, I mean."

Tantallon laughed, happy to explain. "Oh ho ho... Settle in, my lovelies, because I'm going to start from the beginning, and by the end you'll understand why I don't want to do it. First, if your target is rich and savvy enough to be keeping his valuables in a safe, then he's probably rich and savvy enough to have multiple layers of security. While I'm sure in Amalia's world anyone can just walk down the road to the safe store and pick one up-"

Amalia interjected with a flat "No, you can't."

"Well, you can't here either," Tantallon explained. "They're manufactured to order, and even poorly made safes are quite expensive. Point is, if your target has a safe, he's probably got guards, dogs, or both, and the safe is probably rather well hidden. So, your first order of business is finding out from a reliable source exactly what is in that safe and being absolutely certain that it's even worth the risk to go after it. You're not going to have the right contacts to even get that sort of information unless you're a well-established thief in contact with a network, which comes with its own complications."

"Already startin' to make more sense why most don't bother," said Vance. "Ain't much trust to go around in those circles, I'd wager."

"Indeed. Any time more than one person is involved in a job, the potential to be ratted out or double-crossed is there, and the more people there are... well, there's a reason the saying 'There's no honor among thieves' exists. Plus, information is often as valuable and hard to come by as the goods you're after. If your source doesn't want a significant cut of the spoils, they're going to expect a favor, and you do not want to be in debt to a cohort of criminals. I worked alone as much as I could. Fences, at least, can usually be relied on not to ask questions as to where your goods come from. That generally leads to injury or death. Mine was a jovial sort of fellow, quite sociable once he knew you well. He only needed one mild threat to remind him that this was business, we weren't friends, and I wasn't going to tell him fuck all about anything I did outside his establishment. He never pried again."

"How long were you at this?" asked Amalia, somewhat incredulous. "My god, you make it sound like you were born with a fistful of lockpicks."

"Fortunately for my poor mother, no," he laughed. "She had enough of a hassle birthing two babies at once. I started when I was..." He paused here, clearly fighting to remember details of his childhood after all this time. "Eight, I think? Small and scrawny enough to fit into tight places and avoid being seen when I wasn't hiding. One of the older boys in the village taught me how to pick pockets, and I quickly learned to move silently and use the environment to my advantage to remain undetected. By ten I was breaking and entering on occasion. By twelve I began to develop a conscience, and from then on only targeted people who irked me by treating their fellows poorly. Well, rich folk do that pretty much constantly when out in public, so by time I was old enough to start ranging around to larger towns and cities on my own, I rarely went very long without someone earning themselves a break-in, even if I avoided hitting the same place twice. Which, by the way, is the smart thing to do."

"Did you ever get caught?" asked Stella.

"Twice. Once on my second break-in, after which I was whipped soundly by the homeowner and dragged back home in tears. I expected my father to tan my hide all over again before turning me over to my mother for yet another round, but he just boxed my ears for getting caught and never told her," he said, laughing softly at the fond memory. "The second time, I was maybe fourteen, and got thrown in jail. Idiots chucked me in a cell without searching me for tools of the trade and washed their hands of me. I broke out and was home by morning. Even if they had taken them, I was probably thin enough to have fit through the bars back then and I'd have stolen them right back before I left." Once the snickers died down, he came back to his original point.

"Anyhow, once you've got it on good word that the prize is worth risking the job, the next step is reconnaissance. You need to know how many people are going to be around, whether they be members of the household, servants, or guards. You need to know their habits, routines, and patterns. You need to make note of points of egress and how easy they are to get to from the inside in order to escape. You need to have a detailed escape plan involving one or more of those points of egress. You'd damn well better be good at running along roofs and jumping over walls-" He paused again. "What was it that you called that thing Zephon did, Amalia?"

"Parkour," she laughed.

"That's the one!" he grinned, pointing at her. "You'd better be well practiced at 'parkour', and you get to practice your escapes never, because that's not how any of this works. If you can't crack the safe before discovery becomes inevitable, it's either set your escape in motion or get to an ironclad hiding place, and you're not likely to find both in the same room. If you're found and can't run, you're fucked. Anyone rich enough to have a safe is rich enough to bribe the authorities to look the other way while they do whatever they please with you. You're nothing but a sneak thief, your life is worthless. They'll kill you, or worse. So, unless you've got a trustworthy source for all that information which you're willing to give more than half of the loot to, reconnaissance takes weeks if you're doing it right and covering your ass properly."

"So what then?"

"You break in and get to the safe. The first thing you do is check to see if it's bolted down, and if it isn't, if it's small enough to pick it up and carry it off. Chances are, it's not going anywhere. I've certainly never encountered one I could make off with. Now, the clock is ticking, and you've got to use your senses to work out the proper numbers. You pull your writing utensil and paper out of your kit, because you're going to need it to keep all the potential combinations you've worked out and tried already straight. You apply pressure to the latch, start turning the dial, and feel for little catches. You listen for tiny clanks with one ear while listening for trouble with the other. Hopefully you can discern when one notch is in place, and you can figure out one of the numbers even if you don't know which disk you've aligned and thus which of the three it is. From there, it's basically a bunch of trial and error that can take literally hours depending on the quality of the lock, how good you are, and luck. If you think you've got hours to fiddle with a dial on most of these jobs, you haven't been paying attention. Now, I attempted this four times over my career as a thief. Only once did I have someone who was both rich enough to have a well-made safe and stupid enough not to have any other security measures in place, which left me with lots of time to fiddle with it. I still never got the damn thing open and had to bail when I heard a noise from downstairs and got spooked."

"Did you ever get one open?" asked Stella.

"Once. It was a cheaply made safe in an easy location and the lock was shit, which meant it was easy to hear and feel what was going on inside the mechanism. I was lucky enough to land on the right combination of numbers within fifteen minutes rather than having to keep trying for who knows how long. It was absolutely the best case scenario when it comes to a safecracking job, and I was so excited I could hardly contain myself. Sprung the lock and felt like a god, like I'd mastered the entire universe."

"What was in it?" Vance asked excitedly.

"Absolutely nothing. It was a decoy. The safe with the valuables in it was hidden somewhere else in the house, and locating and cracking a second safe was in no way part of my plan. Now, you never deviate from your plan if you can help it, not in a house that's in any way occupied or guarded. Improvisation is likely to get you caught and killed. I had to bail, and I was so disheartened I decided right then and there that safecracking was for chumps and I wasn't ever going to try it again. I could hit three or four manor houses with lockboxes and end up with more than what I might find in a safe anyway, so I just stuck with that. I was good enough at picking locks by then that my successes outweighed my failures, so it was much less disappointing and far more lucrative, even if it took longer."

"You bailed the other two times, then?"

"Yep. Nearly got caught the first time, and learned from my mistakes, but the second and third times the lock was too well-built for my human senses to pick up any noise from inside. The fourth was the empty success. Now, as a vampire, I could probably do it far more easily, but once we were strong enough to reveal our presence and begin terrorizing mankind, we simply took things through force. I've never attempted it as a vampire and there's no real reason to do so except to challenge myself, and if you've been paying any attention at all, you'll know that I don't take unnecessary risks. Ever. Particularly since in this case, we're right back to hiding our presence in Nosgoth lest the humans snuff us out while our numbers are low."

"A wise decision, Tantallon," said Kain, unexpectedly stepping through Tantallon's front door. "I've no doubt you'll bring us all the funds we need to get ourselves established here."

"Thank you, Master," replied Tantallon, preening. "I intend to leave again tomorrow evening, if that's alright with you."

"Tomorrow evening is fine," nodded Kain. "Raziel has agreed to help Janos with a few things during the day, and he wants your help." 

Raziel swung the door open and leaned in. "Around midday, yes," he said, having apparently also overheard the conversation. "He needs us to eliminate some ferals so that we can clear some rubble from a training facility. Don't forget," he ordered sternly, jabbing a talon at his firstborn.

"I won't," grumbled Tantallon, sulking. He had much better ideas for how to spend his time on his visits back home... and they involved Stella and no one else.

Chapter Text

The next day Rahab, Lenore, and Amalia were in Tantallon's apartment trying to help clear dirt and grime out of cracks and crevices. He'd been sweeping the floor when they arrived to aid him, but it was fairly obvious what was going on when he stole up the stairs a short time later and disappeared into his bedchamber. Raziel soon came looking for him.

"Where's Tantallon? We need to get going."

"He's in his bedchamber, presumably with Stella," Rahab informed him, "And seeing as the door hasn't opened for at least an hour, I expect he'll be quite angry if you knock on it right now."

"Oh, for the love of... Told that boy..." Raziel grumbled to himself as he hurriedly climbed the stairs. He rapped loudly on the bedroom door and waited, then rapped again. Finally, it opened, and a very irate Tantallon poked his head out.

"This place had better be on fire right now," he hissed.

"Forgetting something, aren't we?"

"Don't be fucking coy, what do you want?"

"Janos, Tantallon! We agreed to help him this afternoon, remember?" Raziel answered with a glare, graciously choosing to otherwise ignore his firstborn's uncharacteristic disrespect even as he took him to task for his irresponsibility.

Realization dawned on Tantallon's face. "Now? Really?! Can it not wait?" he demanded.

"We set a time, Tantallon, and I made you aware of it. We're not going to keep Janos waiting because you got caught up dipping your damned wick. Now get dressed and get out here!"

"God dammit!" Tantallon snarled through clenched teeth, then pulled his head in and slammed the door. 

Raziel waited several long moments before rolling his eyes and poking his head into the bedroom only to find his firstborn with his tongue halfway down Stella's throat again. "Tantallon!" he barked.

Everyone snickered at Stella's startled shriek and the subsequent growls and muffled swearing that escaped through the door before Raziel closed it. He went downstairs and stood in the entryway with arms crossed. "Are you coming?" he demanded as Tantallon stomped out of his bedroom with his shirt half on, kicking the door shut behind him as he struggled to get his arms through the correct sleeves.

"Well I would have done, if not for getting saddled with this!"

The snickering turned into outright laughter, and Tantallon glared balefully at everyone present as he stalked down the stairs toward his sire.

"You are absolutely fucking shameless," laughed Rahab.

"Her name is Stella, if you'll recall," Tantallon spat. "And no, I'm not! That's the entire problem, keep up, Rahab."

Lenore crossed her arms disapprovingly. "You brought this on yourself, idiot."

He continued to glower at the others, who were still trying and failing not to laugh. "You all can laugh about it, of course! You owe Stella an apology, by the way," he informed Raziel, pointing an accusing talon at him as he walked past him toward the door.

"Is that so?" Raziel replied drily.

"I had her this close-" Tantallon hissed, turning back to his Sire and holding up thumb and fore-talon.

Raziel planted his hand on Tantallon's back with a roll of his eyes and gave him a shove out the door. "Yes, yes, I'm sure you did. Get moving."

"I could go see if she'd like me to finish the job, since you'll be away at least an hour or so," Rahab called after them with a wolfish grin. Lenore thumped him in the side for his impertinence, but was clearly fighting laughter herself.

Tantallon promptly reappeared in the doorway, gripping the jambs on either side as he leaned in with fangs bared. "Rahab, so help me, hierarchy be damned, I will kill you myself."

Raziel was quickly growing tired of his firstborn's attitude, and when Tantallon continued to huff and swear under his breath as they made their way to where Janos was waiting in the plaza, he finally grabbed him by the collar and forced him against the wall. "That is enough! You will not greet Janos with this shamefully petulant, ill tempered behavior on display," he snarled through clenched teeth. "You have lost your way since we left the Empire behind. Bouncing off the damned walls like an infant fledge, tormenting everyone with silly pranks and songs, forgetting what little responsibility you're given and then expecting to be allowed to put it off further so you can have the tenth orgasm you've likely had in half as many days, if not fewer! If you don't shape up, and fast, you are soon going to find yourself bent bare-arsed over the nearest horizontal surface enduring another taste of the belt. I have already been put through hell these past several centuries, Tantallon. I want my time to be spent doing things that make me happy. Do not force me to discipline you in a way you know will only lead to both of us being upset."

Tears welled in Tantallon's eyes, and when Raziel let him go he simply slid down the wall and began to cry. "I'm sorry," he choked out, immediately starting to babble out everything that had been on his mind lately, whether good or bad. "I know I've been acting stupid, and I don't mean to be, I just don't know what to do with myself without a stronghold to help you run, and Lenore is back, and Rahab is so much happier, and you're happier, at least I think you are, you're so quiet and reserved these days so it's hard to tell, and I don't know what's going on with Stella and it frightens me..." He instantly regretted admitting to his confusion over his relationship with Stella, and quickly forced the thought of her away. "I'm sorry, please don't be angry with me, I'll go to ask the Master to discipline me so you don't have to-" 

Raziel knew exactly what was going on with Stella, but he knew Tantallon well enough to know that he was in no way ready to try to figure it all out and even less ready to talk to anyone about it. He simply pulled him into his arms and let him cry into his shoulder. "It's alright, Tantallon. I know you're not doing any of this to be vindictive, and even if you were, I will never allow Kain to lay hands on you. Things are just..."

Tantallon's stomach lurched at what he just heard come out of Raziel's mouth concerning the Master. Despite his earlier threat to Rahab (which he now felt guilty about as well), in all the years since his turning the vampiric hierarchy had been unshakeable, and he hadn't realized just how much he took the sense of stability and order it brought him for granted until now. The thought of his sire challenging Kain and him being caught in the middle having to make a choice between them was terrifying. "They're completely different!" he finished for his sire. "Everything is different! Listen to what you just said! What do you mean you won't allow him? That's not how it works! You've never been anything but loyal to him! Why would you even say such a thing? How could you say such a thing?"

Raziel kicked himself for not thinking before speaking. He really ought to have known that revealing the fact that he now more or less considered himself Kain's equal would only have upset Tantallon more. "That... is a very long story, and it's not one you're ready to hear any more than I'm ready to talk about it. Just know that Kain and I have come to an accord. There's no strife between us; you've seen how we've been working side by side throughout this whole journey.  My relationship with him has no bearing on anyone else's; your own loyalty need not be swayed. Obey him as you always have; I will never ask you to do otherwise, that is a promise. As to my happiness, I am indeed happy, I swear it. The things I've endured would change anyone no matter how entrenched their character and personality, however, and I will never again be the same arrogant bastard I used to be. My reserved nature these days stems from me finally learning a little humility and outgrowing my former self-righteousness. It does not mean I am unhappy. A bit traumatized, perhaps... but that's what I have my family for. You're all helping me heal every single day."

Tantallon didn't know what to say to that, so he just wiped his eyes and rested his head on Raziel's shoulder. "Can I stay with you and Amalia tonight?"

"You are always welcome to crawl into my bed should you need to seek comfort. That is something that will never change."

"Do you still love me?"

"Yes. That's not going anywhere either."

Somewhat placated but with a mind which was still full of things he'd been bottling up, Tantallon let himself fall back heavily against the wall behind him. "I miss home. Sometimes I wish we could just go back and pick up where we left off, except with Lenore, like she'd never been gone."

"You're not the only one... it was the only life we knew before. But the Empire was doomed to fail... I know, I watched it. And none of us could ever go back to treating mankind the way we used to."

"Yeah, that's something else that keeps me up at night lately," replied Tantallon, dropping his head into one hand as he rested his elbow on his knee. "God, maybe I ought to take some of that tranquilizer shit we got for Lenore. I'm surprised she and Amalia haven't tackled me to the ground by now and shoved the entire bottle down my throat just to shut me up, actually."

"Many people have done terrible things in their lives. Very few have the opportunity to literally go back in time and rewrite the future. That's why we're here, my son. We're all here together, and we're going to set things right."

"We're literally on our way to kill a bunch of humans right now."

"You won't feel guilty about it once they've stabbed you a few times, believe me. Now, come," Raziel replied as he got to his feet and held out his hand. "Janos will arm us, and every one we take out will make this place that much safer. Do not think for a moment that they won't kill Stella, Vance, or Lorrelin should they get the chance. And, If you really think you need a dose of whatever Amalia's got Lenore taking when she's panicking, you can always ask... but it seems like overkill, to me."

"It is overkill. I wasn't really serious. I just need to stop bottling things up, it's making me crazy."

Something occurred to Raziel as they walked the rest of the way to the plaza, and he brought it up the instant they reached Janos, who beckoned them into the old abandoned forge. "Janos... didn't the ferals worship your kind? Can you not simply appear before them and dazzle them into obeying you?" Not that he wanted to deal with an entire tribe of combative humans with a language barrier and the hostile distrust they'd likely show toward anyone not an Ancient. "You could lead them out of the tunnel and shut the wards behind them."

"They attacked me on sight when I met a few of them yesterday. Remember, Raziel, they've been here for centuries. Whatever sentiment they had toward the last of us who called this place home, they've forgotten it, and are extremely hostile toward not only me, but all of my kind, it seems. I found murals depicting us defaced and statues and decorative carvings destroyed."

"Might have something to do with the one that depicts your ancestors abducting their ancestors as children and carrying them off dangling by their arms, I suppose."

"...That may explain it, yes," Janos replied, rather guiltily.

"That means they'll target you personally," said Raziel. "They've got to go."

"I've sharpened two swords," Janos replied, testing the edge of one of them. "Well, sort of, anyway. The sharpening wheel's frame has obviously crumbled, so I had to do my best with a whetstone I found in the rubble under those fallen shelves along the wall. Any who attack will have to be killed. Those who don't, we can herd into the tunnels and boot them out the end onto the shore."

"We're only making them someone else's problem that way," Tantallon pointed out. "But I don't see what else there is to be done about them without slaughtering the entire population, non-combatants and all. I've never killed a child or baby, and I'm not about to start."

Raziel's sensitive ears suddenly picked up the sound of intense fighting echoing down the corridor leading back to the residence hall. "They're attacking the others!" he cried, already sprinting through the square with Tantallon in his wake, swords in hand. Janos was unable to run particularly fast with his wings, even with them pinned close to his back, but he still crossed the square at a fairly high rate of speed before spreading them, leaning forward, and launching himself into the air. He kept pace with his companions easily while flying, and they made it back to the residence hall just in time to see at least twenty ferals hurling themselves at Kain and Rahab, who were without any weapons save for their natural ones and were close to being overwhelmed. Raziel and Tantallon dove into the fray to help drive them back, while Janos, who had never been a warrior, began to frantically knock on doors to ensure that everyone else had barricaded themselves in. "It's me!" he cried once he reached Tantallon's apartment and got a response from within. "Is everyone alright?!" The door opened and he quickly slipped through. 

"Lorrelin nearly took a knife through her middle, but whoever threw it missed and only nicked her," said Stella.

"Ruined my damn tunic!" Lorrelin snarled, hand planted on a spot on her ribs, which was sliced through and stained with blood. 

"Who has the supplies for this? Which apartment?" Janos asked, relieved that only one superficial wound had been sustained.

"We split most of them up among all of us just this morning after we cleaned all our shelves off," Stella replied, handing Lorrelin a clean cloth to staunch the bleeding. "Save for the healing potions, of course. We were having trouble finding them among the supplies."

"Thank the gods," sighed Janos, relieved. "Keep pressure on it for now; we will tend to it later. No one else is injured?"

"Nah, we was... we was all of us in the house here when they came," Vance replied, still pale and shaking.

"...Where are Amalia and Lenore?" asked Lorrelin. "They were here before you came in!"

Janos rounded on the door, fumbled the lock back open, and peeked out at the battle outside, his eyes roving wildly over the scene. There was Amalia, launching herself at the back of one of the ferals, dragging his shaggy headdress off, and biting deep into the back of his neck, severing his spinal cord and instantly paralyzing him. She was thus far uninjured, and quickly went after her next target, fangs bared. But where was Lenore? Janos knew her well enough by now to know that she'd never run into a fight... what if they'd captured or killed her? Frantically, he sought out Rahab, quickly picking him out of the fray thanks to his blue skin. And, to his shock, there was Lenore.

She was running full-tilt toward a human who was approaching her husband from behind with the peculiar long metal claws they used held high, preparing to strike. Despite her gentle nature, Lenore was still an Elder vampire, and her strength and agility was augmented accordingly. She dropped her shoulder and slammed into the woman who was about to attack Rahab, fangs bared and snarling loudly, sending the woman sailing through the air. From there, she proceeded to quickly prove her worth in battle, not through actual bloodshed, but through speed, nimble movement, and quick thinking. The ferals' numbers had dwindled with the arrival of backup, and all of them were now fighting for their very lives and fully preoccupied with the other vampires. Lenore was an agent of absolute chaos among those who remained. She used their distraction to her advantage, leaping over the fallen to knock a warrior's legs out from under her here, jumping on another's back and forcing him straight onto the point of Raziel's blade over there, dashing toward her brother and performing a repeat of her earlier charge, sending the man before her straight into the wall before Tantallon could even get to him. She only used her claws once, when one of the ferals got wise to her methods and tripped her instead, sending her to the ground, where she rolled to her back and struck the instant he attempted to fall upon her. It gave Raziel enough time to take him out, and the last few humans standing quickly took off running with Kain hot on their heels, leaving everyone else there among the carnage staring at Lenore, fighting to catch their breaths and wide-eyed with shock.

Rahab recovered just as his bride lifted her hand to observe, with horror, the blood on her claws, rushing to her side as she fell to her knees and retched. Impressed as he was, he knew better than to praise her for her spectacular performance, and focused on cleaning her up and calming her down. "It's alright, darling... it's alright. You did what you had to. Here, let's get it off," he soothed as she began to cry, yanking his torn and bloodied tunic over his head and finding a clean corner to wipe the majority of the blood off her claws.

Tantallon skidded to a stop next to his sister and fell down beside her. "Lenore, are you hurt?"

Lenore was crying too hard by now to respond, but Raziel quickly gave her a once-over. Her own clothing was intact, and the stains upon them were the bright red of fresh human blood rather than the darker hue of a vampire's. "She's alright. Tend to her while I- Amalia, there you are!"

"Yeah, I'm here," Amalia replied as she stumbled over, wiping blood off her chin with the back of her hand. The stark difference in responses to their first real fight was plain. "Holy fuck, that was wild! They came out of nowhere, chased Lorrelin into Tantallon's place with everyone else, and started hurling themselves at the door, so we locked it and held it while Rahab ran up and climbed out the upstairs window. Kain must have come back from wherever he was to help; I don't know. They left me behind to defend the others in case any of them got in, but when Janos got there, I could see through the door that it wasn't going well... I just wanted to help, I didn't know Lenore followed me out!"

"You've done well, my love. I'm proud of you. Despite the fact you were unarmed and lacked training and experience, you fought valiantly."

"Got stabbed three times, though," she replied, lifting her arm to reveal her own shredded, bloody tunic. "I was down by time it ended, coughing up my own blood and near incapacitated. I'm only up now because I fed from the nearest corpse, and honestly..." She began to sway, and Raziel caught her and swept her up in his arms to carry her back.

"Fed or no, you're too young to recover from such wounds so quickly even though they've physically healed. You're alright, you'll just tire quickly for a day or two."

"Lovely," she groused.

"Inside, all of you!" Kain ordered as he stormed back into the hall and pointed at Tantallon's door before pointing at Tantallon himself. "Not you, Tantallon. Go and find those healing potions, tear the supplies apart and scatter them about if you must. Bring them at once; I've no idea who is hurt."

"Yes, Master!"

Everyone was soon inside and relatively settled, save for Lenore, who was still crying as Rahab gently cleaned the blood off her using distilled alcohol, and Kain, who paced agitatedly back and forth in front of the door.

"Lenore," Amalia began, sinking down to the floor next to her as soon as Raziel stood her on her feet. "You were spectacular out there. You might have single-handedly caused enough bedlam to make them all run."

As keyed up as Kain was, he found himself unable to ignore Lenore's tears. "There's no shame in it, Lenore," he told her as he approached, taking care to soften his voice. "Your ferocity was born of a desire to protect your own, not of a desire to harm anyone. Where did the blood come from?" he asked Rahab. "I only saw her dashing about knocking everyone she encountered left and right, and she clearly avoided injury while doing so, which, by the way, is quite impressive."

"She got one with her claws, at least," he replied. "Lenore, darling... know that you did not kill anyone yourself out there. You aided us in doing so, but if a single set of claw wounds was the only actual damage you were responsible for... whoever you attacked did not die from them. Either he ran with the rest or one of us got him." Their words seemed to console her somewhat, and she began to calm.

"One of us certainly did get him," Kain replied smugly, crossing his arms. "I hunted the rest down. They'll trouble us no further."

"Amalia got her first kill out there," stated Tantallon, who'd come through the door a moment before with a handful of vials. "Well done, little sister."

"And my second and third. Shockingly, it doesn't really feel like something worth celebrating, so I'd rather just not dwell on it."

"Fair enough. You both were still great out there," he replied, moving toward a bristling Lorrelin, who narrowed her eyes and began to edge away from him.

"I can handle it myself, thank you."

Tantallon rolled his eyes. "That cut is several inches long, Lorrelin. If not for this it would need a multitude of stitches, which means the edges will have to be held in place as the potion is applied. And before we can do that, it needs to be cleaned."

Lorrelin grit her teeth, but ever since the incident with Stella and Vance she'd been genuinely trying to be more pleasant to everyone. Letting Tantallon, of all people, tend to a wound of hers would go a long way to demonstrate that. Still, she couldn't quite be polite about it. "Fine, but someone needs to get me something else to wear," she groused, hiking her tunic up to reveal the long cut along her ribs only to realize that looking at it made her queasy. "Oh, gods... that is... worse than I thought it was," she said, quickly turning her head away. It was then that what Tantallon had said about cleaning it sank in. "This is going to hurt, isn't it?"

"I'm afraid so," replied Tantallon, actually feeling genuine sympathy regardless of his usual sentiments toward her.

"We've got the painkilling potion I brewed for Amalia," Raziel suggested. "It won't dull it entirely, but it will help." Tantallon directed him to the shelf where he'd haphazardly shoved his share of their medical supplies, and he plucked the appropriate vial from the assembly. "Here, drink this and we'll wait a few minutes to ensure it's taken full effect."

Janos ensured that the coast was clear outside and ventured into Lorrelin's apartment to retrieve a fresh change of clothing and a wooden spoon for her to bite down on, just in case it was needed. He ducked into the bathroom and started the water running in the tub before he left, figuring she might draw some consolation from a bath when all was said and done. By time he returned, they had laid her down on her side with her head resting on one of Raziel's knees, and they quickly got to work. Tantallon pressed an alcohol soaked cloth into the wound and held it firm as Lorrelin cried out, biting down on the spoon's handle until it nearly cracked. He and Raziel worked quickly to pour the healing potion into the cut, line up the edges, and hold them closed as they knit. Lorrelin's arm jerked and her hand slapped clumsily at the healing wound before Raziel could catch it to stop her. "Let it close completely, then you can scratch to your heart's content," he chided. Within seconds, she spat the spoon out and wriggled out of her healers' grasp, clawing frantically at her side and glaring murderously.

"I took the liberty of starting you a bath, little human," Janos gently informed her, attempting to further console her by reaching down to stroke her hair. "How does a hot bath sound, hmm?"

"Whatever will take my mind off this infernal itching," she growled in reply, ducking her head to avoid his hand. "I thought you said that potion would stop it hurting so badly!" she shot at Raziel.

"I told you it wouldn't dull it entirely. Believe me, it would have been much worse without it. Stop your complaining and let's get you into the bath," he replied, moving to catch her under the arm. "With any luck between the hot water and the potion's effects you'll soon fall asleep and we'll all be happier." She continued to glare, but allowed him to haul her to her feet and guide her out the door toward her own home.

"Stuff's weird," she slurred as they got through her front door. "I'm tired."

"Would you rather go to bed?"

"Fuck that," she scoffed, attempting to break away and start toward her bathroom only to stumble and have to be caught again. "I've not been in a big tub in weeks."

"You do realize you're not going to be able to get in on your own?" he pointed out. "You'll be lucky to succeed in getting out of those clothes in the state you're in."

"'s your stupid potion," she replied. "Thought you knew how to brew."

"...Did what I just said not sink in yet?"

It finally did as they got to the edge of the tub. "You go away," she growled, swatting at him even as she leaned on his arm. "If I wanted you to undress me I'd have let you do it decades ago."

"Oh for fuck's sake, Lorrelin, we've known one another since you were a babe. But fine, if you'd rather I didn't see you, I'll keep my eyes closed and stand here until you wrestle everything off. Do not attempt to navigate those stairs down into the water without me."

"G'way," she repeated, waving him off as soon as he helped her sit on the floor in front of the steps. "Don't look."

Eventually, she made it into the tub without Raziel's help by covertly scooching her way down the stairs. By time he heard the splash and uncovered his eyes in alarm, she had already slipped beneath the bubbles where she was obscured from view save for her neck, head, and face, which bore an infuriating smirk. "I'm not burning my skin off diving in there after you if you slip, you know," he informed her.

"Gimme the shampoo," she demanded in reply. Raziel dragged his palm down his face as he handed it over. "And go ask Rahab to give you his new ability. 'specially if it'll get you out of here."

"That's not how it-" He cut himself off as he realized that it was exactly how it had worked once. He didn't want to revisit the memory, and Rahab hadn't exactly parted with his 'gift' willingly at the time, but he hadn't actually needed to earn his former invulnerability to water. But had it transferred to this older version of his body? Did he dare try it? What if he still retained all the abilities he'd gained during his time as a wraith? The thought had somehow never even occurred to him.

"What?" asked Lorrelin, her heavy eyelids finally lifting again as she moved across the tub and rested her head on the stone edge, causing water to lap up and over the side onto the surrounding floor. 

"I... need to test something," he replied, holding out his arm. "Take out your hand and let a few drops fall onto my arm."

"What?" she repeated, her surprise breaking through the mental fog. "You'll burn. Good grief, I'm not really angry, I'm not going to... I don't want to hurt you!" she explained, confused beyond belief at why he would ask her to do this.

"I'm not sure you will, that's why I want you to try. Just trust me and do it. Whatever burns a few drops might inflict will heal in a few days."

"Ugh, fine. You make no sense," she replied, lifting her hand out of the water as Raziel braced himself. "...and neither does that," she finished, staring at the pale skin of his arm, unmarred by the foamy water that was now running down the side and dripping onto the floor.

Raziel stared right along with her, feeling nothing but the rapidly dissipating warmth and the soft tickle as the drops trailed over his skin. Why the fuck had he not thought of this possibility earlier? How would Rahab feel about all this? How could he possibly explain it to him? Should he even tell him? Could he bear to keep it from him?

"It's my tub," Lorrelin declared, huddling further down into the steaming water as if she were suddenly expecting him to toss her out and climb in himself. "Go get your own."

"I don't want to share it, you buffoon," he retorted, eyes narrowed.

"That's what I'm afraid of."

"Oh, for crying... Hurry up and wash, will you?" he groused, standing up and beginning to search around for a towel. "You need to go to bed... and I need to figure some things out."

By time Lorrelin finished what little actual bathing she could manage, she cared little for her own modesty. Knowing she'd be upset with both herself and him should he allow her to blithely reveal herself to him, he kept his eyes closed and simply listened for the sound of her hands slapping clumsily across the floor as she crawled out of the water toward her folded towel. Once she'd succeeded in wrapping herself up, he helped her stand and guided her to her bedchamber. "I trust you can manage to get yourself into that mess once you're dry?" he asked, nodding toward the pile of bedding in the corner.

"I dunno. Probably. Goodnight."

Things got weird from there. As Raziel stepped away from the door to Lorrelin's apartment, he noticed a sudden shadow in his peripheral vision. Glancing up to one of the windows, he was surprised to see an eagle perched on the ledge. A black eagle. A black eagle which stared back at him not with the dull curiosity of a beast, but with real intelligence behind its eyes.

"Oh, fuck," he breathed, falling back against the wall before stumbling sideways and making a dash for Tantallon's apartment. "Janos!" he cried as he burst through the door, startling everyone present. "Janos, you need to see this!" he cried, darting back out into the hall with the Ancient in his wake and pointing up at the window. "Is that... is that who I think it is?!"

"Who, Raziel?"

Of course, the eagle was gone now. Raziel's face fell, and he began to look wildly around until he caught another glimpse of motion in a window further down the hall. By now, everyone had filed out of the apartment, wondering what was wrong. They all exchanged bewildered glances and ran after Raziel as he took off down the corridor and made a break toward a nearby spiral staircase which led up through a tower. Up and up they went, nearly exhausting themselves trying to keep up until they finally burst out onto an expansive flat balcony which had clearly been used as a landing area, designed to handle the heavy traffic which would have come and gone from the residential district long ago.

It was only then that Janos finally saw and recognized the eagle, and it brought him to his knees right there on the flat paved stones. "Ar... Arta," he breathed, scarcely able to believe he wasn't hallucinating.

"I see my reputation precedes me," she replied, the amusement evident in her voice, which sounded clear as a bell in everyone's heads. "Prepare yourselves."

Janos gulped hard, fighting against the urge to hyperventilate. "For what, my Goddess?" 

"Bigger wings."

Chapter Text

Janos blinked, brow furrowed. Were his wings not big enough already? What could Arta have meant by that? He didn't dare ask, he simply nodded dumbly. Whatever change Arta was about to make to her gift, he trusted her utterly.

Then they heard it. A distant roar, followed by a rhythmic thrum which grew louder and louder until a massive jet of flame cut through the fog. From it burst forth a silver dragon, glistening and beautiful, with nary a scorch mark marring its scales. Naturally, they were all terrified. Vance made a break for a broken column, leaping over it and huddling behind it. Rahab took hold of a screaming Lenore and dragged her backward to the battlements that surrounded the platform before planting himself in front of her, arms outstretched. Tantallon picked Stella up, threw her over his shoulder, and hauled her behind a pile of rubble that had fallen from the side of the tower, where he dropped her to the ground, fell upon her, and covered her body with his to the best extent he could. Kain threw himself upon Janos, who simply lay there on his back staring upward, completely dumbstruck.

Amalia was babbling in fright as she grabbed Raziel's hand and dashed alongside him toward Tantallon and Stella, but all he could make out besides the string of curses was something along the lines of "...goddamn Skyrim!" He hadn't gotten around to playing many games yet, they'd simply been too busy, but Amalia had shown him the introduction to the one called Skyrim, and the thought of this dragon laying waste to the Citadel the way the one from the game had destroyed the town of Helgen caused a fresh wave of terror to break over him. They both dove behind the rubble, where Raziel immediately began to strategize an escape. Could they make it to the door to the tower, if they ran?

But the dragon did not attack, roar, or even growl. It simply took two steps back to make room for itself, towering over the frightened assembly with wings spread a moment before folding them and dropping down to all fours. It then wordlessly turned its golden eyes toward them, sat back on its haunches with its tail curled around its feet, and silently stared.

"You and your dramatic entrances," Arta teased, as she landed on one of his horns. The dragon only blinked slowly, refusing to otherwise break his stare.

"Au-Aubrex?" Janos managed to croak out.

"Yes," came the deep, gravelly reply, which resonated in all of their heads the same way Arta's had.

"My God... Aubrex, Divine one! You've returned to us!"

Aubrex glanced side to side, then returned his steely gaze to Janos. "No 'us' left here. Only you." 

"Yes... I am all that is left," Janos replied mournfully. "But here I am, ready to serve. All my years alone were well worth the wait, now that you have returned."

Aubrex only huffed, then continued to stare. Janos finally lifted his head to look upon the dragon, beginning to sense that he was still displeased despite his return and terrified that he and Arta would simply get up and fly away. "Silver Divine, please... what sin did we commit, that you and your kin left us? Where did we go wrong? What was our offense?"

There came a single contemptuous snort. "Arrogance," Aubrex replied, drawing the word out in a way that made his displeasure clear. "You. Them. That," he growled out, nodding toward the Pillars as he spat the last word. "Arrogance." he repeated.

"What can I do, my God, to earn your forgiveness? How do I find your favor again? What manner of penance do you seek from me?" Janos begged, voice cracking with emotion as the weight of Aubrex's words crushed him.

"Wrong questions. Wrong focus. Wrong priorities," Aubrex answered. "As usual."

Arta had apparently had enough of her mate's harsh, enigmatic replies. "Please, cyar'ika," she said to him, the word penetrating Raziel and Amalia's fear to grab their attention. Raziel had thought he'd recovered all his memories, but his pet name for his bride had eluded him until now. "Take pity on him. He has suffered great loneliness as the last of those left behind, and has remained steadfast through the centuries even if his faith was misplaced." With that, she spread her wings and leapt into the air, shrinking down to the size of a raven and gliding toward Janos, who barely had enough time to raise his arm with a gasp before she landed, talons flashing a soft blue as she did so. Amalia was beginning to calm, and immediately recognized the blunting spell, which Arta had cast with nary a word uttered.

"Misplaced indeed."

Janos had already come to terms with the fact that much of his prior belief system had been dead wrong, but the truth still eluded him. Aubrex was clearly angry with him and not likely to be forthcoming with answers... would Arta show him enough grace to enlighten him?

"What my beloved is trying to say is, your faith in us was exchanged for faith in your false religion."

"A fabrication," said Aubrex. "A construct born of Vampire arrogance. Evangelism. Persecution. Fanaticism. Divines do not demand this, only mortals. Means to one end. Control." 

"We thought you were guiding us! Our oracle... we only followed the path it led us down! We thought we were doing your will!" Janos cried, desperate for a kind word from his God. He was immediately disappointed.

"Oracle?" Aubrex scoffed. "Lies. Vampire inspired, not Divine. False authority. False shepherds who conceal the glint of the shears as they drive the foolish sheep to their pens."

Kain had remained silent until now, mostly out of genuine shock and awe, but the dragon was absolutely wrong about this. The Vampire's oracle was no trick contrived by high priests to manipulate their flock, as Aubrex seemed to think. Did they not know about the parasite? Could he bring it up without being burned to a crisp by this cantankerous demi-god? It didn't matter... he had to risk it. "If I may interject-"

"What are you?" Aubrex asked, dipping his head to peer at Kain only to pull it back, as if he found him intensely unappealing. Kain wasn't particularly put out by the reaction... it probably ruled out the possibility of being eaten, after all. The dragon's ignorance of his nature meant that they apparently knew nothing of the Vampiric curse being intentionally passed to humans either. Not wanting to make things worse for Janos by ratting him out for having a part in it, he glossed over the details.

"A human, cursed long ago and still suffering the effects today." It was technically true. "I speak up only to offer relevant information on the Vampire oracle."

Aubrex narrowed his eyes. "Speak."

"The Vampire religion, like all organized religion, may have been born of genuine faith, and its original clergy pure-hearted and well-intentioned. But it went the way all organized religion does. Given the appeal of positions of power to those who seek their own personal gain, it was inevitable that it became corrupted as it grew."

"This one likes to hear himself talk. We know how it played out, that is why we left." Aubrex replied, granting Kain the dubious honor of finally having elicited complete sentences from him rather than short, blunt answers. Kain grit his teeth, but took the hint. 

"There were no vampire puppetmasters pulling the oracle's strings. A powerful parasitic entity used it to lead them astray. It would seem he masqueraded as you to accomplish this."

The eagle and the dragon exchanged glances, looking as concerned as any beast could manage with their inhuman features.

"Elaborate."

Oh, now he wants me to talk at length, Kain snarked to himself, though he knew better than to say it out loud. "The entity inspired a doctrine called the Wheel of Fate. An endless cycle of birth, death, and re-"

"Not inspired. Simply the way of things," Aubrex interrupted, confirming that the Wheel actually existed and wasn't just another one of the squid's manipulations.

"He twisted it to his favor, then. This parasite grows fat by leeching energy from each soul that is spun in the Wheel. He pushed the Ancients toward war with the Hylden, and feasted upon the catastrophic losses on both sides."

Aubrex bared his massive fangs in a growl which terrified everyone present, frightening even Kain into silence. "Hylden... Also our children. Aloof, indifferent. But that we do not mind. The Vampires forgot us and became zealots, charging headlong down a path we never sent them down. The Hylden were all too happy to use their idiocy as an excuse to oppress their own people under the guise of protecting them from the Vampire menace, instituting authoritarian rule which benefited none but those at the top. None of you worshipped anything but control by then. It displeased us, so we left, knowing how it would eventually play out. You deserved each other. We left you to kill each other. A scout returns with a disturbing report centuries later. We investigate, and what do we find? Our children, war weary at last after a thousand years of pointless conflict. Do you swallow your pride and make peace? No. You begin to weave powerful sorcery to commit genocide, to banish and seal away, to hurl devastating retaliatory curses. Meddling in powerful magic, all of you, Vampire and Hylden alike. Laws of nature established by the Divine, bent to the will of mortals to craft these profanities. We knew then... Nosgoth was truly lost. Not only lost. Dangerous. A threat. Sealed you and your disruptive machinations away before they could come to fruition. Withdrew permanently to that which remains unspoiled." 

"The realms of the Divine... you left this world entirely because of us," Janos breathed, his expression blank.

"Arrogance," Aubrex stated flatly, glaring down at him. "As if you could drive us out of the world we've held in our talons for eons. No. Beyond the mountains. At first, a natural barrier. After your blasphemous spellweaving, the most powerful ward ever cast. Mountains, seas, and patrols keep you in. Ward stops your poisonous sorcery getting out." He paused here, swinging his head to glare at the Pillars and narrowing his eyes contemptuously. "Can still see those from outside, of course. Mars the sky, ruins the view."

Raziel's head was spinning. He'd always wondered what was beyond the mountains and Southern Sea, if there was anything at all. The mountains proved too treacherous and the snow at higher altitudes too deadly for their scouts to penetrate, and no ship that left the harbor and sailed south beyond the horizon ever came back. Now he knew why. The dragon that had been reported by Zephon was a scout, patrolling for any expeditions which might prove successful in discovering a pass that lead out of Nosgoth. Other scouts must watch the seas to drag down any ship which got too far away from land. He'd been sorely wishing that they would have tried harder to explore, that the corruption hadn't rendered them all incapable of giving two shits about anything but sating their bloodlust and serving Kain. Now he was glad they didn't, aside from Dumah's failed attempt to locate the scout dragon. "Boy, was Dumah lucky," Amalia muttered to him, saying out loud exactly what he was thinking.

There was a whole world beyond the mountains. Nosgoth was nothing but a small, insignificant corner, quarantined like a human afflicted with some sort of plague, abandoned to the dire consequences of the crimes against nature committed by its inhabitants. But if that were truly the case, then why the visit? Without even thinking, he blurted it out.

"Then why return?" he asked, immediately tacking on a polite "...Divine ones."

"Nostalgia," Arta replied with a shrug of her wings. She could sense Janos' arm was getting tired, and flew back up to Aubrex's horn. "I miss this land. I miss what it used to be. I mourn the potential it had. Sometimes I'll do a flyover... and this time I noticed that some of the wards in this stronghold were active again, so I called Aubrex, and we both did an assessment of the entire land. This is unimportant, however. We are chattering on, and failing to address something of great significance... The parasitic entity leeching the vitality of this land. My love, we must investigate this further to ensure the ward will contain it, whatever it is. I presume at least one of these mortals will prove useful in this."

"Contain it? No. It must be torn out and destroyed," replied Aubrex, his tone softened considerably while addressing his mate. "Does this creature's meddling not anger you? Shall we continue to condemn the Vampires for so drastically altering the environment only to allow the catalyst of a thousand year war to go unpunished? And what if it cannot be contained? What of the descendants of those who never abandoned the old ways, those who left Nosgoth with us? Shall we risk the health of the world we awarded to their ancestors for seeing their priests' lies for what they were?"

Vance, true to form, was the first to catch it. He gasped, eyes wide, then glanced over to his fellows, who hadn't quite parsed Aubrex's words yet. "Janos, you hearin' this?" he whispered as loudly as he could, still too afraid to approach the dragon. "There's more! There's more Ancients on the other side of the mountains, and they're havin' babies!"

This was just too much for poor Janos, who promptly passed out cold. A hush fell over the entire assembly at the latest monumental revelation in an unexpected series of monumental revelations. Kain was the first to recover. "How is this possible?" he asked, kneeling down to rouse the unconscious Ancient. "The Ancients were sterilized when they were cursed, as well as rendered immortal."

"This one is apparently deaf, as well," replied Aubrex, reverting to his frosty demeanor. "The ward protects."

"Those few who remained faithful to the old ways saw the writing on the wall. They begged to go with us, to avoid the persecution they knew was coming if they did not bend to the will of the shepherds,"  Arta explained. "We rewarded their unfaltering service by leading them safely through the northern mountains and releasing them into the unspoiled wilderness, where they established themselves and continue to commune with us today. The Hylden's blasphemous curse was contained within Nosgoth by our ward, and thus, they were not affected." 

"Is this true, my Goddess?" Janos breathed, tears streaming down his face as he tried and failed to gather himself off the ground.

"It is. The two hundred or so we led out of the mountains prospered, and they multiplied over the centuries. It is... regrettable... that you have languished in isolation here all this time. We did not know any of you were left," Arta said, sounding genuinely remorseful. "Aubrex... I think, perhaps, that it's time to evaluate our own culpability in this."

"Us? We are the ones containing their mess!" 

"They were only mortals, my love. Prone to arrogance and greed to be sure... but for centuries, they held our favor and were worthy of the wings I gave them. The unworthy, the shepherds, took notice of the the importance of the old ways in their society, and saw an opportunity. They began to make and impose their rules, and the unwary sheep fell in line, believing themselves to still be serving us. We watched, and then turned our backs out of disappointment and injured pride rather than intervene. If we had remained to protect them, this parasite would not have been able to manipulate them so. It is apparently due to this monster's influence that the war raged on so long. Now the creature is firmly entrenched, and we have a mess of our own making to clean up."

Aubrex merely snorted in irritation, sending a gust of wind over the ledge. Arta interpreted the non-response as reluctant agreement. "It seems much has happened since we abandoned Nosgoth. Janos... faithful servant. Tell us everything."

Aubrex, thankfully, was content to allow Arta to take the lead from then on. He wordlessly stood, moved away, and lay down, folding his legs under him like a cat and listening intently, remaining silent even when Janos, burning with shame, tearfully admitted to helping his peers modify and pass on the Vampiric curse to humans in order to maintain the Binding.

"You... are fortunate that plan even worked, if the spells you wove into those Pillars were so attuned to your own unaltered species that human beings could not maintain them long term," stated Arta.

"It was not perfect," Janos sighed, shaking his head. "The first spell we crafted to pass the curse on worked, but introduced limitations... vulnerability to sunlight and water being the most detrimental effects. I suggested we continue to improve it so that our human Guardians, some of whom had already suffered through being kidnapped as young children, did not have to live with these limitations. My fellows refused, insisting that as their powers grew, the effects would disappear. This turned out to be true, though it took many years. So, the curse was passed on in its original form and persists today. All the human born vampires here save for Rahab cannot tolerate water's touch; it burns them like strong acid. Rahab only overcame his vulnerability after repeated exposure and years of his own spellcasting."

"Impressive," Aubrex said softly. Rahab flushed with pride.

"And you are one of these Guardians?" Arta asked, turning her attention toward Kain.

"I am the Guardian of Balance, though only recently have I been able to fulfill my role," he replied. "The Hylden's attempts to free themselves involved possession, treachery, and the murder of my predecessor. When her lover, the Mind guardian, found her body, he went mad with grief and released a curse of his own making, which drove the rest of the Guardians mad, including me. I have since been purged of this corruption, as has my firstborn Raziel. The rest are still affected, as far as I know, though the effects won't show for centuries yet. I've not yet devised a way to purify them... my hands have been a bit full lately."

"These guardians are bound by magic to certain spheres of metaphysics, I understand?" asked Arta, cocking her head, then shaking it. "No wonder Nosgoth has descended into madness. You shackled the health of the land to these Pillars of yours, and seeing as you lack the wisdom and foresight of the Divines... Well, it's no surprise it all went awry. I will admit that I'm somewhat impressed that you all managed to dig up and gain a surface-level understanding of the deepest magic in existence, that which was used to shape this world. Manipulation of metaphysical law is no small feat. But you wielded this newfound power like a child who'd dragged his father's sword out of a closet and saw it as a toy, blithely spinning in circles with naught but one hand on the pommel stone, ignorant of the danger to himself and others should his tenuous grasp slip. Disaster was inevitable."

"Forgive me, my Goddess... we were afraid, and in our fear we scrambled for a hold on whatever we could to save ourselves..."

"Well, you can't shoulder all the blame for the way things turned out... we failed to protect you, and you mortals frequently need protecting... usually from yourselves. You are forgiven, Janos. Aubrex?" she said, turning toward her mate.

Aubrex stared at Janos a moment, then closed his eyes and turned his head away. "We admit our own hand in this travesty. You are naught but children, and without a guiding hand, all children will eventually fall in with the wrong crowd. Your sins are many, Janos, but you have taken responsibility and seen the error of your ways. You are forgiven, and you will eventually be reunited with your kin, once this is dealt with."

"I don't... I can't..." Janos fell to his knees, his vision tunnelling and his balance thrown once again. He could not even fathom, after all this time, looking upon another of his kind. Amalia stepped forth and knelt in front of him, shaking his shoulders.

"Hey... we're here. This is nuts, I know... but we're with you all the way."

"I know, child... I know. This is simply too much. I-"

"You need to rest, Janos," said Kain. "And I think it's my turn to start talking."

Aubrex snorted, but said nothing. Kain grit his teeth again. "The rest of the Guardians are dead, but the Pillars themselves are corrupt and cannot cull new ones from the human population," he said to Arta, pointedly refusing to look at Aubrex. "My priority is their restoration and return to Vampire control. Once we can put the lid back on the proverbial inkwell, we will be free to clean up the spill. The Hylden have been twisted into demons during their banishment, and believe me when I say they are more than capable of causing trouble here with the Binding as weak as it is. They must be stopped before we can tackle the problem of the parasite. Will you help us?"

"A mess. Tangled as the web of a funnel spider," Aubrex commented irritably. "Can't be unraveled. Can't be undone. The damage can only be mitigated. No choice but to help."

"It's high time we get you all inside out of the cold and damp. We will meet you outside of your homes, and you will go about your business. Kain, you will remain with us to tell us more of the sorry state of affairs here in Nosgoth."

As it turned out, Aubrex was just as capable as Arta of changing his size, which allowed him to shrink down enough to follow his mate through a high window before returning to his natural state. "Knew I smelled blood," he observed upon entering the residence hall and seeing the gory aftermath of the earlier battle with the ferals. "What happened here?"

"The descendants of the humans who used to reside here with us still haunt this place," Janos replied. "They are... hostile."

Arta wordlessly took flight and disappeared down the hall, following the trail of blood, the mess disappearing behind her as she went. 

"She will deal with them," Aubrex stated. "Arta is a true goddess, and thus has powers that I do not. She will relocate them beyond the mountains, give them their own territory. There they will be free to either sink or swim, we don't particularly care." He then looked around, wrinkling his nose at all the dirt and grime that had yet to be cleaned up. "Another mess, though one which is far more easily resolved. We will make repairs and improvements before we fly out to have a closer look at things. Now, go about your business. I will remain here with the long-winded one, who I am certain will be more than happy to speak at length of anything which might be useful to us."

Tantallon, unsure to what extent the Divines intended to "improve" things and too afraid to ask for details, decided to hold off on heading back out on his next thieving mission just in case Arta decided to simply poof food and furnishings into existence for them. He followed Raziel to the alchemy lab, while Amalia followed Vance and Stella into their apartment to keep them company. Rahab, entirely too curious and bold enough to risk hanging around just to bask in the presence of a real live dragon, quietly stole into his home and went up to the bedroom window on the second floor, where he parked himself just out of sight to listen on on the conversation taking place below. Lenore, having long since lost her fear of Aubrex, approached the dragon, bowed, and asked if he needed anything, seeing as no one else had. Aubrex lowered his head to regard her more closely. "Nay, little curse-bearer," he replied, his tone as kind as when he addressed his mate. "Go, join your mate beside the window, where he lurks thinking I am unaware of his plans for his afternoon," he said, causing Rahab to cringe where he sat. "I will send for you, personally, if need be." He then dropped to his belly and got comfortable, arranging his tail and wings just so, before turning his gaze toward Kain.

"Now... start talking."

Chapter Text

Kain was still talking when the shadows grew long, when the windows went dark, when Rahab's behind finally grew sore from sitting on the hard floor and drove him to risk getting up to lean on the window sill, figuring he'd already been found out anyway. Aubrex asked the occasional question, but mostly lay propped on one elbow looking bored, resting the side of his head on his talons in a rather human-like pose. He only lifted it when Kain got around to speaking about the gate that had brought Amalia to Nosgoth, his scaly brow furrowing in surprise and confusion. She was promptly summoned to give her side of things only to stumble down the ornate steps leading to her and Raziel's apartment and pass out cold. 

"She was wounded in battle and was likely asleep, but wanted to obey your command," Kain explained as he moved to lift her from the floor. "She's very young, and thus quite weak. Running up a bunch of stairs directly after her healing had already sapped the majority of her energy may have her mostly out of commission for a while, I'm sorry to say."

"It is of no consequence; there is time enough to speak with her when she is well again. I can only assume the presence of such an anomaly is the result of whatever metaphysical nonsense is going on with those Pillars. Take her inside and put her to bed," Aubrex replied, raising his gaze to Rahab's window and making eye contact with him. "You are the one who overcame your weakness to water?"

Rahab had not been expecting to be addressed directly by the dragon, and could only nod dumbly.

"Show me your hands," Aubrex commanded, and Rahab lifted them and spread his slender talons to display the webbing, palms out.

"This is what Kain speaks of when he says the corruption he has passed on to you changes your form over time... you are all cursed twice over."

Rahab gulped. "Yes... he's traveled from the future, and said it will eventually turn us into monsters. I was looking forward to seeing what my next Change would grant me... but between that and what Raziel has told me about what it did to our minds and personalities, I'm not so sure it will be worth it after all."

"If he has been purged of this corruption, then so too can you be. A problem for later, however. For now, you are to be commended. The Ancients delved deep to weave this curse, poorly executed as it may be. That you have unraveled part of it is no small feat," Aubrex replied. "We will see what can be done for the rest. Immortality is not likely something we can reverse without tearing apart your very souls, but you have proven that modifying parts of the curse is safe. Perhaps removing some of the unintended consequences of its design will be easier than we thought."

"Th-Thank you, Divine One," Rahab stammered, again flushing with pride. "I... admit that my intentions were entirely selfish when I began, but if I've inadvertently contributed to something that may benefit all of us..." Maybe he wouldn't have to wait as long as he thought he would to teach Lenore to swim.

Kain returned then, but Aubrex had finally tired of the entire sordid tale, and promptly got to his feet and looked up and down the corridor to survey the mess. "This place used to be beautiful," he murmured wistfully. "It's high time it is returned to its former glory."

"If there is any way we can help..." Rahab began.

"It would have taken you years to restore this place to even a fraction of what it was," Aubrex replied with a shake of his head. "We can do it in a single hour... well, two perhaps, considering the extent of the filth," he continued, leaning his head down to blow a cloud of dust and dead leaves from where they'd collected in the corner where a set of apartment steps met the wall. "Get everyone out of their homes. I think you will all be pleased with my vision."

Kain didn't even have time to be annoyed at having to go right back in to retrieve Amalia before he realized that the tattered remains of the carpet which ran down the middle of the residence hall had been restored to its original state. The plush, deep red fabric was embellished with a design of intricate swirls and gold embroidered edges, as opulent as anything Raziel would have seen fit for his own home back in his stronghold. He and Rahab stood gaping at the dragon, watching as he reversed centuries of degradation, before finally moving to do his bidding.

As they entered the apartments one by one and emerged with the flabbergasted occupants in tow, the grime, moss, and lichens faded from the walls and stonework. The ornate stained glass windows were replaced where they were broken and made vivid where they were intact, but had dulled over the ages. The dust, debris, dead leaves, bird nests, and bleached skeletons of vermin were cleared from wherever they were hidden. Lorrelin was the last to be recovered from her home and fought Rahab tooth and nail the whole way, only going still when she saw Aubrex walking up and down the wide corridor. "Not another drop of that potion," she muttered to herself, eyes wide, before walking right back through her door. Rahab chased her in with an irritated growl and brought her back out, where she sank to the soft carpet in the middle of the hall, still under the influence and refusing to believe that the pacing dragon who was magically turning the decrepit Residential District into a palace worthy of Kain himself was anything more than a hallucination brought on by Raziel's less than stellar brewing.

Janos was once again moved to tears by the sight before him. This place had not looked like this for centuries, millennia even, and every turn of his head dredged up repressed memories of the way things were when his kin walked and flew these halls, when chatter and laughter formed the familiar, comforting ambience that he'd long since forced himself to forget... when he was happy, if not burdened with his often loathsome tasks as a high ranking member of the Council. He had no idea if any of those who lived outside Nosgoth would be willing to return to the last remaining home of their ancestors, but maybe, just maybe... Perhaps he could hope that his nightmare had truly come to an end.

By time Raziel and Tantallon returned from their lab and fell to their knees in shock, every single apartment was furnished and decorated. Gleaming woodwork with inlaid gold, intricately carved four post beds, fully outfitted kitchens, and dining areas with fully set tables graced every home. A fire roared in each hearth, plump embroidered pillows sat on couches, and cupboards and shelves were filled with provisions and everyday necessities. Aubrex sat back on his haunches, looking immensely pleased with himself. "All that is left to do is tailoring."

"I'm surprised you haven't put a pile of gold and treasure in every spare corner," said Arta, returning from her errand with the ferals to alight once more on one of Aubrex's horns. "You and your... dragonlike tendencies," she teased, turning her entire head upside down to peck at one of his scales.

"Who would you begrudge these gifts? The vampires, cursed and deprived of the basic delights of food, water and sunlight for centuries? The humans, born into servitude and ignorant of any other way of life? Perhaps Janos, who has suffered more than any of them?"

"Not a single one of them, my love. Let me handle the finer details."

Arta shrunk down to the size of a dove and alighted, in turn, on each person's shoulder to customize their homes to suit their personal tastes. In the end, Raziel and Amalia's home was decorated in shades of red and sky blue, while Rahab's interior took on the deeper blue and lavender hues favored by its occupants. Kain asked for nothing more than a fancy place to hang the Reaver and a bearskin rug like the one he'd had at the Sanctuary of the Clans, and Janos was delighted to find his old quarters exactly as it looked when he last lived there, right down to the art on the walls. Vance gained ornately carved floral motifs and glass-shaded wall lamps which took the shape of tulips, and Lorrelin had a nook for reading and a considerably more elaborate kitchen with double ovens and a massive island counter. Topping it all off was a rack to hang her fancy cookware hanging overhead.

Tantallon's home was the most surprising of all. It had been enlarged, and much of the intricate woodwork now took the shape of dragonflies, butterflies, and birds. Stella's had disappeared entirely, along with all her belongings... which were now in a neatly organized pile in Tantallon's living room. As usual, Vance understood first, and after a moment of surprise began to laugh. "Looks like you lot are movin' in together, eh?"

"Well, now, I wonder why our Lady Goddess would have done something like this?" Lenore asked with a sly grin, catching on to what was happening. Arta knew, and was clearly forcing a resolution to the issue of Stella and Tantallon's relationship. 

Tantallon was mortified, and shot his sister a murderous glare. Gods, why now? While everyone was looking on, their focus entirely on him and whether or not he'd just come clean and tell them all the truth that he'd been tearing himself up over for weeks? Immediately flustered and angry with the entire situation, he began to ramble. "Look, it wasn't even my fault, alright? All I'd wanted was to get laid! Surely you can all understand that!"

"I can't," offered Lorrelin, who was still sitting on the carpet and even through the potion-induced grogginess was unwilling to pass up an opportunity to needle Tantallon.

"Fuck off, Lorrelin, no one cares," he growled at her. "Stop looking at me like that, all of you! How could I possibly have known... Oh, come on, none of you expected it either!" he shouted, pacing in agitation. "Not a single one of you could have-"

...Wait.

He suddenly stopped and turned to Raziel, who was standing to the side, arms crossed, with a satisfied smirk on his face. "You knew," he accused, eyes narrowed. "You rotten bastard, you've known what happened all along, because you were there the first time around!" he shouted, stalking up to his sire and poking him in the chest with a talon. "That's why you immediately abandoned your opposition to my involvement with her when you got thrown back here from the future!"

Raziel only shrugged, maintaining his smug expression.

"Why the fuck didn't you just tell me?" Tantallon demanded. "Do you not realize how long this has been eating at me? You could have spared me a lot of... of..." He threw up his hands. "Stupid back and forth bullshit!"

"Oh, is that what I could have done? And you'd have just accepted the news with perfect grace and decorum; is that how it all would have played out?" Raziel asked sarcastically. "Please. Had I told you before that you would wed her, you and I both know you'd have had a personal crisis right then and there. It would have given you the resolve to attempt to cut her off for real instead of just constantly telling yourself you would after just one more roll in the hay, one more night spent in one another's arms! It would have dragged this out for months, likely. And you'd still have ended up together just the same. So, you're welcome!" he finished, spreading his hands and making a little mock bow.

Tantallon hated that he was right.

"Tantallon, there is absolutely nothing save for your pride that's stopping you from embracing this future that you stubbornly refuse to admit you want. You might as well end the 'stupid back and forth bullshit' right now," said Rahab. "In case you haven't noticed, no one cares about which species shacks up with which at this point, which is far better for you both than the first time this apparently happened."

Tantallon let his head fall back in defeat. "God dammit," he half groaned, half sighed, closing his eyes as he resigned himself to swallowing that pride. It was all over anyhow; everyone now knew that he'd fallen in love with Stella, and it irritated him to no end that they assumed that the difference in species was what bothered him about it, rather than the fact that he'd fallen in love at all. Either way, there was no point in denying it to anyone, even himself, anymore. Looking more resentful and sullen than anyone ought to while professing their love for another, he stalked over to Stella and stood by her side as she looked up at him, bewildered.

"Wait, does this mean you... are we-"

"Yes," he stated flatly, crossing his arms in a sulk and refusing to look at her in favor of casting a glare at his sire, shaking his head when Raziel only snickered back.

"How perfectly romantic of you," Kain snarked, wrinkling his nose in distaste. Tantallon shook his head again and stalked to his door with Stella trailing behind, giddily peppering him with questions and caring not one bit how angry he was about the whole thing.

"Can we have a real wedding?"

"No!"

"Which side of the bed should I sleep on?"

"The same one you always do!"

"Shall I start moving my things over now, or wait until later?"

"They're already fucking here, look around you!"

The silly question and angry response routine continued all the way up to their bedchamber, where Stella squealed in delight at the way the carvings on the bedframe had morphed into a delightful motif of flowers, bees, and honeycomb, as beautifully intricate as if it had been carved by the most talented woodworker in the world.

"Oh for fuck's-" The door slammed, cutting the exchange off.

Rahab snickered as the assembly began to disperse back to their homes to admire their new furnishings. "Straight to the bedroom, you'll notice. Who wants to take bets on how long before he's bollocks deep?"

"Oi!" Vance called indignantly over his shoulder as he walked away. 

"Sorry," Rahab called back to him with a smirk.

"Well, with that all settled, let's return to the task at hand," said Arta. "What have I overlooked... Oh, books!" Within moments everyone's bookshelves were filled, including Raziel's new library, which, to his absolute delight, had all the books he'd prized most from his old library with plenty of room left to continue expanding his collection. On his new desk sat his copy of "Tales as Old as Time", the overhead magelights glinting off the coppery foil that decorated the cover.

"What else, now?" Arta began again, thinking for a moment before abruptly straightening up where she was perched on Aubrex's horn. "Ah, right! Some of those fountains need a bit of modification... and perhaps a bit of fresh air would do everyone some good." The blood fountains in each human's home sputtered and began to run with pure, clear water, and all traces of blood disappeared from their basins. Lastly, everyone was granted a large picture window overlooking the lake which boasted magical wards which kept the cold out and could be deactivated at will to let the breeze in on warmer days.

"We should get Lorrelin some water to help her shake off the last of that potion's side effects, and I should probably be around when Amalia wakes," said Raziel. "She is going to be very, very confused to find herself in a fancy bed all of a sudden."

"I think taking some time to enjoy these wonders would do us all some good," Kain replied. "Saving the world can wait a little longer," he continued, sounding as if he were suddenly exhausted. "Let's just..."

"Throw a wild party that will rival the one we had in the woods?" Raziel offered.

This was not what Kain had in mind, but he had to admit that they had plenty to celebrate. He sighed deeply, knowing that it was inevitable if it was already on their minds, that it would probably involve obnoxious music and rampant drunkenness just like the last one, and that he'd willingly put up with it all if it made everyone happy. "Fine, but tell Amalia to return to her world and bring back some more of that liquor," he replied as he stalked off toward his home. "I want a whole bottle this time. To myself."

"A celebration is a fine idea," Arta commented. "For now, we will continue our work. Come, Aubrex... shall we start with the observatory?"

"There's an observatory?!" Rahab cried, suddenly appearing in his upstairs window.

"Let us go to the plaza first," Aubrex replied, ignoring him in favor of shrinking down to the size of a large dog and leaping into the air to fly alongside his mate. "What is there is of more immediate use to them than star charts and telescopes."

As it turned out, Amalia had already brought back the good stuff from the trip they'd made to Costco, plus a few other things besides. "Won't be any dancing for me... I'm just too tired," she told Raziel upon waking and recovering from her surprise at her new surroundings. "But I know how to make a decent tequila sunrise. I can tend bar and get everyone wasted. Maybe Lorrelin will want to cook something up with all the food that was just poofed into our larders?"

"Yes, and once Tantallon gets over unexpectedly finding himself married he'll probably be happy to handle the music, though I shudder to think what he'll choose, considering he seemed to like every single gratingly obnoxious thing you played the last time we did this."

"You said Tantallon's place just got substantially bigger," Amalia replied, unphased by his opinion of her music. "We can move his fancy new furniture to the side and make the living room a dance floor, and then all we need to do is throw up some sound wards."

"Hmmph. Would have been the perfect opportunity for your first magic lesson, if not for the state you're in," Raziel groused. "I'm glad to be rid of those blasted ferals. They're better off where they are now, anyhow. Arta wouldn't have left them somewhere they'd be likely to perish."

"Those two have singlehandedly solved a lot of our problems in just a few hours. We really ought to do something for them."

"Janos is already talking to Lorrelin about some sort of food offering, and whatever beverage you intend to mix up will be entirely new to them. Even if they don't need to eat or drink, I'm certain they'll appreciate the sentiment."

"Offerings, huh? You know..." she mused, "I should go and get some stuff from home."

"Well you're not going alone," replied Raziel, though he wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of the night in his library. "Not as weakened as you are right now. I'll come with you, as long as you promise we won't be out in public too long. I've still not quite recovered from the last trip."

The next day was spent preparing for the celebration. Amalia and Raziel had brought back several large bags of groceries, and though she needed to sleep a bit late the next morning she eventually joined Janos and Lorrelin to help cook. They traded knowledge of various recipes and techniques and began to prepare a feast consisting of various dishes familiar to all three of them. Janos prepared three geese, salting them and rubbing them with herbs inside and out before stuffing them with roughly chopped onions and apples and trussing them for the oven. Lorrelin made a hearty venison stew and baked several loaves of bread, timing them so they were out of her ovens and on cooling racks by time the fowl needed to go in. Amalia boiled a large quantity of potatoes and began to open cans of pumpkin for pies as her companions watched, mystified at the handheld tool she used to cut the tops open. "I'm gonna need to rest a while after this, guys," she informed them, "But I have what we need to make a really good bread dressing for the geese, and those red berries are cooked with sugar to make a really good sauce. Those and the pies are traditional dishes for an early winter holiday where I'm from."

"Speaking of holidays, I'll bet that tree of yours will dazzle the Divines," Lorrelin replied, having finally accepted that Aubrex and Arta were real. "Do we have all our batteries charged and ready for use?"

"Sure do," replied Amalia as she slumped into a chair at Lorrelin's dining room table. "Raz put all the chargers in every sunny spot he could find this morning."

Everyone got together to bring out furniture to lounge on and all the dining tables in everyone's homes, and all were arranged to accommodate both the feast and the guests. The Christmas tree was set up in the middle of the largest table and surrounded by steaming platters enchanted to stay hot and piled up with food. Cupboards were searched for appropriate drinking vessels, which were separated between those for the tables and those Amalia could use later for the single cocktail she knew how to make. Amalia's laptop and speaker were set up in Tantallon and Stella's living room, ready for the dancing that was sure to come once everyone was fed and had a few drinks in them. Rahab got to work teaching Vance basic conjuration. He caught on fast, and the tables were soon decked out with a multitude of identical single stem roses in vases, along with simple magelights.

"Not bad at all for your first attempt," Rahab informed him, immensely pleased with the human's obvious talent for magic. "You'll have this place decorated floor to ceiling before long." Vance only flushed red and shuffled off mumbling about it being "Not much of anythin' at all, really."

When the Divines returned from restoring the nearby laundry facility, they were both pleasantly surprised at the spread before them. Aubrex returned to his normal size and skirted the table with the tree and food, though his focus was solely on the tree. The multicolored lights were reflected in his eyes as he dipped his head to regard it, unable to tear his gaze away from the sight. Arta flew to his horn and looked up and down the table at the food.

"You have all worked hard and done well today. It has been a long time indeed since these halls saw any life or happiness. Aubrex, dear..." She trailed off, glancing down at her mate, who was still transfixed by the soft electric glow of the tree and completely unresponsive. A peck to the side of his head snapped him out of it.

"What? Oh, yes... the celebration," he replied absently, finally wresting his attention back under control and moving to lie down nearby, far enough to be out of the way but close enough to continue to gaze at the tree. "Go on, then... do what you mortals do best."

Janos and Raziel carefully lifted a smaller table which held platters containing an entire stuffed goose and samplings of each dish and set it down before them. "Divine Ones... this is for you," Janos began, bowing low. "Please accept it as our thanks for everything you've done here for us. We hope you find it to your liking, and will have other delights to offer you as the night goes on."

"Thank you, our faithful servant. We look forward to being a part of your revelry."

The revelry then began. The humans piled their plates high with food, and everyone filled their goblets with good wine. Arta immediately noticed that every vampire save for Janos only had tiny bite-sized portions of each dish on their plates, with Kain's being completely empty. "Now, that won't do," she muttered before taking off from her perch and gliding over their heads, close enough for her talons to touch their hair. "You needn't fear a belly full of real food any longer," she informed them upon returning to her mate. "Your bloodlust remains, but your stomachs will reject solid food no longer. That, at least, was easy to fix."

They did not have to be told twice, and Kain struggled not to let the emotion show on his face as he tasted real food for the first time in centuries.

"Congrats, by the way," Amalia said to Tantallon and Stella as she sat down across from them. Tantallon was looking considerably less surly now that he was staring fearlessly down at plate full of roast goose, mashed potatoes and goose gravy, and whatever that delightfully tart berry goop was. Then there was bread, and butter, and cheese, and stew, and stuffing, and roast apples, and the pie made out of those orange gourds Amalia had shown him her memories of a few months back. None of it had the power to make him sick any longer and all of it had his mouth watering and his mind well at ease about what had taken place the day before.

"Yeah, well... it was bound to happen, apparently," he shrugged. "I guess it feels better to not have to agonize over it anymore."

"Those berries are awful raw," Stella commented, alternating between resting her head against Tantallon's shoulder and taking bites of food.

"You ate one raw?" Amalia laughed.

"Tried to. Spat the thing right out. I'd have thought they were poisonous if I didn't know better."

The Divines were repeatedly offered samples of every dish available, and enjoyed every single one regardless of their lack of need for food or drink, particularly the cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie, which were completely alien to them. Once everyone had stuffed themselves and were mostly leaning back in their chairs and patting their bellies, Janos got to his feet and cleared his throat to get their attention. "I believe we all agree that we have much to be thankful for this night. Yesterday, this place was desolate and filthy despite our best efforts. Yesterday, we were forced to defend ourselves against those who would do us harm. Yesterday, we were going it alone on this journey, none of us certain of what this altered future held in store for us. Yesterday, we had plenty in the way of resolve but little in the way of hope. Today, we have a home. Today, we are safe. Today, we have powerful allies in the fight to come. Nosgoth will not be put right easily, but she will be put right. I, for one, will not rest until that day comes."

"Well said, Janos," Kain replied, loud enough for everyone to hear. "Our victory is at hand. The squid will be torn from where he has anchored himself. He will fight, he will flail, he will curse us and hurl dire threats. It will do him no good; his days are numbered. He will be cut to ribbons by the Reaver. He will be torn to shreds by fierce talons. He will be burned to ash by dragonfire. He will fade from existence knowing that all his manipulations were for naught. The Pillars will be restored, new Guardians will be raised and trained, and this land will be redeemed."

By now, everyone was starting to feel the effects of the wine, and they all cheered and pounded on the tables. Amalia stood and went to where she'd staged her cocktail supplies, calling "Who wants a drink?" over her shoulder. The cheers only intensified.

The first cocktail was mixed in a large bowl and presented by Amalia to the Divines. One whiff had Aubrex's eyebrows raised in surprised delight. "Ah, citrus! Not native to this region... the fruits are imported from lands far away by our children beyond the mountains, but it is difficult to come by."

Amalia huffed a laugh as she placed the bowl on the offering table next to the empty goose platter, the contents of which had been swallowed whole by Aubrex after Arta had pulled a strip of meat for herself. "Well, everything in this is definitely imported from far away."

"We will speak to you of this world you come from later. Kain tells us that there is much that can be learned about human potential from you," replied Arta as Aubrex delicately grasped the bowl between two talons and dipped his tongue into it. His subsequent shudder of delight had Arta tightening her grip on his horn and spreading her wings to avoid losing her balance. "That good, is it?" she asked, fluffing her feathers. "Let me have a drop upon my tongue, my love."

Amalia then set about making drinks for everyone else who wanted one, taking ice which Rahab had made and broken up for her and measuring it into cups before adding the grenadine, tequila, and orange juice. "Maybe go easy after the first one, guys," she warned. "I know they taste good, but none of you have had tequila before and believe me when I say it will fuck you up. That means us vampires, too, unless we want to throw up our dinner for reasons entirely unrelated to the vampiric curse."

"I assure you we do not," replied Rahab as he took his drink from her. "It would be a bit of a slap in the face to the Divines, after all. You certainly don't need to worry about me overdoing it after the last time I drank."

No one overdid it, but everyone did partake, including both Janos and Lorrelin, to everyone's surprise.

"Ah, what the hell, right? I'm trying not to be such a stick in the mud, after all," she shrugged as she lifted her drink to her lips. "Besides, this 'citrus' stuff is absolutely top notch."

"Agreed," replied Janos. He'd already had two and was considering a third. He was nearly as tall and heavily built as Kain, after all, so surely he could handle a third. This was the lightest and happiest he'd felt for centuries, so what was a little drunkenness? "I've spent enough of my long life sober and having absolutely no fun at all."

"Well, the last one ended up with two of our couples having... relations," replied Lorrelin, unsure of how crude she ought to put it to one who came off as rather priestly and proper. "No one else has paired off outside of Rahab and Lenore, though I'd wager my entire new kitchen that there's plenty of tomfoolery taking place regardless. Vampires are hedonists through and through."

Janos laughed. "So we are, though I cannot remember the last time I... well." He paused a moment. "My only real options were humans, and none of them were willing to fling themselves into what they imagined was certain death on the off chance they caught me in a 'tomfoolery' sort of mood. Back in my time, however..." He trailed off, shaking his head and sipping his drink. "We were encouraged to engage as often as possible with as many partners as possible to ensure a steady birth rate. We reach maturity and become fertile far later than humans and lose our fertility sooner, so their reproduction tends to outpace ours. But once we got to that age..."

"Orgies for miles?" Lorrelin asked, put at ease by his frankness.

"Well... I wouldn't call them orgies. It was expected to take place in private, and public group sex was seen as decadent and unnecessary. Didn't stop everyone, but it wasn't socially acceptable any more than celibacy was."

"They wouldn't have liked me, then."

"No? Out of disinterest, or personal beliefs? If you're willing to divulge, of course."

"Disinterest. No one gives me shit for it; I'm quite good at asserting myself, if you haven't noticed," Lorrelin stated plainly. "Most don't understand it, but they don't press the subject. Raziel teased me about bedding me not too long ago, before his older self took over, but I took the wind right out of his sails when I told him I didn't need his services, that I can manage my own affairs," she laughed. "He'd offered once when I was younger, and I considered it, honestly, just to see what the fuss was about. I knew I could trust him not to traumatize me. But ultimately... I just don't care, I don't care that I don't care, and I don't care if anyone else does."

Janos snickered. "I sometimes see traces of Raziel's former haughtiness, so I can only imagine how his face must have fallen when you rejected him."

"Oh, it was priceless. I consider it one of my finer moments, to be sure."

The party went on, and when night fell Tantallon was disappointed to find that no one wanted to dance. "Come on, you bums," he complained. "What's a party without dancing?"

"We're stuffed and proper drunk," Vance shrugged, refusing to move from the sofa he was lounging on. "Computer ain't goin' nowhere. It'll be there when we're up to it."

"You could sing something, Tantallon," Kain suggested, quite drunk himself.

"You've been taking entire pulls straight off that bottle of Scotch," laughed Amalia, who'd been watching him do it for some time, intensely amused. "Can you even stay awake through a whole song?"

"'s my bottle," he slurred, as if it were in any way a sensible response. "Besides, I've not heard Tantallon's voice in some time, and frankly, it's the only thing that'll have me listening to any of that shite you've got on that contraption of yours."

"Everything, then," Amalia said to Tantallon, completely ignoring Kain's dig at her taste in music. Tantallon raised an eyebrow, and she blinked at him. "We ran off to the woods to practice it like, a hundred times."

"Oh, the song!" Tantallon replied, then paused a moment. "...Yeah, I suppose we've got it down well enough."

"Come on, we got this," said Amalia as she disentangled herself from a near-unconscious Raziel's arms and went to go get her computer for the backup music. Everyone settled in to watch the show. Raziel and Rahab had heard the song before from poking around at Amalia's library, and Rahab had played the song once for Lenore. It was a new experience for everyone else, particularly Janos and the Divines, who had long since fallen silent, content to hang back and watch over everyone as they had their fun.

The song's beginning was sung by Tantallon alone, but Amalia soon joined in. It was clear the two had practiced performing the song as a duet.

Needed time to clear my mind
And breathe the free air find some peace there
I used to keep my heart in jail
But the choice was love or fear of pain and

I...
Chose...
Love...

Stella sat with her hands covering her mouth, close to tears and unsure if she could possibly fall deeper into love with Tantallon. Raziel opened one eye and smirked, satisfied that his idiot fledge had finally come around.

Everything is energy and energy is you and me...

Light shines in through an open window
Shines inside your heart and soul and
Light will guide your way through time
And love will help you heal your mind and

Life...
Will...
Be..

Everything is energy and energy is you and me...

"By the Divines," Janos breathed, so moved that he forgot entirely that actual Divines were present until they spoke, praising the pair for their talent and, seeing that everyone was now completely partied out and there would be no more singing, beginning to shoo them off to their beds. No one had to be told twice once they actually managed to haul themselves upright.

Once they were alone, the dragon and the eagle went up to the platform on the tower, exchanged determined glances, and launched themselves into the air.

Chapter Text

"What if they don't come back?" Janos fretted, glancing back at the arched breezeway that led to the ascent to the landing on the walltop. He'd gone looking for the Divines to greet them as soon as he was up and about, only to find that they were now nowhere to be found.

"They promised to help us with the parasite," Raziel reminded him, clapping him on the shoulder and hurrying him along the corridor toward their homes. "They're likely out doing some recon work in order to facilitate exactly that. Come, now, we've been left with gifts beyond our imagination. Let's go and enjoy some downtime while we still can."

"You're right, of course, though we still have to clean up after last night," replied Janos. "Thankfully we didn't get too wild; the drinking only led to deeper sleep, at least in my case. Hopefully the others feel refreshed this morning as well."

"It's early yet, but the humans will be awake for certain. Amalia's still out and Tantallon and Stella haven't yet emerged, but Rahab and Lenore are probably up as well."

"I think Kain opted for a late rise, too," Janos noted.

"I'm still a bit concerned about him, to be honest," Raziel confessed. "He's still having a hard time adjusting to his new role. He was corrupted from birth and was heartless even as a human; he's more or less dealing with a complete shift in his personality and manner of thinking, to say nothing of suddenly finding himself capable of emotions he's never had the capacity for. We all feel guilt for the way we've conducted ourselves our entire lives up until now, but Kain's regrets no doubt run far deeper than ours. Hopefully he'll be in better shape by time we need to make our move."

"Rest and recreation will do us all some good; Kain is no different, particularly now that his humanity has been released from its confines. Drunken revelry doesn't seem to interest him much, but perhaps holing up with some books and a bit of attention and affection from his subjects will restore his spirits."

"He always was a boring drunk," Raziel snickered. "Though I must admit, watching him upturn an impressively large bottle of hard liquor directly down his throat last night was most amusing. Hell, maybe that's why he's still in bed."

As it turned out, Lenore was actually still asleep, and Rahab, who'd become as early a riser as the humans, saw the opportunity to sit Vance down at his kitchen table (which was still out in the corridor) and continue his lessons. After a considerable period of hemming and hawing over potentially sullying the fancy blue tablecloth by either spilling or spattering ink or having it seep through the paper he practiced on, Rahab finally simply moved the place settings, candles, and decorations to the far end and pulled the cloth back to reveal the fine grain of the wood.

"You're using a modern pen, not a quill and inkpot, it should be fine regardless. Now, sit. We'll review the alphabet and have you write it out, then we can see how much you can glean from the first page of this book."

"Oh, uh... well, I got to practicin' last night before bed. I think I got the alphabet sorted by now."

Rahab crossed his arms. "And how late were you up working on this? The party didn't end until at least midnight."

Vance wilted a bit. "Few hours..."

"You didn't sleep at all, did you?"

The human sank lower in his chair and avoided his gaze, shoulders hiked practically up to his ears, looking immensely guilty. Rahab sighed.

"I admire your dedication, little human, but it won't do to upend your entire sleep schedule to achieve your goals. We've plenty of time to work on this, you needn't hurry it along."

"Beggin' your pardon, Lord-"

"Nope. Try again."

Vance cleared his throat. "Beggin' your pardon... er... Rahab. Suppose you'd be right. I just can't stand it anymore, not bein' able to do it. There's books everywhere again all of a sudden, I'm surrounded by 'em and I still can't get much from any of 'em. They're all tauntin' me, is what they're doin'."

"It is a rare kind of torment, isn't it?" Rahab laughed. "I don't suppose I can really blame you... I certainly endured a few rounds of harsh discipline at the Master's hands for doing exactly what you did multiple times while I was learning," Rahab admitted, before realizing what he'd said. "Not that you have it coming," he quickly added, holding up a hand as the human's eyes widened. "I've long since realized there's no need for such measures. Being exhausted by tonight will be consequence enough, because there'll be no napping for you this afternoon. Now, start writing, let's see how that penmanship is coming along."

"How long did it take you?" Vance asked as he reached for one of the pens laid out on the table and pulled a sheet of college ruled paper out of a pack they'd brought him.

"I wasn't the first to learn, but only because I came fourth. I certainly picked it up the fastest, though in part only because Raziel was far less likely to fall victim to temptation and focus on little else whenever no one was looking. He's as avid a reader as I am. Turel and Dumah were hopeless; they learned but never cared much for books, even if they had a few they found useful. Zephon saw an opportunity to get an edge on everyone so he dove right in, and Melchiah... well, honestly, none of us paid much attention to Melchiah. He was always the odd one out, preferring to keep to himself, and we were perfectly happy to let him. I know he learned at some point, but I've no idea when. Focus, now. Your writing is certainly legible, and I'd go as far as to say it's almost becoming neat."

Tantallon woke soon after, kissed Stella on the head as she sat at their table spooning down a bowl of oatmeal she'd made herself, and started for the door before stopping dead in his tracks, suddenly transfixed by the mingled scents of cooked oats, cow's milk, and honey. His mouth immediately began to water. "Is there more?" he asked hopefully. 

"I'm afraid not; I didn't think you'd be up for a while," Stella replied apologetically. "Pot's washed and dried and the fire's still lit in the stove, though, if you want to make some for yourself. Milk's in that cold cupboard over there, honey's on the table here."

"I've got to remember how, first," Tantallon muttered to himself. "What is it, Stella, one part oats, two parts milk?"

"Mmmhmm," Stella nodded after another spoonful. "Throw a pinch of salt in while it cooks, and watch the pot so it doesn't boil over. Stuff makes a mess."

Successfully cooking himself a bowl of oatmeal and sitting down to taste it for the first time in centuries put Tantallon in high spirits, and his first instinct was to go find a prank to pull on someone, but he immediately realized he'd feel guilty about it and did not want to face either his sire's disappointment or the discipline he'd earn himself for acting out. No, he needed to find something constructive to do. There was an entire party to clean up after, but everyone else seemed to still be inside either asleep or enjoying their new surroundings, the bums, and Tantallon wasn't about to do all of it by himself. He began to review his mental 'to-do' list and remembered that he hadn't really checked in on the Master in a while. Kain's apparent depression as of late had been setting him on edge, and now was as good a time as any to go and visit him to ensure he wasn't feeling left out again.

The instant Kain opened his door and stood blinking owlishly at him, Tantallon wilted, almost expecting a reprimand. None came, and after a moment the Master recovered from his surprise. "What is it, Tantallon?"

"Well, I... I just thought I'd see if you'd like some company. I didn't wake you, did I?"

Kain was immediately overcome with fondness. Ah, Tantallon... He'd certainly been a brat lately, but the boy had always responded well to chastisement and redirection, and he was always in tune with the emotional states of everyone around him. It shouldn't have been a surprise at all to find him on his doorstep after witnessing him drinking the way he had been last night. Getting that drunk around others wasn't exactly like him, and even though at that point Kain had actually been enjoying himself, he could see how it might have looked to everyone else. It suddenly hit him again that the others really did actually care about him, they were worried about him, and in his distraction over it all he completely forgot to even answer Tantallon. Wordlessly, he stepped to the side to allow him into his home.

Kain's new quarters were quite similar to Raziel's save for the enormous bear rug before the hearth and the Reaver mounted above it, held up by stylized golden approximations of an Elder's clawed talons and lit from above by recessed magelights. Tantallon couldn't help but pause to marvel at the terrifying sword. Had it really once held his sire's soul? Kain promptly redirected him toward his bedchamber, not wanting to dwell on any of it and wanting even less to talk about it. "I do appreciate the company, Tantallon," he said as he sat down on the edge of the bed and patted the spot behind him. "I've been... stretched rather thin, as of late."

"I know," Tantallon murmured as he took his place beside the Master. "I get the distinct impression that I've no idea what's really going on behind the scenes. Everything is just so different, and I know there's a reason it has to be, and there's all this talk of a parasite and saving Nosgoth, and all the time travel, and now we've got literal gods walking among us... it's doing my head in, frankly, so I can only imagine what it's done to yours."

"Not all of it is my story to tell... Raziel will reveal what he's ready to let you in on when he feels ready to talk about it. But yes, it's been... difficult. I'm tired of fighting, tired of responsibility, tired of everything. I thought I knew how to relax and bide my time, but looking back, even doing that my mind never stopped. Always scheming, always plotting, always planning, whether I was furthering my own selfish causes or sacrificing in order to undo the damage I've inflicted on the world. I don't even know how to rest or let go; I've always been far too ambitious."

"We'll help you learn, Master," replied Tantallon, leaning gently into Kain's shoulder. "In the grand scheme of things, with the Divines here and preparations underway for what seems clear to me is some sort of final battle... it looks like your long fight will soon come to an end. And when it does, you'll still have us... and then we'll go see the Ancients. This will all soon be over, and then we'll have all the time in the world to help you heal."

"Leaving Nosgoth is not something I ever thought possible. It's terrifying, really," said Kain, surprising himself with his willingness to admit his fear, even to kind-hearted Tantallon. 

"We're going to come back," Tantallon shrugged. "It'll be like a holiday. We'll visit, and we'll see Janos reunite with his kin, and though he may stay with his people, we're going to come right back here to the familiar sight and smell of home. And then we can make the journey to visit whenever we want to, even if it's a long one. Just think, being out on the road on our horses, talking and laughing, making camp and eating and drinking, and knowing the whole time that we're doing it for fun and that at the end of the journey there's nothing but leisure and good company awaiting us."

"You forget that I still have my role as Balance guardian... I will have to make some very difficult decisions in the future. But... your words, honeyed as they are, are still the truth, and I very much look forward to experiencing Nosgoth, and the world at large, the way it was meant to be." He paused a moment. "And I certainly can't say I'm going to miss Amalia and Rahab's bickering out on the road."

Tantallon snickered. "They've definitely made up... we all shared her in bed while we were in her world. Will you come with us next time we go?"

"No, Tantallon... that is one journey I won't be making. I won't leave this world for another and put my connection to my Pillar at risk just to... do whatever you all did while you were there. Sounded like a lot of human contact to me." Well, besides the group sex they'd apparently had, anyway. Kain couldn't say he'd object to that, though Raziel was the only one of them he'd ever bedded, and he was quite certain by now that Tantallon, beautiful as he was, had little to no interest in men.

"Oh, yes... there really are millions and millions in the city Amalia lives outside of, and even in the surrounding areas. It's bright even at night from all the lights everywhere. The shops are constantly full of people going in and out, and there are machines on rails which ferry people around so there are less cars on the road. It wasn't all bad... Her home is lovely, her bed is the most comfortable thing I've ever slept in, and it's so very easy to pass the time just sitting on your arse watching movies or fiddling around on the internet. I don't know how anyone could ever get bored with so many distractions. Speaking of... there were also plenty of beautiful women out and about to gaze upon... and small children in toy stores to menace."

Kain turned and raised an eyebrow, intrigued, and Tantallon showed him his memory of the small boy who'd thrown Stella's Toothless plush at him. Kain promptly burst into laughter. The setting was completely outlandish; full of bright colors and cutesy stuffed animals similar to Amalia's 'ji-rav', or whatever she'd called the silly thing. He'd also had no idea that Tantallon was even remotely capable of being unkind to a child, even a bratty one. "I'm not entirely certain he felt particularly menaced," he laughed.

"Well of course not, Amalia wouldn't let me really scare him and my appearance at the time was human," Tantallon grumbled. "Little shit." Kain only laughed harder. They continued to converse a while, and when Tantallon noticed that his hair was mussed and tangled after the tie had come loose overnight Kain opted to indulge his offer to fix it, allowing himself to be attended to even though he could have sorted it instantly himself with a spell. It felt good, having his hair brushed out, even when the tangles snagged lightly on the brush. Tantallon was thorough, methodical, and gentle, and by time both hair and hairtie were back in place he'd slipped into lassitude and collapsed onto the bed with a purr.

"Are you going back to sleep, Master? You should if you're tired. I can fetch you a meal from the fountain, if you'd like."

"I've already had my fill of blood... and seeing as I don't know how to cook anything besides game over a campfire, I suppose a nap is in order."

"We should all start having dinner together... I know we don't need to eat, but it would be nice for us all to be sat around a table indulging regardless."

"A worthy idea... we can discuss it later, however. Go on now, I'm in much better spirits thanks to your continued devotion to serving me. Tell the others so they stop worrying, if you don't mind."

"Yes, Master," Tantallon replied, bowing low. "Sleep well." He shut the bedroom door, stopped and stared at the Reaver for a few moments before becoming unsettled, then stood at the top of the stairs outside to survey the damage from last night's festivities. It wasn't terrible, but there was a lot of furniture to return to where it belonged and most of the dishes still sat right where they'd been left. Narrowing his eyes as they swept over everyone's front door and landed on Rahab and Vance, he strode off to badger them into helping him get started.

Raziel and Janos, for their part, had opted to walk right on past their homes and continue to the plaza, which now looked as if it had been built yesterday. "I could swear that any moment, one of my kind will walk right out of one of these shops and wave at us," said Janos, looking out the upstairs window as the pair investigated the lab. "It's... it's as it used to be, even if it's still desolate."

"That unfortunately means that Rahab's tank is once again set up as an aquarium," replied Raziel, surveying the bottom of the tank, which was now covered in a layer of pebbles and dotted here and there with aquatic plants. Bubbles rose from a valve in the corner to oxygenate the water. The only thing missing were live fish, and Raziel doubted that Rahab would waste any time stocking it so he could study them for hours on end. 

"Well, if the plaza is any indication, the training facility will be good as new as well. He'll have an entire swimming pool."

"Oh, I'd forgotten about that entirely," said Raziel. "That'll certainly keep him busy a while." 

"Perhaps some day soon you all can join him," replied Janos. "If the Divines can reverse some of the effects of the curse, I mean. And I've no doubt they can."

After a moment's hesitation, Raziel sighed. "I could join him now, were I not too much of a coward to tell him that I retained my resistance to water from my time as a wraith."

"You think he'll be jealous that his hard-won ability isn't as unique as he thought it to be?"

"Not only that, Janos... Rahab still doesn't know how I got it. Hell, you don't even know, come to think of it. I never got the chance to tell you..."

"Come, let's go back down to the plaza and sit by the fountain. Then you may reveal as much or as little as you would like, and I will listen. This is obviously weighing on you, and you should not have to carry these burdens alone."

"I need to tell everyone," sighed Raziel as they made their way down the stairs. "My own bride knows nothing of my sordid little adventure. My own fledge knows nothing. It's all just so complicated... The story starts with Kain, and it's not pleasant, nor does it paint him in a particularly good light. I understand why he did what he did now, but at the time..."

"What did he do?"

"He had me executed."

Janos hid his surprise as best he could, but it still registered on his face, eliciting another sigh from Raziel. "I only survived because it turned me into what I was when we met. I was so angry... at him, at my brethren, who either actively participated or stood by doing nothing, as if there were even anything the rest could do without endangering both themselves and their clans. And I knew that... I knew it deep down, but I didn't care. I was too busy allowing my vengeful hatred to be stoked by the parasite to care. I tracked them down and slaughtered them one by one in revenge, taking their unique abilities for my own by consuming their souls. Granted, by time I found Turel the anger had mostly faded and he was in such pitiful circumstances that it was more a mercy killing than anything, but I killed him just the same. How can I possibly explain all that to Rahab? How can I tell him that only have immunity to water because I murdered him? Everyone will hate Kain for murdering me and Rahab will hate me for murdering him. We're just getting settled, everyone has been stressed and exhausted, and we need to present a united front in the battle to come. I can't just shatter what little peace we have by revealing all this, but it feels so wrong to keep it from them any longer."

"You don't have to reveal anything, Raziel. There is a time and place for such revelations. Now is not the time and here is not the place. One day, you may tell them the truth, but do not feel guilty for withholding it when revealing it will only cause strife and discord. That you are afraid to have this conversation is of no consequence, it doesn't matter that part of your reason for keeping quiet is selfish. Now is simply not the time. It would be more selfish by far to throw everyone into an uproar just to assuage your own guilt."

"Perhaps you're right," Raziel murmured, feeling somewhat better about the whole thing. "Maybe I just need to set it aside until later."

"You will know when the time is right to speak of all this. Do it when it feels right, don't force it just because you feel obligated," said Janos, reaching up to brush Raziel's hair behind his ear. "You have suffered and sacrificed so much... you needn't fret over this on top of everything else."

Raziel lifted his hand to cover Janos' own, turning his head into the warmth of his palm. "I'll try not to... I suppose after the break we just caught I ought to be putting my energy toward gratitude and indulgence rather than wasting it dwelling on this nonsense."

"Yes, indeed, child. Now, come. You haven't been to my home yet, and I'm eager to show it to you. It's just as it used to be... I even found a favorite toy of mine from when I was a child that I'd hung onto as a keepsake. Wept like a newborn babe when I came across it."

Raziel paused, recalling a recent conversation he'd had with his brother. "That reminds me... Rahab was speculating out loud about Vampire babies a few days back, and we both got to wondering... Humans have such difficulty giving birth, and they have no wings. How on earth did your women survive pushing a child with six limbs through such a narrow passage? Surely the wings frequently got them... I don't know, stuck in there somewhere."

"Ah, that is an excellent question," Janos laughed. "While the fully developed child is still in the womb, the wings are featherless, and pinned so tightly to the back that they're practically melded with the rest of the body. They don't relax until after birth, well after the exposed down has dried, from several hours to, in rare cases, a few days. Thus, they add little complication to what is already a difficult process. Arta made sure of it when she gave them to us. The wings opening is considered one of the first milestones in a newborn's life, and new parents are encouraged to gently extend them a few times once they loosen up and separate from the back. The child will be able to move them on their own from then on... though they don't gain any real control or coordination until they're using them to roll over in preparation for learning to crawl at five or six months."

"Do they really gain mobility that quickly? That's disturbing."

Janos raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"Mobility means getting into trouble," replied Raziel. "Wrangling an adult fledgling into not stumbling blindly into environmental hazards is infuriatingly difficult, and they can be reasoned with. I'd hate to have to keep track of something with no sense of self-preservation and zero awareness of how dangerous their own home is. What stops them from sending themselves down a flight of stairs to their own doom?"

"They do tend to be unintentionally suicidal, much the same as human infants," Janos admitted. "You are completely unfamiliar with human babies as well, I take it?"

"I cannot express to you how little interest I've had in them up until this moment, and I can assure you, my curiosity is born of surprise and nothing more."

Janos laughed out loud. "You and Amalia won't be adopting anytime soon, then?"

Raziel shuddered. "Gods, no. I had a human child as a pet for a while, but he had a nursemaid who looked after him when I wasn't amusing myself with his antics. I was quite fond of him, but would never have had the patience to actually raise him. Amalia has expressed that she has no desire to become a parent if I can't be the father, and so much the better."

"Not everyone is cut out for it. Our society looked down on those who didn't want to reproduce... it would have been far better to encourage them to contribute to society in other ways, rather than force parenthood on those who inevitably became terrible parents."

"You never had any?"

"I never even had time to marry, what with my duties with the Council, and certainly had no time to raise biological children. We learned long ago how to temporarily sterilize ourselves using magic, though this knowledge was forbidden to most. I had my fun as a youth, as we all did, but never impregnated anyone I bedded. I looked after the young Guardians as best I could, however, even as babes. That's why I know so much about their development. It's remarkable how quickly they go from squirming newborns to crawling infants to walking, talking toddlers."

"I'll have to tell Rahab what you've told me if I see him before you do. Get ready, though... it'll probably just prompt more questions relating to biology. I'm sure you've noticed how he is by now, though he always had about as much interest in human reproduction as I did."

"Questions which I would be honored to answer, Raziel. It feels good to speak of my kind after suppressing their memory for so long."

"It'll have to wait... we saw him at his table tutoring Vance on our way here, and they both tend to get engrossed in the task. He'll only grouch at us if we interrupt."

Rahab had already dealt with Tantallon's interruption by more or less telling him to fuck right off the moment he approached their table. He sat paging through the preschool-age workbooks they'd brought Vance, wrinkling his nose at the obnoxiously cutesy cartoon objects and animals that were used to help make associations with the words. Much of the book had been left blank, but he smirked to himself when he came across a "Color this picture" exercise that Vance had actually gone to the trouble of coloring with the Crayola colored pencils that Amalia had insisted on just in case he had any latent artistic talent. "This is actually quite well done, despite how simplistic the drawing itself is."

"Ehh, only did one 'cause I was bored... most of 'em are just pointless, with the connecting dots and coloring certain things red or blue or whatever. I see why the little ones like 'em, but lots of the stuff in these books isn't teachin' me nothin' now that I got the letters mostly learned."

"There are materials aimed at older children, but it seems to be widely assumed in Amalia's society that adults already know how to read, I'm afraid. Come, I can hear through the window that Lenore is up and has drawn me a bath. You can sit nearby and read what you can from the book, and we can discuss your progress while I soak."

Vance obediently followed Rahab to up the master suite, nodding politely at Lenore as they passed her while she made their bed. She looked pleasantly surprised to see him. 

"Oh, good morning, Vance! What did Rahab give you to practice with?" she asked, eyeing the book in his hands.

"Uh, well..." Vance stammered, his brain suddenly tossing everything he'd learned out the window now that he was being put on the spot to read the title on the cover. Fortunately, Lenore either didn't notice or was kind enough to bail him out of the situation she'd inadvertently put him in.

"Oh, this is one of Amalia's, it looks like... 'My Side of the Mountain'."

"Yeh... she brought a few from home and wrapped 'em up in one of the presents," he mumbled. "Chose it myself. Saw the bird on the cover and figured it was a good story. Always liked those huntin' birds. She said it's written a bit more simple than a lot of novels aimed at adults, so it'd be a good one for practice."

"Well, keep at it. You're a very fast learner, between magic and reading. You'll be perfectly competent at both in no time, I've no doubt of it."

Vance thanked her and, as much out of genuine respect as out of habit, bowed to her in response, and she playfully smacked him with one of the small decorative pillows she was about to put in place. "You cut that out," she admonished with a grin, and he couldn't help but laugh as he walked into the bathroom. The smile disappeared from his face the moment he did.

Rahab had already stripped his clothing off and was stepping down into the bath, his full form on display, and Vance couldn't do anything but freeze and stare, eyes wide as dinner plates. He'd known Rahab was attractive, but had never so much as seen him shirtless, much less completely nude. His frame wasn't as bulky as Raziel's, but he was still well-muscled and moved with the same grace every vampire possessed. His blue skin wasn't just a single shade, as Vance had assumed. It was mottled and striped with a subtle purple hue along his dorsal side, but paled to nearly the same color as Raziel and Tantallon's skin as it reached his chest and belly. His body hair was sparse and only evident at a distance due to its black coloration. Even his groin, which had more hair than anywhere else but his head, was mostly smooth and bare, making it stand out just enough to draw the eye to what else could be found there... and oh, what a sight that was. Vance knew enough to be aware that it was impossible to judge a man's size when erect from how his cock appeared when flaccid, but the rest of Rahab's body was so flawless that he couldn't imagine it to be anything but perfectly proportionate to the rest of him, neither freakishly large or unimpressively small.

By time Rahab glanced up at Vance he'd recovered enough to tear his gaze away and fix it firmly on the floor. The vampire immediately rolled his eyes. "I suppose I should have expected that you'd be just like the other two when it comes to nudity," he said as his lower half slipped beneath the bubbles. The rest of him quickly followed, and his eyes slid closed as he stretched luxuriously, spreading his talons and toes as the heat of the water seeped straight through to warm his bones. With an arch of his back and a sigh of deep contentment, he finally settled into one of the bucket seats to enjoy his soak. The ends of his hair had gotten wet by now, so he took the tie out and let his wavy tresses fall from behind his head, scowling a bit as he carded his talons through them. "Damned webbing makes it harder to straighten it without a comb," he pointed out. Vance had never seen him with his hair down either, and he gulped slightly as he dutifully strode over to sit cross legged next to the tub, staring silently and intently at the book in his hands.

Rahab peered at him from his spot a few feet away. Vance had always been, well... skittish. Though he'd quickly gotten over his fear of vampires once they'd left the Empire, he was still prone to being easily flustered and often simply clammed up when anxious. He had obviously clammed up now, which threw a bit of a wrench into his plans to get him reading from an actual book. Unsure of how to put him at ease and not being particularly inclined to try to use psychological manipulation to get him to relax (that was Raziel's thing; Rahab had little patience for it), he simply went for the direct approach and floated himself over to the other side of the tub where the boy sat, folding his arms on the edge and casually resting his chin upon them. "What's wrong?" he asked, keeping his voice soft.

Vance's eyes widened, but he managed to choke out a response. "N-nothin', Lord, just nervous about tryin' it in front of an audience, is all," he responded, voice shaking.

Rahab opted to let the 'Lord' bit go this time. It was a particularly difficult habit to break for one so used to fawning to keep himself out of trouble, after all, and he was tired of constantly correcting him on it regardless. "Are you certain it has nothing to do with me being completely naked? You didn't seem to mind during my first bath, even if you weren't comfortable joining me."

"Didn't see nothin' then," Vance mumbled, confirming that this was entirely about his nudity. Feeling slightly guilty for pushing the boy into a situation that clearly had him deeply uncomfortable but knowing that postponing his reading session would only cause guilt and upset him further, Rahab sighed a bit, unsure what to do. That was about when he remembered that Vance was attracted to men, and it all made further sense. Introducing sexual tension into their dynamic would complicate things considerably, and he needed to put the kibosh on it right now.

"Forgive me, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable by revealing myself so casually. Vampires just... see these things differently, is all. I simply have a newfound love affair with hot water and can't resist a bath." 

"Certainly wouldn't begrudge it, with as hard as you worked for it. Don't mind me... was just distracted by Lady Lenore and didn't think before comin' in. Don't mean to imply you ain't nothin' to look at or anythin'."

"Oh, I wouldn't have expected you to," Rahab remarked in a haughty, rather Raziel-esque manner. He was nowhere near as vain as his brother, but still took pride in being attractive. He promptly kicked himself when his charge began to turn red again, realizing that the careless response had only made things worse. "Look, Vance... I know you're into men," he stated bluntly. "So am I, though my desires also extend to women. You're plenty good-looking yourself, but I've taken an active role in teaching you a very important skill, one that you're desperate to learn. Between that and your ever-present fear of offending, there is no way I would ever feel comfortable taking you to bed. You can appreciate my form all you like... I certainly don't mind being flattered and would never turn down an appreciative glance. I can't tell whether your reaction is born of attraction or simply inspired by extreme discomfort, but it doesn't matter, because I'm not going to proposition you whether you want me to or not."

That seemed to throw him. His brow furrowed, and he finally peeled his eyes off his book to look up, even if he continued to avoid eye contact, inspiring Rahab to elaborate to make his reasoning clear. "Knowing you as I do, I cannot be confident that you'd say yes because you want it, rather than because you fear what I might do if you say no, whether it's the use of physical force or by withdrawing my offer to teach you to read. I've no interest in unwilling partners. Pretending isn't good enough."

"Well, no... it ain't that at all. I know you wouldn't force nothin', or take advantage," Vance replied, sounding almost confused as to why Rahab would think otherwise. "I'm not scared of you anymore. I just... I don't know. Just confused, I guess. Caught off guard."

"Have you any experience in the matter?"

"Experience? You askin' if I ever...?"

"Any experience," Rahab shrugged. "Romantic or otherwise."

Vance deflated with a sigh. "Loved one once, I think. Never told 'im. Never touched 'im. Pretty sure he was after women and nothin' else. Pined for months, but I got over it."

"Unfortunate," Rahab replied sympathetically. "I'm a bit surprised that casual experimentation wasn't rampant among the servant ranks, however."

Vance shook his head, finally making brief eye contact. "Oh, that happened plenty, but most of them boys was... well, aggressive. Pushy. I saw 'em, what they were like, and kept my tastes to myself because they scared me. Lorrelin sorted 'em right out whenever she caught wind of anything along those lines, but they never seemed to learn even when she belted 'em practically bloody. You... you've never been like that, not that I've seen. None of you have. That's why I ain't worried about it. Never entered my mind that you'd do anythin' like that, even when I was still scared. You got more honor than that."

Well, that was a relief, at least. Vance appeared to be relaxing enough to open up a bit, and Rahab had grown curious, so he continued to question him.

"You've no interest in women at all, then?"

"They're pretty enough to look at, if I'm bein' honest," he shrugged. "I've not really seen any naked, I guess, save for Stella and the other girls when we was still little and in the nursery, before they sorted us into the dorms, which don't exactly count. What the other boys talked about, though, I never saw much appeal in. I always noticed broad shoulders and a nice-looking backside, never paid attention to tits and hips and all that."

"I'd say that confirms it, then. You don't have to have actually taken a man to bed to know you'd like to. I knew fairly early on that I had desire across the entire board, more or less equally. I met and married Lenore after I was a year or so old, but my first encounter was with Raziel, within a few months of being raised. We're not like humans, to be clear," Rahab quickly explained when Vance's expression became disturbed. "We use the same terminology that human relatives use, but it just isn't the same. The disinclination toward actual incest is retained in those who were related in life, such as Tantallon and Lenore, of course. Were you and Stella to be turned, you'd not have any interest in one another either." 

"Huh... never would've known that," Vance replied. "Why Raziel?"

"He was the only one I felt safe with, to be frank. The rest of our brothers were either absolute cunts or interested in women alone, so they were right out. Most of my early experiences were with either Raziel or various women. Didn't stop when I married Lenore, of course, though there was certainly a lull since I was so wrapped up in my newfound love. At the time, I'd have allowed the Master to bed me had he ever shown any interest, would have seen it as a great honor, in fact... but I don't expect that the experience would have been entirely mutually pleasurable. I'm very much glad I'm past all that nonsense."

"Don't think I'd want to be learnin' any of this from Kain, if you'll pardon my sayin' so. Especially since he apparently used to be a lot meaner."

"He was never a rapist either, but he never had much patience. I doubt he'd have wanted to deal with a bumbling virgin. He'd likely have simply tossed either of us out on our backsides and gone to find someone who knew what they were doing."

"Don't seem all that complicated to me, but I'd be a nervous wreck, as usual, so..."

"It's actually far more complicated between men than between women, if penetration is involved. Much more preparation is required, particularly for those who aren't accustomed to such activity, or it's incredibly painful. Some enjoy that sort of pain, but I certainly never did. Men are also far easier to bring to orgasm, and I don't know if you've noticed, but we can't just fire them off one after another the way women can."

Vance suddenly made eye contact again, looking rather indignant. "Wait, what? Women can... one after another? Like, only two minutes instead of twenty or thirty?"

"Yes, indeed," Rahab nodded before snickering. "Ask Amalia sometime."

"I... don't think I'll be talkin' to miss Amalia about this sort of thing, if it's all the same to you. Must be fuckin' nice, though," Vance muttered.

"Right?" replied Rahab, leaning his head on his hand, elbow on the rim of the tub. "I never thought it was fair, either. You can occasionally wring a second out of a male partner if you know what you're doing and where to apply the right sort of pressure, but not always."

"Pressure?"

Rahab immediately lit up at the opportunity to corrupt the boy in a way that would only benefit him and had no risk of harming him the way bedding him easily could. "Why, you innocent little lamb," he replied with a wolfish grin. "There's a spot just inside that responds very well to being pressed on. Get some oil and do some exploring, you'll find it soon enough... and you'll paint the fucking ceiling when you do."

Vance promptly burst out laughing. "I don't suppose there are books about all this, are there?"

"Oh, of course there are. Once you're reading properly, I'll find you some."

"Best get on it then, eh?" the boy suggested with a grin, reaching for the book.

Rahab readily agreed, happy to see that they were back on track. "Yes, lets. I'm actually intrigued by the story after reading the summary on the back, even if it's aimed at juveniles. Once you've practiced a while, you'll be marching straight back downstairs so we can join the cleanup effort, I'm afraid. I've absolutely zero faith that you won't fall asleep if I don't keep you busy... and I meant it when I said no naps."

Chapter Text

Rahab was proud indeed of Vance's progress, even if the boy occasionally found it frustrating to have to focus so hard on sounding out words that he had to stop and reread the entire sentence in order to parse what was actually happening in the story. 

"It snowed all day yes... hmmph. ...and today... Yesterday! Yesterday and today," he read, figuring out what the word was from context. "I have not been outside since the storm began, and I am bored for the first time since I ran away from home..." He trailed off, huffed, and showed the page to Rahab upon coming across yet another word which was spelled in a way that made absolutely zero sense in relation to how it was pronounced. 

"Eight. Eight months ago..."

"To live off the land," Vance finished. "Huh. This kid's really out there survivin' on his own."

"He certainly seems to be," Rahab agreed. "You've really come a long way with this since we began all those weeks ago. You won't even need my help for much longer, I'd wager."

"I think they're startin' to clean up out there," the boy observed, hearing voices down in the corridor and getting up to look out the window. "Yep," he confirmed.

"Well, I suppose we'd better call it for now, then. Come, let me haul myself out of the tub, and we'll go help. Once things are back in order, we can socialize with everyone until a decent hour for you to go to bed."

"No naps, I know," Vance sighed. "I reckon you're gonna keep the book so I can't stay up all night readin' it, too."

"Indeed I am. Hand it here."

Everyone continued to relax and enjoy themselves over the next few days. Amalia began planning another trip home, this time intending to bring the humans along, much to their absolute delight and excitement. Janos led Rahab to the pool, which was absolutely magnificent and bore much resemblance to their bathtubs, except on a much grander scale. He practiced swimming and diving throughout each day, only stopping to pay attention to Lenore, join whoever was cooking that night for meals, and on one occasion, help Raziel brew up his first batch of potions in their new lab. The others came and went as they pleased, observing him a while and letting him show off a bit before wandering off back to their own affairs. Vance finally broke away from enthusing about the upcoming adventure with Amalia and came to see him on the third day. They ended up conversing in Rahab's quarters for quite some time before the subject they'd discussed during his bath came up again.

"Did find some oil, like you told me to, by the way..."

"Ah! Not so innocent anymore, are you, little lamb?" Rahab grinned, delighted to hear it.

Vance immediately began to flush red again. "I... I mean, I didn't..." He trailed off, then sighed. "I chickened out. Too afraid I'd hurt myself."

Rahab was mildly disappointed, as he'd hoped Vance would have details he could coax out of him. "Pity," he replied. "Just to ease your fears, however, you won't harm yourself as long as you go slowly and listen to what your body is telling you. If something hurts, just stop and either don't do it again or do it more slowly. Do you still have the oil?"

Vance immediately produced a small vial from his pocket. "Yeh... fat lot of good it'll do a coward like me, though," he muttered.

"There's no shame in it, child. It's intimidating, I'll freely admit it. I was frightened when Raziel introduced me to the practice as well, but he's patient and had my best interest at heart. Once he got me past the jitters, I realized just how good it felt and had no regrets. I'm certain he'd be more than happy to aid you the same way-"

Vance immediately balked, shaking his head vigorously. "Gods, no! I could never, can't even imagine lettin' him see me naked, much less... I mean, I just couldn't! It's not that I don't trust 'im, I trust you both, I swear it! I just..."

"Easy, Vance," Rahab soothed, hoping to interrupt him before he worked himself up any further. "I understand. Trust doesn't make it feel any less vulnerable for you to submit to such ministrations. It's difficult to let go like that, don't beat yourself up over it. You're not really close with him like I am anyhow, I suppose."

"Never had much of a chance to be, what with my station and all before all this. But I always liked him. He's never even spoke sharp to me, even when he was technically reprimandin' me," replied Vance as he flopped himself unhappily down on the floor next to Rahab's legs. Rahab lifted his hand to run his claws through the boy's hair in consolation, and the unexpected touch completely disrupted his thought process. After an initial surprised flinch, he stilled and fell silent.

Rahab thought for certain he'd made a careless mistake and frightened him, but it quickly became apparent that Vance's reaction wasn't born of fear. He watched as the boy's shoulders hiked up to his ears with a pleasurable full-body shudder. "Well, now I've done it, haven't I?" Rahab commented with a smirk as he watched goosebumps appear on his arms. "You'll soon fall over asleep right where you sit, and spend the rest of the day decorating my floor."

"Won't fall asleep," Vance mumbled unconvincingly as he pulled his knees up to rest his chin upon. 

"You need a haircut, child," Rahab observed, taking one of his locks between thumb and fore-talon and giving it soft tug. "Unless you're planning to grow it out to shoulder length like ours."

"Nah, it'll start lookin' goofy. Tried once. Stella cuts it for me, usually. Just haven't asked her yet."

"Fair enough. What sort of oil is in that vial, by the way?" Rahab asked. "Some types are better suited for these things than others."

Vance pulled the bottle back out of his pocket and handed it over. "Dunno, was in the kitchen next to the sink. Looks like oil to me, thought it would work well enough."

Rahab opened the stopper, sniffed at the contents, and immediately shook his head. "This isn't oil, it's liquid glycerin soap, I recognize it from its alchemical applications, few as they are. I suppose it might work well enough-"

"No! No, believe me... you don't want that stuff in there," Vance immediately protested, wide awake again and looking absolutely horrified by the suggestion.

"Why not?"

"That's what they'd pipe up your arse in the infirmary if they decided you weren't well because you hadn't had a shit in too long. Lorrelin's got a syringe with a rubber tip, and she'd have someone help hold you down if you put up a fight. Works a treat, but burns like absolute hell from what I've heard."

Now it was Rahab's turn to look horrified. "Gods above, I could have gone the rest of eternity without knowing that. And I hate to imagine anyone having such a thing forced upon them. My god, how traumatic!"

"You're tellin' me. She wasn't mean about it, in her defense, just matter of fact. Had to be done, no helpin' it, might as well get it over with, y'know? Always gave whoever got it somethin' good to eat and the rest of the day off to recover, at least. Ain't never had it done myself, but I seen plenty come back out the door after an hour or so lookin' mighty subdued."

"Good thing your anxiety got the best of you, then, I'd say. Come, I'll get you what you need."

Rahab led Vance up to the bedroom and began to root around in one of the bedside drawers. "Here, this is the proper thing to use," he said upon finding what he was after, returning with a somewhat fancier-looking bottle and handing it over. "It's simple vegetable oil, perfectly harmless."

"You're... you're sure it won't burn or nothin'?"

"It's never once bothered me. The sensation of being penetrated can be somewhat... intense... at first, but you'll quickly adjust so long as you're taking it slow."

"Intense?" the boy asked, looking nervous. The unexpected memory of what often took place in the infirmary back home had clearly rattled him.

"It's just different, I suppose. I can't describe it, really, but I can promise you the results will be worth it."

"If you say so," Vance mumbled, immediately turning and heading back to the stairs.

"Vance," Rahab called after him, keeping his voice soft. "Come back here," he commanded, surprised to see how utterly dejected he looked as he turned back. "Listen to me," he continued, putting his hands on his shoulders. "It was only a suggestion, child. You don't have to do this."

"I'm just sick of always bein' so damn scared of everything! How am I ever gonna be with anyone if I'm too afraid to..."

Rahab sat them both down on the edge of the bed to counsel him, intending to quash this line of thought. He hadn't realized that Vance had been feeling so down on himself over his anxiety. "The right partner will be more than happy to ease you into it, just like Raziel did with me. I'm generally open to new things, if not dangerously eager to rush toward them, so I'm not quite sure why this intimidated me so much... but I couldn't bring myself to do it on my own either," he confessed. At this point, he honestly had half a mind to just offer to introduce Vance to the practice himself. He held little aversion to taking him to bed after their last conversation, realizing that he clearly trusted him enough to be willing to say no if he didn't want it. But would he be able to bring himself to say yes if he did? He'd fallen silent again, and merely sat staring at the floor. Would he panic if Rahab made the suggestion?

Well, there was only one way to find out.

"Vance, I'm going to ask you something that's going to be difficult for you to answer, but you owe it to yourself to tell me the truth. Would you feel safe enough to explore this with me?"

He didn't get up and fling himself straight out the window the way Rahab half expected him to, but it definitely threw him. He stiffened, eyes widening, and remained silent. Rahab reached up to stroke his hair again in an attempt to snap him out of it. "It's okay if you don't want to. But it's also okay if you do. There's nothing to be ashamed of, and frankly, I hate seeing you feeling so badly about something I only suggested because I wanted you to find enjoyment in it."

"It ain't your fault," Vance mumbled, seeming to have regained his powers of speech from the comforting touch.

"If you want to face your fear, I will ensure that you find the experience enjoyable, even if it's a bit nerve-wracking at first. Believe me, once you've spilled every drop you've got and then some, you won't be thinking about any of this. You won't be thinking at all for several minutes, likely."

"See, that's what made me want to try it in the first place, you talkin' about it like it's some sort of heaven on earth experience."

"I mean... it sort of is, really," Rahab responded truthfully. "You can find out right now, if you can pluck up the courage."

"Wha- Now? Right now?" Vance sputtered.

"Unless you've got somewhere important to be. The oil is right here, we're literally sitting on a bed," he said encouragingly. "All you need to do is lie back and try to relax, I'll handle everything from there."

Vance gulped hard, but to Rahab's surprise, he began to shuffle backward onto the bed. "You... you want to do this? With me?"

"Child, do you have any idea how much fun it is to introduce someone to something brand new and watch them as they take delight in it for the first time? Call me a bad influence if you want. I'll fashion a gold badge displaying that title and wear it with pride," he replied flatly.

"But... I'll have to... we can't do anythin' like this with my clothes on! I don't know if I can stand to just lay here with you starin' where the sun don't shine."

"You'll have to disrobe, yes, but you can lie under one of the sheets. I can find what I need to get at through touch alone; I know what I'm doing. I'd certainly like to see everything, but it's hardly necessary."

Vance was now flat on his back, but his legs were crossed tightly, and he hugged himself as he looked up at Rahab, who stroked his hair yet again. "We can stop this at any point. We can stop just for now, or we can stop entirely and let the matter rest for good. I will not be upset or disappointed in you, I swear it," he said softly, watching as the boy nodded up at him. "Why don't you turn onto your belly for me for now. You're too worked up to get down to business. Get yourself comfortable," he suggested, quickly blunting his claws before sliding his hand up the back of Vance's shirt. "Let me just do this a while. We can forget the oil for the time being."

Vance jolted at the touch, but didn't shy away. "Should I... do I need my shirt?"

"It would be easier without it, if you're comfortable removing it."

"Well, no... that I don't mind," Vance replied, pulling his shirt over his head and handing it over to Rahab. "It's the pants I'll have a hard time with."

"All in good time," Rahab replied as he quickly folded the shirt and laid it off to the side. "Just lie here a while. I won't touch you anywhere below the waist until you give me permission to do so." Vance complied with little more than a wary glance over his shoulder before settling down and allowing Rahab to run his talons down his back. The vampire quickly took notice of his sturdy build; Vance was several inches shorter, but his frame was naturally stocky and fairly well muscled due to performing manual labor for so many years. Perhaps now was a good time to get him talking to distract him from his worry. "You're really quite talented, you know. Not just with gardening; but with repairs and building things. I'll bet there's a woodworking shop somewhere around that plaza; how would that suit you?"

Vance let out a breath he'd been holding since he'd first rolled over, a deep, shuddering sigh that signaled the gradual release of the tension he'd built up. "Ain't much experience with that," he replied. "Only figured out a few patch jobs on the fly so far, really, but it'd be fun to learn, especially with that drill you all gave me makin' things easier. Doin' so much learnin' lately, though..."

"Again, all in good time. You're young yet; you've got your entire life ahead of you to pick up skills and put them to good use," replied Rahab, keeping his touch light while closely watching Vance's body language. He certainly seemed to be relaxing, but he didn't want to push his luck by starting to knead at his muscles lest he hit a painful knot and startle him right back into hypervigilance. "You're already basically reading on your own now; though your vocabulary still needs expanding. You picked up immediately on how to infer meaning through context when I explained it, however, so that won't remain a problem for long. The more you learn, the easier it gets to learn more. How are you enjoying having your own home?"

"Oh, that's great," the boy replied, the grin evident in his voice even if Rahab couldn't see his face, which was buried in the pillow. He turned his head and arched his back slightly under the feel of the blunted claws trailing down his spine, suddenly seizing with another full-body shudder and again breaking out into goosebumps. Whoops. Perhaps Rahab's touch had been a little too light; he hadn't meant to tickle him. He started to smooth the flat of his hands over his skin instead, prompting another contented sigh from his charge. "Didn't even take any gettin' used to like I thought it would. Figured I wouldn't know what to do with the place, but I already got it rearranged how I like, and I got a mental list of things I wanna get to decorate with. Certainly gonna take advantage of that big window for potted plants. Feels like I've been there all my life, really."

"That's good to hear," replied Rahab, and it was. "There's the area with the raised garden beds, too, don't forget. We've got food for now, but we'll need to start farming for you humans soon enough. We shouldn't greedily expect the Divines to simply provide everything for us."

"I'd be bored to tears without work to do," Vance replied with a slight shake of his head. "Amalia said she ordered seeds for those tomato plants that we can make that sauce from when she went back home last time. Said the next time she went and stayed a couple days, they'd come right to her house, so we'll bring 'em back when we go."

"That'll be nice, particularly now that we can enjoy human food without consequence. I can only assume Amalia knows how to make the sauce."

"Said somethin' about her granny's recipe, yeah," he replied with a cavernous yawn.

"Don't you fall asleep, now. I'm trying to relax you, not knock you unconscious. The orgasm later will likely take care of that," he smirked, deciding on a whim to take the risk of bringing it up now that Vance had practically become one with the soft coverlet he was lying upon. To his relief, the boy only hid his face in the pillow again. 

"That good, eh?" he mumbled.

"It really is," Rahab confirmed. "You won't black out in the middle or anything... but you'll be exhausted afterward, and not particularly eager to move. And you won't need to, you can stay right here to rest all you like. Lenore won't mind if she comes back; she doesn't spend much time in the bedroom if we're not sleeping or fucking anyhow."

"It won't hurt at all?"

"I'll take it slowly enough that it won't, no. My talons aren't thick like those the others have, and my claws are well blunted. The initial sensation might feel a bit uncomfortable, but you'll adjust quickly so long as I'm gentle. It feels good once you're used to it and can relax into it. All I have to do then is curl my talon and press on the right spot; I won't have to move it a lot, so that part, at least, won't be too overwhelming."

"How long will it take?"

Rahab hummed contemplatively. "Depends, really. You're likely pent up with need after having only yourself to rely upon until the age of twenty, so that'll factor in-"

"Twenny-two," the boy corrected distractedly, surprising Rahab a bit. Stella must be at least twenty-three, then, more likely twenty-four same as Amalia. Well, so much the better, really; more time to mature wasn't exactly a bad thing at this age whether sex was coming into play or not. "Hmm, I guess I'd pegged you for Tantallon and Lenore's age when they were turned. My apologies. Anyway, attention paid to your cock will help, obviously, whether it's me doing it or you, but even that isn't necessary if you're not ready for it, it'll just take a bit longer. You'll come eventually regardless."

Vance wasn't focused on the mistaken assumption about his age anyway. He found the idea of touching himself in front of Rahab infinitely more harrowing than allowing the vampire to touch him, which wasn't saying much because that frightened him half to death too. Perhaps he'd just take the easier option of waiting it out. Talking about it, thinking about it already had him half hard, and he was grateful to be lying on his belly where it was safely concealed, provided he could manage to keep still and not give it away by grinding against the bed. Rahab was astute, however, and actively watching for signs of arousal. When Vance's breathing picked up slightly, he instantly lit up and broke out into a wolfish grin. If there was one thing he was good at in the bedroom, it was talking dirty, and his deep voice tended to drive his partners absolutely wild once he got going. His favorite little human would soon be putty in his hands; ready for Rahab to teach him an entirely different kind of new thing.

"I'm more than happy to take you in hand myself, you know," he purred, noting with sheer delight the nearly imperceptible squirm and softly whispered "Fuck," it elicited. "Might only take a few strokes before you spill. It won't matter... I can make you come again even after you go soft, should you desire it."

The boy huffed a laugh, squirming a bit harder this time. "You tryin' to kill me?" he asked, the amusement as evident in his voice as his arousal was.

Rahab snickered. "You won't die. You could be nursing a bona fide years-long death wish and you'd abandon the idea immediately if it meant you'd get to have this whenever you want it."

"I'm scared," Vance whispered.

"I know, little lamb," Rahab soothed, reaching up to run his talons through Vance's shaggy hair again. "But once you've done this once, it'll never be frightening again. Shall we try it?"

"Oh, god..." Vance breathed with a hard gulp. "Yeah... yeah, alright. Let's just... before I chicken out, 'cause I might if we wait much longer."

"You can 'chicken out' whenever you feel the need to, Vance. You need only say the word and I will stop immediately. There's no shame in not being ready for something like this. It's as I said... you've got all the time in the world. The idea of it has clearly wormed its way well into your brain, so if you're not ready now, your curiosity will soon push you in the right direction.

"Nah, fuck it. I'm tired of being scared of everything," he replied determinedly. "If I'm gonna be brave for anything, might as well be somethin' that'll be fun in the end."

"It'll be 'fun in the end', alright," Rahab smirked, causing Vance to snort with laughter when he realized his unintentional innuendo. That sort of juvenile commentary was usually Tantallon's thing save for the rare occasions where he'd had enough wine to loosen his tongue, but he wanted to lighten the mood, and seemed to have succeeded. It was another encouraging response in a string of encouraging responses over the last few minutes, and as he'd already obtained the boy's consent, he went ahead and ran his talons over Vance's backside before pausing to consider the necessary preparations. The oil was close at hand, but he needed something to protect the bedding as well as cover his charge with as he'd requested. Fortunately, he and Lenore always kept towels in the bedside tables for exactly this sort of activity. "Here, now, move to the middle of the bed and I'll cover you with this so you can bare yourself comfortably. Once you do, this one needs to go under you. Arrange it so it covers the bed until at least mid-thigh. Lenore's quite relaxed about these things, but she wouldn't particularly appreciate someone else's semen all over the coverlet."

"Fair enough," Vance replied, awkwardly wriggling out of his pants while Rahab kindly pretended to be busy and not paying attention. Once he had the towel arranged, he lowered himself back onto his belly and waited, trying to control both his shaking and his erection, which was at full mast by now and positively aching. He squeezed his eyes closed as Rahab appeared in his peripheral vision, turning his head and bringing his hand up to hide his face. "Thought you'd be behind me," he mumbled.

"I would if you'd be more comfortable with me there, but I won't be able to get at what I need to from that angle. What we're after lies just inside, downward a bit and toward your front; I need to be able to curl my talon that way rather than the other. I need to position you correctly as well. Here now, roll onto your side," he suggested gently, making sure to keep the towel Vance was hiding himself under in place. "Bring this leg up toward your chest a bit. You should be able to just lie there for as long as it takes, but if you need to move, you need only let me know. Now, obviously, I'm going to be touching you, and quite a lot. If you're not comfortable touching yourself at all, I'm at the very least going to need to take hold of you and aim you down into the towel so you don't end up firing straight across the room."

Vance snorted again at the mental image. "Could set up a target," he replied cheekily, catching Rahab completely off guard and causing him to lose it to the point he had to take a moment, facepalming in mock exasperation as he shook with laughter. "Alright, you little shit, enough silliness," he jokingly chided once he'd recovered enough to talk. "This business is precise, and if you get us both laughing again while I'm going about it, it's going to be quite uncomfortable for you," he informed him as he reached for the oil. "Target..." he muttered as he took the stopper out of the bottle and set it back down within reach, unable to hide his grin. "What's next?" Fortunately, Vance was unaware of the existence of trap shooting and clay pigeons, because he'd have sent Rahab straight back into fits if he were.

The exchange had eased the boy's tension considerably, and he took a deep breath and tried to think of how proud of himself he ought to be for diving into this experience despite being so daunted by it. He gasped and tensed again the instant he felt Rahab move one hand underneath the towel, but was immediately soothed with a stroke to his hair from the other. "Relax, child. I'm going to go slowly enough to allow you to become accustomed to each touch before I move on to the next. You'll jolt, you'll get used to the new sensation, and then you'll relax into it. Then," he added as he felt for Vance's tailbone to get his bearings, "the real fun begins."

Vance gulped as he felt Rahab's blunted claws gently move from his tailbone into the cleft underneath. At first he wasn't sure about the position he'd been put in, finding that it caused him to feel far more exposed than he wanted to be, but now he realized why the vampire had arranged him this way. Lying with his knee bent and pulled up meant it wasn't necessary for Rahab to use his hand to spread him, leaving it free for him to continue to calm him with his touch. There was really no avoiding being completely exposed if he wanted to do this now that he was thinking the process through, and he might as well have the comforting touches to his back and hair. Rahab wasn't looking at it thanks to the towel, and that was good enough.

He yipped and jolted as if he'd been shot when the probing talon brushed against the opening. "Gods above, that's...!"

"Very sensitive, I know," Rahab finished for him, guiding him back into position and stroking down his back. "I told you you'd jolt," he smirked. "You've never been touched here, I take it?" he asked, gently laying his talon on the right spot and keeping it there while Vance shuddered at the way it felt.

"No, thank the gods," he squeaked, trying as hard as he could to stay still as he adjusted to the foreign sensation. "Only occasion would have been a trip to the infirmary or with those pushy boys, and neither of 'em would have been voluntary."

"It'll be nothing but voluntary from here on out," Rahab replied as he pulled away to coat his talon with the oil. "This will feel slightly different once I find the right place under there again, but not much," he reassured him, sliding his hand back under the towel and probing until he found it. "There we go... Breathe, child. It'll feel good once you're able to relax."

Vance soon found that Rahab was in no way exaggerating. He'd gone somewhat soft by now, but was at full mast again within seconds. "Holy fuck," he breathed. From his position sitting in front of him, Rahab snorted, amused. Vance had gotten distracted enough by what he was feeling to have forgotten about preserving his modesty, and though the boy was still covered by the towel, he could guess what must be happening underneath it. 

"These games require plenty of oil, so I'll be at this a moment. I'm certain you won't mind," Rahab smirked as he poured more oil from the bottle and went searching under the towel again. "Nope," Vance replied bluntly, eliciting a snicker. He repeated the action a few more times, his touch becoming slightly heavier every time he went back. "You've never been harder in your life, have you?" he purred. "Uh-uh," the boy gasped with a shake of his head, his feeling of overwhelming vulnerability now shattered, the pieces scattered to the wind. That didn't take long, Rahab thought to himself with satisfaction. "If you get too warm," he suggested hopefully, "the towel can go. You need only say the word."

"Fuck the towel," Vance growled, snatching it in one fist and tossing it backward himself. 

"Well, look at you... more lion than lamb now, aren't we?" Rahab asked, keeping his voice low and seductive as he looked down at what had been revealed. "Oh, look at you," he breathed again. Vance's cock was larger than he'd expected; a bit longer than Raziel's and every bit as thick, the tip glistening with precum. What really threw him, however, was that the boy seemed to have shaved the entire area a few days prior, meaning the obscuring hair that usually grew thick on humans was cropped off close to the skin, revealing details he'd never have been able to see otherwise. A freckle or two could be found high on the inside of one thigh, and the delicate skin that held his testicles was a few shades darker than the rest of him in a way you never saw in vampires... except perhaps his own, now that his skin was so oddly pigmented. He'd never thought to look, come to think of it. Setting the thought aside for later, he directed his attention back where it belonged. "Hold on tight to that bravery, little lion," he leaned down and breathed seductively into Vance's ear, resulting in a second, considerably louder "Oh, fuck!" Now was probably a good time to cast a sound ward. The instant the short incantation was past his lips, he began to press the tip of his claw inward, stopping at where it attached to his talon.

"Fuck!" Vance gasped, grasping a fistful of the coverlet. "Easy, now... stay still," Rahab told him, placing his free hand on his hip to steady him. "Eager as you've become, you need a moment to adjust to this." And so do I, he thought. He'd in no way expected Vance to lose himself this way before he even started trying to make him come; had in fact expected the leadup to be unarousingly clinical, only for it to turn out to be anything but. He was nearly full mast as well at this point, and knew that once Vance was asleep he'd need to sneak off for a while, either to find Lenore or take care of it himself. For now, he had a job to do. He pressed his talon in far enough to reach the right spot and curled it as soon as he could feel what he was looking for, eliciting another gasp. "Stay still," he said again, then began to apply light pressure. 

"Oh, god," Vance half moaned, and Rahab gave him a few more moments to adjust before he began to gently rock his hand. "That's it... I knew you could handle it," he said softly. "Is it alright if I touch you with my other hand?"

"Yes, gods yes, I... I need..."

"I know what you need," Rahab growled into his ear as he brushed the back of his talons against Vance's cock, gauging his reaction. Well, he didn't come at the first touch, so it was probably fine to rearrange him a bit without setting him off too early. Hooking his talons underneath, he gently tugged it backward from underneath so it lay dorsal side down and grasped, pulling toward himself slightly so that his foreskin slid back into place and prevented overstimulation to the head, which now lay directly on the rough surface of the towel. There he simply held fast, continuing the rhythmic rocking for several minutes until Vance could no longer control himself and began to move his hips in an attempt to chase any stimulation he could get.

This was what Rahab was waiting for. He gently tugged back on Vance's cock to reveal the head again, then set his thumb on the spot underneath where it joined the shaft. A few passes back and forth and the boy was undone. A few drops of spend fell to the towel several seconds before he seized with a low moan and spilled the rest. "That's it, little lion... ride it out, that's it," Rahab encouraged, not easing up one bit on the stimulation. It dragged the orgasm out long enough that Vance stopped spilling and simply continued to dry spasm another eight or nine times, prompting the boy to lift his head in surprise, nearly brought back to reality upon realizing what was happening, and ask incredulously "How the fuck am I still coming?!" in a squeaky, breathy voice.

Rahab finally eased off, laughing out loud in sheer delight as Vance's head hit the pillow again, his breathing rapid and labored. "I told you, didn't I?"

"You wasn't exaggeratin'," he replied weakly, his eyes fluttering shut as he lay there completely ragdolled, unable to respond even to the sensation of Rahab withdrawing his talon.

"See? I was right about this, too. Don't exactly want to get up and run laps up and down the corridor, do you?"

"Fuck no. Don't think I could get up if I tried. Arms and legs are shakin' too hard."

"That's how you know it was a good one," Rahab replied rather smugly. He got up to wash his hands, returning with a cloth he'd wetted with warm water. "Let me help you onto your back so I can clean you up. You're still a bit sensitive, no doubt, but I'll be quick," he promised. He was forced to do basically all the work of shifting the boy, whose limbs fell heavy to the bed so he was practically spread eagle once he was on his back. Rahab did not mind one bit. He took his flagging erection in hand once more, gently swiping the cloth over it before exposing the head again and continuing. Vance gasped and jolted slightly at the uncomfortable overstimulation. "I know, I know. That was it, it's done," Rahab soothed as he pulled the protective skin back into place.

"How much was there? I feel like my balls just got turned inside out. I mean that in the best way possible, but fuckin' hell."

"I don't know how much is normal for you, but it was quite a bit. Your balls are safely right side out, however," he replied as he passed the cloth over those. Only thing left was the oil. He hooked his arm under Vance's legs and lifted, allowing him to apply the cloth with his other hand. That got a bit of a jolt out of him too, but he did not protest, even though he was aware everything was completely exposed to plain sight. He was simply too out of it to care, and it seemed a trivial thing anyhow after all that had just taken place.

"Hmm... Where'd the hair go?" Rahab asked, reminded of his curiosity by the sight before him. "There's usually much more than this."

"Beard trimmer, Amalia called it. Brought it back along with a bunch of hand held razors for my face, but I ain't about to use them on my nethers. Easier than the straight razor for my face, though. Can't decide which way I like it best."

"Can't help you there, I'm afraid," the vampire replied as he tossed the rag aside and settled down next to Vance on the bed, stroking his hair once more. "I hardly remember the time when mine grew like that naturally. It obviously must have when I was human, but we lose it after our first Change." To his great surprise, Vance hauled himself onto his side and curled up against him, snuggling close and mumbling a soft "Thanks," after a moment.

"Anytime you want it, little lion. Anytime you want it."

Chapter Text

Vance continued to make headway on his reading skills, but this in no way meant that he spent less time with Rahab. After all, he still had spellwork to practice, and while he still preferred to get lost in a book, Rahab encouraged him to divide his attention by teaching him spells that would aid him in his true passion, which was gardening and working with his hands. The two of them explored the centralized public workshop, which they quickly concluded was too large to even bother with when the plaza, which had many of the same amenities, was closer. They spent an entire evening moving boxes of written manuals and guides, stacks of materials, and a few particularly useful tools to the smaller shops, then decided to call it a night and visit the farm area the next morning. Several pleasant hours were spent there strategizing what to plant and where. Vance rearranged implements and any portable containers to his liking, and then Rahab got to work teaching him how to adjust the brightness of the magelights he crafted and which words activated the runes on the wall which were responsible for the irrigation system and climate control. Satisfied in his charge's progress, he left him to his devices and started back toward home, ducking in surprise when a black feathered blur suddenly swooped into his field of vision. Arta whizzed over his head through the corridor and out the nearest window, uttering naught but a trilling laugh and a single word as she went.

"Surprise!"

Odd, he thought to himself, rather unsettled at the unexpected reappearance of the goddess, to say nothing of her cryptic greeting. I didn't know they'd returned. Unable to shake the feeling of foreboding the encounter had evoked, he hurried on back to the residential wing. When he climbed the stairs to his home and opened the door, at first all seemed normal. The lights were lit, a fire roared in the hearth, and there was his beloved Lenore, sitting right on the living room couch, placid and peaceful as always. His relief evaporated in an instant when his eyes landed on what she was holding. 

In his bride's arms, fast asleep, blue skinned and stubby-winged... was an infant Vampire. 

Where did...? How could...?! No. No, absolutely not. After a moment of pure shock and dread, he regained his wits and marched straight to the couch to loom over her, arms crossed. 

"Lenore."

She looked innocently up at him, cradling the slumbering baby to her breast. "Hmm?"

"Where did you get that?"

Lenore glanced down at the child, then back up. "What, this?"

"The baby, Lenore," he replied, quite sternly, perfectly aware that she knew full well what he was referring to. "Where did you get the baby?"

She promptly dropped the act. "Rahab, don't get angry, it's only temporary. Arta brought him from an orphanage in one of the Vampire cities to show him to Janos since it'll be some time before he can see any of his other kin, and, well... I just couldn't help but offer to take him so he could stay a few days! Do you realize how much good it's done him to hold a Vampire baby for the first time in centuries? He wept like-"

Well, that explained the encounter in the corridor. Highly irritated at both goddess and bride, Rahab cut Lenore off. "Then let Janos care for it! Lenore, if you think I'm going to play adoptive father to a-"

"No one asked you to help! We all knew better!" Lenore snapped, huddling protectively over the baby, which was now beginning to squirm and fuss, having been woken by their argument. "Besides, I literally just told you it was only temporary. He's already been formally adopted by a family who are preparing their home for him, and Arta will take him to them once they're ready."

Rahab softened his tone, somewhat taken aback by his bride's uncharacteristic aggression toward him and fearing the thing in her arms would start screaming if even one more harsh word were uttered. "Darling... do you have any idea how much work those are? Have you forgotten that they're just like adults in that once they've digested their food, they... Well, hold it long enough, you'll soon be reminded," he said, eyeing the bundle in her arms with distaste. "And speaking of, what will you feed it? Human females cannot nurse unless they've given birth recently. Neither Lorrelin nor Stella have anything to offer, their bodies don't waste energy producing the milk if there's nothing around that needs it."

Lenore sat patiently through her husband's lecture as she shushed the child back to sleep, then sat up and looked him straight in the eye. "I was human once, dearest, just like you. But unlike you, I remember my former life. Do you really think I never looked after a baby in the entire twenty years I lived? Most of us females found ourselves repeatedly saddled with babysitting duty by the age of ten! Even Tantallon knows the basics; I roped him into helping me more than once, and Janos and the others will also be involved in helping to care for him while he's here. I'm well aware that they cannot control their bladder or bowels at this age, Rahab; you see he's wearing a diaper, don't you? Why on earth would I assume otherwise? I'm not stupid. Cow's milk will do fine until Amalia can bring back food made for babies from her world, which she's about to leave to do. None of the rest of you need lift a talon, nor do we expect you to," she said with a glare.

"We don't have a cow," was all Rahab could come up with in retort.

"The Divines left milk in the larders of all three humans when they provisioned us," Lenore replied with smug satisfaction, nodding to a small clay jug sitting on the dining room table. 

He sighed deeply, utterly defeated. "I can see that there's no reasoning with you over this. Let me know when you've all tired of its squalling and... eliminating," he said. "Perhaps then you'll remember why we only ever kept adult humans as pets. At least they can hold it until the appropriate time and place."

"Go away," she said breezily, waving a hand at him as she gazed down at the infant in her arms.

"Gladly," he gritted through his teeth as he turned toward the door.

As it turned out, Rahab wasn't the only one who was less than thrilled. Opinions were split, with Janos, Stella, and Amalia all excited while Tantallon, Raziel, Kain, and Lorrelin were less than enthusiastic. 

"I know it means the world to Janos, and really I can't begrudge him the experience," Raziel sighed. "But... a baby? Why? Why not bring an adult?"

"Janos has seen adults since the curse, Raz. Babies haven't existed since before it. Come on, it's not like we're the ones adopting it. He needed this."

"I said I didn't begrudge it!" 

All Tantallon had to say to Stella about it was "Don't get any fucking ideas, woman."

"It's not as if you can get me pregnant anyway, you idiot!" she huffed, affronted.

"No one here got anyone pregnant," Lorrelin countered. "Funnily enough, I somehow still woke up to the wails of an infant reverberating off the walls of the corridor!"

"You guys are all being serious assholes about this," Amalia stated, arms crossed. "This is for Janos, and if he comes back and hears you talking all this shit, he's going to feel awful! It's for a few days, that's it! You will live."

"Easy for you to say," Rahab snapped. "Your significant other isn't the one who opted to look after it the entire time!"

"We're all going to take turns!" she countered.

"I'm sorry, what?" demanded Raziel.

"Enough," growled Kain, his already thin patience about to snap. "Nevermind the brat, Arta said that Aubrex will soon..." He trailed off as an enormous shadow sailed past the stained glass windows on its way to the landing area above, momentarily darkening part of the corridor. "Return," he finished. "Hopefully what he brings will be a marked improvement over Arta's little surprise."

Aubrex brought nothing tangible, but the news he returned with was heartening.

"This... parasite," the dragon began. "We can sense it. It cannot hide its loathsome aura. Foreign, unnatural," he growled, pacing back and forth through the residence hall. "It does not belong. It stands out, and thus is easy to detect. Easy to ferret out. It cannot hide," he repeated, drawing the last word out and baring his fangs in an expression that could easily have been an eager grin or a ferocious scowl. No one was sure, and no one wanted to ask.

"Were you able to see it, Divine One?" Raziel asked. "He is... invisible to most."

"We did not see it. We did not look. We know we can detect it, and that is good enough for now. We do not wish to reveal our presence, lest it realize just how much danger it is truly in," he replied. "Better to catch it off guard."

"It has spread itself, anchored itself, in many places," Kain informed the dragon. "Unless we can attack all of them simultaneously, it will be on alert once we make our move. We must discern where it is weakest in order to make the first strike count."

"And so we shall. Arta has returned to our people. I will follow. We will rally a force."

"You intend to bring Janos' kin here to fight?" Kain asked incredulously.

"His kin? No," Aubrex replied with a shake of his head, turning to leave. "Mine."

"Oh, shit," Amalia breathed, watching him shrink down, spread his wings, and take off up the spiral staircase at the end of the hall.

"I wish he had stayed," Kain groused. "We need to start strategizing. It doesn't help any of us to know that they can easily detect it, we need to know details!"

"I don't think they mean for us to get down to work on this just yet," said Raziel. "It wasn't bad news, so let's just be grateful for that for now, and go about our business. And you and I," he growled to Amalia, "Need to talk about that damned baby."

"Oh come on, it won't be so-"

"In the house, Amalia. Now."

Stella giggled. "Someone's in trouble," she laughed, turning to Tantallon, who was glaring daggers at her with his arms crossed. "Hey, I never volunteered!"

"You absolutely did! You practically had stars in your eyes the moment you saw it!"

"I said I'd help, not take him overnight!"

Rahab had heard enough. "An absolute fucking nightmare," he snarled to himself as he stormed back into his apartment, barely managing not to slam the door for fear of waking the infant, which Lenore had laid in a basket by the fire. Did no one stop to consider the effect this would have on the women so enamored with the thing? What if Lenore decided she wanted to... No. No, it didn't bear thinking about. And what if Vampire babies had unexpectedly different needs than human babies? Were they certain cow's milk was safe for it? What if they inadvertently made it sick, or harmed it, or even killed it? How much information had Arta relayed on their care? How much did Janos remember? What even was the thing laying in that basket? Powerless to resist his inquisitive nature even when filled with dread at what he might find, Rahab quietly approached the child and knelt down, afraid to look but unable to stomach the idea of not investigating.

The similarities at first glance were indeed rather striking, he had to admit. So strange, to look upon a child which so resembled the human babies he'd seen, yet still bore characteristics in line with his own kind. Was this what babies would look like if Kain's descendants could bear them, minus the wings and blue skin? If one were to spring from his own loins, would it come out with his aquatic features, or take the shape of a common Elder at birth and develop them during one of its Changes? If the women among his fellow vampires could give birth, would they also retain the accompanying functions, such as menstruating and producing milk? Perhaps instead of milk, it would be blood instead? He wasn't sure which he found more disturbing. Besides, what made a vampire a vampire anyway? Would the loss of the sterility lose them the status, or would the bloodthirst and immortality have to follow to disqualify them? If they were to be normal enough to give birth, why wouldn't they just be completely normal? If it were only about the sterility and not the immortality and bloodlust, it would imply that any human who was sterile would qualify as a vampire, wouldn't it? None of them were immortal or bloodthirsty, but sterility was fairly common. So, no, it couldn't just be the sterility. Besides, he'd just remembered that Janos had already established the single real qualification: Being an indirect victim of the Ancient's flawed curse. Which meant that the time he'd just spent thinking about this had been wasted and he'd never get it back.

The direction his thoughts had taken, while quite in line with his usual habit of overthinking new and interesting things to the point of brainless speculation, was beginning to do his head in this time, so he shook them off and focused on what his eyes were telling him. The wings weren't visible since the infant was lying on its back, and Rahab wasn't about to try to roll it over for fear of damaging it somehow. The miniature hands were tridactlyl, just as his own were, though the grubby digits were sturdy and proportionate to the rest of the hand, whereas Rahab's were fairly slender. Reaching down, he took hold of one little talon, lifting up the baby's entire hand as he inspected it. The child promptly yanked it away with a somewhat indignant little squawk, glaring up at Rahab and kicking his legs in irritation.

Rahab snorted. "Not exactly coordinated, are you?" he asked derisively, reaching this time for the other hand and taking one wrist between thumb and fore-talon. This time the baby didn't jerk away, and in fact reached over to grasp Rahab's thumb with his free hand, pulling slightly on the claw and attempting to tug it toward his mouth. Rahab allowed this, if only to nudge his lip upward to inspect his mouth. "Well you'll not be much good at biting if you've no fangs," he commented even as one of his knuckles was caught between soft, toothless gums. The force behind the exploratory nibbling far surpassed what he expected, and he promptly scowled and yanked his talon free of both mouth and hand, resulting in a round of fussing, which he ignored. "Heaven help us once you do, though. Just what we need... another biter among our ranks."

"It'll be a while yet," came Lenore's voice. She was standing at the bottom of the stairs when he looked up, giving him an insufferable smirk, as if she thought he was actually attempting to bond with the thing. "A few months at least. He'll be gone in a matter of days, so you haven't much to worry about." 

"I worry that you'll become too attached," he replied gently, returning his gaze to the child as she approached and sat on the floor next to him. "I didn't realize there were any human maternal instincts buried beneath your vampirism... but clearly you have them. Are you quite sure that you'll ever be the same after this? You were robbed of the opportunity to have your own. I'm afraid of what this may have awakened," he explained, lifting her chin to meet her eyes, ensuring he had her attention. "I'm not like you, Lenore. I can't do this."

"I think you could, should you ever truly need to step up. But you won't," she assured him as she shushed the infant back into contentment. "Yes, I adore the little fellow. I'm going to cry my eyes out when he goes back to his new family... but it's what's best for him. I'll be fine. I'd never expect you to just be okay with keeping one to actually raise. I wouldn't force something like that on you... and I'm sorry I didn't talk to you about this before I took him in."

Rahab put his arm around her. "It's alright, darling..." he sighed, somewhat reassured and unable to stay angry at her. "It wasn't really fair to you, what was taken from you. I know humans have a strong desire to birth and raise children. Had you not been fatally poisoned, you might have been able to. I suppose at least this way, you get a taste of it."

"I told you, I've babysat plenty of times," she laughed. "I'm basically just babysitting now. I'll never know what it's like to bear my own, no... but if I had to choose between a mortal life married to someone else so that I could have children and eternity with you completely barren... I wouldn't change a thing. This is good enough, my love. I'm not going to say that I won't ever want to watch over someone else's for a while again, but I don't need to adopt one permanently so I can mother it, if that's what you fear I'll want to do."

"It... did cross my mind, yes," he admitted. "I'm sorry I can't be what you want in this regard. I want to make you happy... but I'm fairly certain that taking one in for keeps would make me miserable."

"I know it would, and that's the last thing I want. Still, I think it's good that you're interacting, even if you see him as little more than a science project. It's fun to watch, at least."

"I was going to look at his wings, but didn't want to just flip him over. I may not particularly want him here but I certainly don't want to kill him."

"You won't kill him, you just have to support his head," she informed him, reaching down to demonstrate how to pick the child up and holding him upright with his back to her ever-curious husband, who promptly began to fiddle with his down-covered wings.

"If not for the down they'd look just like the plucked wings of a fowl ready for the oven. Stands to reason, I suppose, that wings gifted by a bird goddess would resemble birds' wings."

"It does, doesn't it?" Lenore retorted in a playfully sarcastic tone that implied she were talking to the baby instead of Rahab, who promptly gave her the side-eye.

"Don't patronize me, woman," he said, eliciting a snicker before returning to his inspection. "It really must be most uncomfortable when the real feathers are coming in."

"Probably just like the teething stage. Better his new parents than me, having all of that waiting for them. One set of pointy things emerging is bad enough."

"Two toes, same as us," Rahab continued. "I wonder what it is that causes the curse to change our forms to more resemble theirs?"

Lenore only shrugged. "Do you want to hold him?" she asked hopefully. 

"You know I don't," he replied without hesitation. "The diaper is clean, I trust?"

"Yes, Stella changed him when he got here since I can't wet a cloth to clean him with. Amalia said she'd come back with wipes made for babies that should be safe. I honestly sort of wish I'd have left him with Stella and gone with her to shop for him, but she's no doubt left by now."

Rahab wasn't listening. He hooked a claw in the edge of the diaper and pulled it away, curious as to whether what it concealed matched his own and unsurprised to find that it did, only on a significantly smaller scale. 

"Careful," Lenore laughed. "They're like tiny water cannons at this age. You never know when they'll fire."

Rahab jerked his hand back, wrinkling his nose. "Ugh. Why do people want these things?"

"You don't think he's even a little cute?"

"Puppies and kittens are cute, Lenore. They're also a pain in the arse."

"I'm not hearing a 'no'," she teased. 

He bared his fangs and growled at her, to absolutely no effect. "And you're a pain in my arse. Currently the second biggest one I've got," he groused as he stood to answer a knock at the door. Vance, no doubt, judging by how soft and tentative it was. Hopefully the human would be on his side regarding this travesty.

No such luck. A single glance, a soft gasp, and Vance met Lenore's eyes. "Does... does Janos know? He must... we gotta tell 'im!"

"He knows," Lenore answered. "Once he recovered from the shock and got ahold of himself, he went to search the alchemy lab for anything he thought might be useful for caring for him. Not entirely sure what he had in mind... I think he just needed to do something with himself, honestly. He'll be back."

"An eyedropper, maybe," Vance suggested as he moved in, dropping down to sit on his heels next to Lenore. "Used those in the nursery to feed babies, back when we was servants. Well, not me... I don't know nothin' about 'em. Stella took nursery shifts a few times, but I never did. Was too scared I'd drop one."

"Amalia went back to her world for supplies, apparently," Rahab informed him. "I've never heard her talk about babies, so I don't know how much of an expert she could possibly be. Raziel is none too pleased with her for getting involved in all this, I can tell you that."

"That is correct," came the reply from the door, causing Vance to startle. "I cannot believe she's dragged me into this." Raziel stood leaning against the frame of the door, arms crossed and scowling darkly.

"You speak as though she expects you to join her in caring for him," Lenore chided. "Neither of us are stupid, we knew you'd all fall to pieces at the very sight of an infant."

"I'm not falling to-" Raziel snarled, incensed. "I just... Gods above, Lenore, what if she wants to keep it? What if Stella wants to keep it? What if Janos wants to keep it?"

"None of us can keep him. What do you think they're going to do, fight Arta for him when she comes to take him home? Frankly, Raziel, you and Rahab and Tantallon need to get over yourselves. Stop being so self centered and think of Janos."

"I keep telling you all I don't begrudge-"

"Yes, you do," Lenore snapped, "Or you wouldn't still be griping about this. Now either come and meet him," she demanded, laying the baby down in the basket, "Or go home and pout. Gods above, I've heard more fussing and whining from you men than I have from the baby so far!"

"Let's not be sexist, Lorrelin's not happy about this either," Raziel sniped as he stalked over. "Fine. What's his name?"

"Eridor," she replied, "His name is Eridor, and his like hasn't been seen in this part of the world for thousands of years. Have any of you even stopped to consider just how big a deal this is?"

"Alright," Raziel conceded with a roll of his eyes. "You've made your point. Here," he said, hooking a talon under the handle of the basket and lifting it gingerly onto the couch. "Let's have a look at him, then."

"He looks like you lot," Vance pointed out. "Same hands and feet, and his eyes are gold. Only difference I can see is his skin."

"He's got wings, too," Rahab replied. "Stubby and fuzzy rather than fully-formed and feathered, but they're there."

Raziel couldn't help but think of his own wings. He hadn't told anyone but Amalia, he suddenly realized. She was the only one besides Kain who knew that he had once had a set of his own, different as they were. This one's wings might be as useless now as his were when they were new, but one day... one day this little thing would fly. His wings would grow, and feather out, and he'd get to keep them. He'd have a family with the same gifts who would aid him in gaining the sky. No one was going to rip them off his back before he ever even got to experience what it felt like to take to the air. No, he'd watch, and learn, and one day... A coo followed by a high pitched squeal and giggle snapped him out of his reverie. Vance had taken it upon himself to boop the baby's nose with his finger, and apparently this was the absolute pinnacle of comedy for a child this age. Good grief. "They're loud when they're happy too, then. Thrilling."

"Oh, hush," said Lenore, grinning ear to ear. "You and Rahab were babies once too, you know."

That truth was more than either vampire could handle, and they were officially done with the whole thing. They exchanged a horrified glance, huffed in irritation, and beat a hasty retreat from the house, leaving Lenore and Vance to continue fussing over Eridor.

Raziel was certain he'd be going to bed alone that night. Amalia had been so excited about that baby, so eager to go on a shopping spree for things that would make him happy, that he fully expected her to come back and beeline straight to whichever house he ended up in and forget her husband even existed. He flopped moodily down on the couch and fell asleep, and there he remained until she returned several hours later, rousing him when she stumbled in the door.

"Sorry, Raz, I didn't mean to wake you," she said, dropping a multitude of shopping bags at her feet. "I just wanted to show you what I got. I know you don't really care, and I don't really expect you to..." she trailed off and sighed as he sat up, still half asleep. "I'm sorry. I should have just gone straight there."

"What? No," he replied, trying to shake off the grogginess. "Come. Stay. Show me," he continued. "Don't leave."

"I'm sorry," she repeated. "I don't have to bring him here when it's my turn. I can stay with-"

"Amalia. Come here," Raziel commanded. Amalia obeyed immediately, and he pulled her into his lap. "It's fine. You were right. I'm not angry."

"You were," she mumbled guiltily, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face in his neck.

"I know... It was just a shock. A surprise baby hasn't ever really been a concern of mine, after all."

"I mean... could be worse. You could have somehow knocked me up with a miracle baby or something really crazy."

"Gods above, don't even speak of it," he replied, shuddering. "Just show me what you bought so we can take it over to whoever's got him."

"It's nothing much," she replied, moving to retrieve one of the bags. "Disposable diapers and wipes, formula, bottles, some toys and blankets, a few cute outfits that he'll grow out of in a matter of weeks. Typical baby things."

Raziel reached into a bag and pulled out an orange onesie, raising an eyebrow at the ears on the hood and the tail on the backside. "Is this supposed to be... a fox? He'll look ridiculous!"

"He's a baby, dude. He doesn't need to be rocking the latest styles. Like I said, he'll grow fast if he's anything like human babies, and then he'll need new clothes anyway."

"Perhaps you ought to let me choose the next round, then," he replied with disdain, looking at the other clothes in the bag. Some were plain and were clearly meant to serve as underclothes, but the rest were all brightly colored with cartoon animals embroidered on them. "Leave you in charge and he'll be the laughingstock of... well, wherever he's going."

Amalia crossed her arms and stared him down. "You want to go shopping for baby things now, is that what you're saying?"

"No, I take it back," he protested. "Whatever part of the store you have to brave to get to this nonsense no doubt resembles that bear workshop in Chicago, and I haven't the stomach for it. Let's just take it all to whoever's got him."

"We don't have to right this second," she replied. "We haven't been spending much time together. We're all supposed to be resting and fucking off, but somehow we all seem to still find work to do every day. The kid will be fine for a couple of hours. Let's watch a movie or something. Just the two of us for once."

She had a point. He'd spent long hours in the alchemy lab nearly every day for a week working on batches of healing draughts, shapeshifting potions, and bath concoctions for the humans and Rahab, and the time they spent one on one lately was largely put toward Amalia's own magic lessons. Any recreational activity had been group oriented, and they both were in serious need of some alone time. They weren't hosting the child tonight, and from how it sounded, they'd likely only have one turn anyway. It wouldn't be so bad. "Let's make the delivery first," he suggested, standing and holding out his hand. "You can dress the poor thing in his clown attire and show them what to do with whatever is in that can of baby food. Then we can come home and plan on staying in for the night."

Amalia was happy to agree. "Deal. You can pick the movie when we come home," she replied, gathering up a few bags and following him to the door. 

"Are there snacks?" he asked hopefully.

"You just picked up a whole bag of them I brought back for us. Leave that one here. We're not telling anyone about it."

Their night settled, they left to deliver the supplies, eager to return to their own little baby-free slice of paradise.
 

Chapter Text

Eridor was still with Rahab and Lenore, and when Raziel and Amalia entered the house they were immediately greeted with the heartwarming sight of Janos leaned back on the couch with the baby in his arms, looking more serene and content than they'd ever seen him. 

"We're back," Amalia sing-songed in a low voice, unsure whether or not the child was asleep. Lenore and Vance immediately relieved the pair of the bags and sat on the floor to sort through their contents.

"The clothes are a bit-" Raziel began.

"Adorable! Oh, look at the little fox ears, Vance!" Lenore cried, holding the outfit up and beaming in delight. "Oh, let's put it on him!"

Raziel scowled and went to join his brother, who looked just as unimpressed with the silly outfit as he was. They silently watched as Janos handed the baby over to be dressed and put back into the basket for display, exchanging an exasperated glance at the round of adoring giggles that erupted once the little hood was pulled up over Eridor's head.

"No holes for the wings, obviously, but everything I got is fairly loose, so he shouldn't feel uncomfortable."

One by one, Amalia emptied the bags, explaining the contents and handing them around for inspection. The toys were an immediate hit with both infant and adult. Even Rahab and Raziel snorted in amusement at the way Eridor's eyes widened as they settled on the arrangement of colorful wooden doodads that were waved in front of his face.

"He looks like his little mind is completely blown," muttered Rahab. 

"Look, he can't decide which one he wants," Raziel laughed as he watched the tiny arms wave back and forth, trying to grasp each toy in turn.

The door began to swing open, and to everyone's surprise, it was Kain who popped his head through. His eyes roved over the scattered arrangement of modern baby supplies. "What is all this?" he asked, confused.

"Baby things," Amalia replied. "I brought some stuff back from my world for him."

Kain's eyes narrowed, and he stepped through the door and came to kneel down next to Amalia. "What are they made of?"

"The clothes are all made of cotton, and the toys are wood. Those things are biodegradable," she replied, already knowing where this was going.

"But the plastic isn't, Amalia," Kain chided, reaching for the obviously plastic package of diapers and slitting it open with one claw. 

"I know, I know," she insisted, holding up both hands. "I didn't plan on sending those home with him. Anything with plastic will have to go back through the gate for disposal. We'll keep track of everything."

"See that you do," he commanded sternly. "I shudder to think of how much of your land is dedicated to dumping things made of this material alone, to say nothing of the other things you've shown me." The memory of a massive landfill had hardly left his mind since she'd projected it there, to say nothing of the swirling raft of refuse that floated in the ocean. She'd been reluctant to tell him just how large the 'Great Pacific Garbage Patch' was, and he couldn't bring himself to press her on it. His anxiety over the possibility of any of this stuff piling up in the land he was bound to protect was through the roof.

"I'm starting to regret showing you anything at all," Amalia countered irritably. "It's clearly stressing you out way more than it needs to right now."

"Master, please," Lenore soothed, wary of the response Amalia's typical attitude might elicit from Kain in his current mood. "The health of the land is a problem for another day. None of these things will be invented here for a very long time, if you see fit to allow it at all. Come, let me pour you a drink. It's good to have you here with us."

"Lenore is right, Kain. Not every moment needs to be spent worrying about the future and trying to solve problems before they even arise," Janos said gently. "Try to just exist in the moment, for once."

"And quit isolating yourself," Amalia chided. "None of us have seen you for more than five minutes at a time in days."

"Fine," Kain grumbled, eyeing Eridor as he yanked the nearest toy into his mouth with a happy gurgle. After a pause, his eyes narrowed once more. "What on earth is it wearing?"

"An orange onesie with fox ears and a tail, what's it look like?" Amalia challenged, starting to become annoyed at the shade being thrown at her choice of attire. 

Kain only sighed and shook his head as Lenore handed off his drink and began to inspect the diapers. "Oh, are these waterproof? That will certainly be an improvement over the cloth ones I improvised."

"Waterproof and absorbent," Amalia pointed out. "And those wipes will help get him cleaned up when he needs to be changed."

Raziel and Rahab exchanged another exasperated look, remaining silent and disengaged while the others continued to fuss over the baby, though Rahab snuck over and snatched the can of formula off the table after Amalia had explained how to mix it, curious to read what the label said. After what seemed like an eternity to Raziel, his bride finally stood and gathered up all the plastic bags. "Here, Lenore, keep these for the dirty diapers. We can figure out who's taking him next tomorrow."

"Thank you, Amalia," Lenore replied, hugging her. "You two should run along home and spend some time together."

"That's the plan," Raziel declared as he took his bride's hand and headed for the door. "Good luck with... that," he finished dismissively.

Amalia couldn't help but laugh as they went down the stairs and stepped onto the wide carpeted floor of the corridor. "You are really not feeling this baby thing, are you?"

"Once again, I don't begrudge Janos the experience," he grumbled. "And I do appreciate the significance of his presence here, Amalia, I really do. I just... don't know what to make of it all, I suppose."

"Have you seen his little wings? Oh my god, they're so fucking cute."

"Yes, I saw them. They're about as useless as mine were for now. Hard to imagine those two fuzzy little stubs becoming strong feathered limbs like Janos has."

"Do you ever wish you could have your own back?" Amalia asked as they arrived home.

"I..." Raziel stopped inside the door and sighed before waving the fireplace and sconces to life, illuminating the rich woodwork and fine upholstery that graced their home. "I don't know, honestly. They truly were useless as they were. Perhaps if I could skip ahead a few Changes to where they might have sat further up near my shoulders and had ball and socket joints like normal wings, rather than bony plates connected by naught but a few new muscles and tendons... But even then, I feel they'd need to be quite large to be able to fly, so much so that I'd barely be able to function on the ground. Look at any bird, and see how much wing there is in proportion to the rest of the body. Not to mention having a tail, which I certainly wouldn't want."

"Janos flies just fine without having wings that are proportionate to a bird's," Amalia pointed out as she fired up her laptop, sorting through her movie folder while her husband sorted through the snacks she'd kept back for them. "I mean, obviously there's magic at play here, because you're absolutely right. In my world, he'd never get off the ground. The sheer amount of food you'd need to consume to power wings big enough to get a man of his size into the air would be staggering. He's got to weigh well over two hundred and fifty pounds, judging by his height and how muscular he is. And without a tail to use as a rudder, he'd never be able to steer even if he could take off properly."

Raziel hadn't thought of that. "I suppose you're right," he said after a pause. "But it matters little. With Nupraptor's corruption having been purged, I won't evolve any further, and neither will you once we figure out how to purify the rest of us."

"Unfortunate," she replied, scrolling back up to the top of the folder from the bottom to look through it again. "I always thought it would be amazing to be able to fly. Do you have a movie in mind?"

Raziel was far more interested in the junk food, soda, and candy at the moment. "I've never had these before," he stated, examining a bag of Doritos. 

"They're not bad. Try one," she replied absently. "How about we start making our way through the Jurassic Park series? Lenore and Rahab already watched the first three, apparently." 

"Yes, she's taken quite the interest in dinosaurs," he replied with a soft laugh before nibbling at the chip in his talons. "Wouldn't stop going on about the monsters in those movies."

"We'll get her a book next time we head back to my world. She'll have to fight Rahab for it, though."

"No she won't. If he'll let her keep a baby in the house, he'll let her have a book all to herself."

They proceeded to spend a pleasant evening rotating through the junk food, watching the movie, and finally retiring to bed to have as much sex as they could manage before passing out asleep. As Raziel drifted off, sated in every way possible, he found himself feeling immensely grateful that they'd only have Eridor for one night. Though he'd realized during their tryst that the thought of impregnating Amalia appealed to the primal, possessive parts of his sexual instincts, he knew full well that some things are better off staying firmly in the realm of fantasy. He shuddered to imagine just how badly a couple's life could be disrupted by the addition of a child... and their immediate future was already complicated enough.

Stella and Tantallon took the infant the next day, and though Tantallon did grudgingly aid his bride in making up bottles and bringing her the right supplies when she asked, he mostly kept his distance. "I've already done my time as far as children are concerned, thank you very much," he replied when Stella offered the baby up to be held, continuing to justify himself as he breezed toward the door. "Lenore made me help her babysit when we were human, and Raziel forced me to help him with the care of his other fledges when they were born, five of them in turn. Nope. I'm out." Stella didn't particularly care, because Janos would no doubt be along shortly to help anyway. He could hardly bear to be away from little Eridor, and it was he that delivered the child to Amalia and Raziel that night.

"Oh, god," Raziel muttered when he opened the door and locked eyes with Eridor, who was contentedly attempting to shove his entire fist into his mouth. "Amalia!" he called, stepping away from the door to allow Janos entry. Unlike Tantallon, he offered no justifications and made no apologies for his disinterest in babysitting, and Amalia knew it wouldn't be fair to get angry with him or nag him into engaging, even if it meant looking after the baby on her own all night. Janos wouldn't be any help either, of course; by now he was exhausted, and Amalia urged him to go home and get some rest when he began to trail after her into the apartment.

"Janos, you need to sleep. You look like you're barely standing, and I can see circles under your eyes despite the fact that your skin is literally blue. Go on home, I'll be alright."

"I... am tired, yes," he admitted. "But I only have so much time... Arta will soon return for him, and then..."

"Arta and Aubrex promised that you would be reunited with your kind," she replied. "When we visit the Vampires outside the mountains later, you'll be able to bury yourself in an entire pile of babies."

"I very much doubt that I can persuade as many parents as that would take to donate their infants to the cause, however temporary it may be," he laughed. "But... you are right. I nearly fell asleep on the couch with him earlier, which is dangerous."

"Go on then, get outta here. Don't be surprised if Raz shows up at your place in the middle of the night to escape the crying."

At first, Raziel behaved predictably. He shut himself in the bedroom when Eridor fussed or cried, and insisted that Amalia take him completely out of the house to change him. "Alan Grant was right. Babies smell," he insisted, even as he stood measuring out the water needed to make up a bottle of formula to spare Amalia the risk of exposure. As the evening wore on toward bedtime, however, he began to soften. He stuck around during the first feeding, reasoning that if the baby's mouth were stuffed with a rubber bottle nipple he couldn't use it to make as much noise. The burping and spit-up made him shudder with revulsion, but he soon recovered and began to amuse himself by dangling a set of wooden keys over his head and watching him grasp at it. "How long does it take them to get bored with such simple toys?" he asked his bride. 

"I mean, most parents just rotate them so they don't get bored, but eventually they start needing more and more complex things to occupy themselves with. And if you think the kid makes noise, you ought to see what toys and television shows aimed at toddlers are capable of."

Raziel wrinkled his nose, holding the colorful keys just out of Eridor's reach a moment only to hand them over entirely when he realized the baby was growing frustrated enough with the teasing to start crying. "I wonder what his new family is like?" he said to Amalia, turning his hand to allow Eridor to grab at his talon without accidentally wrapping his tiny fingers around the sharp claw at the tip. "I hope they've the means to raise him properly."

"What do you mean?" asked Amalia as she stood staring at the empty bottles, realizing that Raziel was going to have to be the one to wash them. He'd told her of his immunity to water right away, though he refused to get into the how and why of it, and she knew better than to try to push. All she knew was that she'd seen him stick his entire hand under the faucet with nary a flinch, while she had to be careful to avoid the smallest drop if she didn't want a painful burn.

"Well, you know..." Raziel replied, reaching for a small rattle with his free hand. "Education, mainly. The more I think of the way your society educates its children, the more I realize what a good idea it is. If there isn't any public schooling available the way it is in your world, private tutors will have to be hired. There are also little details like appropriate clothing," he snarked, smirking when Amalia shot him a look. "Oh, come now. Surely he can't wear fox costumes beyond infancy. He's going to have to have proper clothing tailored for him eventually." He pointed the rattle at her as she crossed her arms. "Don't scowl at me, you know I'm right!"

Never afraid to fight fire with fire, Amalia immediately countered with "I know you're playing with a baby right now."

Raziel glowered at her, then set the rattle down. "... I'm going to bed."

"The hell you are," she laughed. "Somebody's gotta wash these bottles!" 

To Janos' dismay, Arta returned the next morning to take Eridor home. "Dry your tears, faithful one," she soothed as he choked down a sob upon placing him in the basket for her to carry away. "I know you were expecting more time with him, but you will see him again. That is a promise." Fluttering up to perch on the basket's handle, she turned to the assembled residents of the Citadel, who had gathered to say goodbye and console one another. "Listen well, all of you- Ah!" she yipped as the baby grabbed at her tail feathers and yanked. She pecked at the wicker between her talons and the handle immediately grew two feet, putting her well out of his grasp. Shifting her feet to settle herself back down, she continued. "Ahem. The time for rest and recreation is at an end. It is time to make preparations for our first strike against the parasite. I do not expect that removing it from all the places it has invaded will be easy, but I do believe that we will prevail, particularly since we can so readily detect its loathsome presence. Go now, up to the landing. What you see will lift your mood, I assure you."

A chorus of roars, bugles, cries, and wingbeats suddenly rose from outside, and human and vampire alike exchanged glances and began to run toward the staircase, ducking and covering their heads as a series of heavy thumps shook the walls and ceiling, causing dust to rain down upon the entire assembly. What greeted them when they emerged from the tower was enough to put Eridor out of even Janos' mind. Aubrex had returned, and he had not been joking about returning in force. It was fortunate indeed that no one ever ventured out onto the lake anymore out of fear of the Citadel, which they believed to be haunted and cursed. Had there been boats near the island, they'd have seen a whirlwind of color as dragons swooped, leapt from surface to surface, and clung to the rocky cliffside in great numbers. Sunlight glinted off of metallic scales everywhere you looked; every color under the rainbow was present, though none were as large and heavily built as Aubrex, and many were in fact quite small in comparison. 

Kain shuddered to think of the uproar the humans across the land would work themselves into should they see so many creatures of myth in one place. "Greetings, Silver Divine," he began, sidling up to Aubrex, who stood proudly surveying his kin. "If it's not too bold to ask," he continued, eyes darting from dragon to dragon, "How exactly are we going to avoid attracting unwanted attention to these missions? The sight of even one dragon will send the local humans into a panic. The sight of many of them across the land may spur them to act on their concerns, which will certainly complicate things."

Aubrex merely snorted. "You would be surprised," the dragon rumbled haughtily, "at just how subtle our machinations can be. You saw one one of us centuries in the future. There are more than a hundred working the borders even in this early age, not counting those you look upon now. Mountains? Well patrolled. The ocean off the southern coast? Teeming with sea dragons. It has long been so."

"But none ever ventured inland until now?"

"Until now. The time for gathering information has come. Soon we will plot the hunt and give chase."

"A council of war will be necessary," said Kain, watching as Arta swooped in and alighted on Aubrex's horn.

"Several, most likely," she observed. "This will require meticulous planning to minimize casualties and collateral damage. Can you get started without me, my love? I must return the baby to his family."

"We will wait," Aubrex replied. "My flock needs to rest and feed."

"They look to be well underway already," Kain observed, wincing as a blue adolescent with a massive fish in his jaws sailed down, flared his wings too late, and crashed a few yards away. The lanky youngster's claws scrabbled for purchase as he skidded to a stop across the stone platform. Gathering himself up, he swallowed the fish in one gulp and then casually launched himself right back over the edge of the landing. "With the feeding, at least," he continued, eyebrow raised. "Some of these dragons look... rather young."

"The younglings have their part to play," Aubrex replied. "Do not underestimate them. Their fire burns hot. Their instincts are sharp."

Of those who had run up to the landing, only Raziel, Rahab, and Amalia were still present. Janos and Kain quickly opted to bustle the rest straight back downstairs to await further developments upon seeing how low the dragons were swooping overhead and how clumsily some of them were landing. "Not entirely sure I blame them for getting out of dodge," Raziel commented, eyeing a golden female as she circled low overhead. This one was an adult, and she landed with far more grace than her younger kin, taking a moment to growl and snap her jaws at a pair of youngsters who were wrestling over a fish nearby, sending them scrambling back into the air before approaching. "Greetings, Father," she began, bowing her head before Aubrex. "What are your orders now that we have arrived?"

"Gather your brothers and sisters. Organize a hunting party. Spread out over the lake. Do not approach the shoreline; we are below the clouds and now within view of the humans. We must not frighten them."

"And the younglings?" the female asked, clearly exasperated with their antics.

"They will receive no such courtesy," Aubrex replied as he spread his wings. Alighting on the tallest tower with a roar, he spouted a massive jet of flame into the air, causing a hush to fall over every youth present as they quickly sought out a place to land. The gold female turned to the vampires, intentionally whalloping a green youngster who'd dropped down nearby with her tail, bowling him over. "Please excuse my rudeness," she said to them, "but introductions will have to wait. I must follow my orders." With that, she leapt up into the air with a piercing bugle, circling overhead as dozens of adults gathered around her before leading them off with another cry. 

The green dragon sat up, rubbing his sore head. "Didn't even do anything," he grumbled before slouching his way over and sulkily plopping down in the midst of the vampires. 

Amalia took to him immediately. "That wasn't very nice of her, was it?" she asked, patting him between his stubby horns. He was among the smallest of the dragons present, about the size of a large male lion, and he spoke with the voice of a child, having not quite reached adolescence yet. He sniffled as he shook his his head.

"What's your name?" Amalia asked, wanting to cheer him up.

"Reirsyphys," he shrugged, pawing at his eyes. "Everybody calls me Syph, though."

"Is that what you want us to call you?"

"Sure, I guess," he shrugged again. "Who are you? You don't look like the Ancients."

"There's one Ancient with us," Amalia replied. "He took the others like us back inside to keep them safe. There were a few crashes here on the landing."

"Not me," Syph answered. "I know how to fly. Can walk fine too, if nobody's hitting me," he growled, glaring resentfully upward into an empty sky. The adults had long since disappeared into the fog rising from the lake, and the other younglings were glued to whatever surface they'd landed on, murmuring to one another as they awaited orders from their patriarch. 

"I saw you land, I think you did just fine," said Amalia, patting his head again. "My name is Amalia. The others are Raziel and Rahab, my husband and his brother."

The youth's striking blue-green eyes met hers, his expression betraying his surprise at her kindness.  "Are they as nice as you?" he asked, his gaze shifting to the other vampires.

"Maybe not quite as outgoing, but nice enough. They won't be mean to you, will you?" she asked Raziel and Rahab. 

"Of course not," Rahab replied, approaching the dragon. He recognized a fellow victim of bullying when he saw one, and he extended his hand for Syph to sniff at.

"You smell different," the dragon observed, tilting his head quizzically. "But you're sort of blue like the Ancients... Where are your wings?"

"We're not like the Ancients... we're a different kind of vampire," Rahab replied.

Syph brightened up a bit. "You must be the ones we're here to help," he said. "Boy, wait until the others find out I was the first to make friends with you guys!"

Aubrex soared back down to the landing, and Syph trotted proudly up to him, planting himself between his front paws, leaning against his foreleg, and looking up at him in adoration. "Grandfather, look! I found the native vampires!"

Aubrex gazed fondly down at Syph. "So you have."

"Can I go meet the others? I promise I'll behave!"

"You may," he replied, already preparing to leap into the air again. "If they will have you. I will send the rest to the largest courtyard to bed down and wait for their supper."

"We'll have you," Amalia said as Aubrex took off. "Come on, we'll take you inside. How would you like something other than fish to eat?"

"Woah!" Syph suddenly exclaimed, looking past Amalia toward the tower. Kain had emerged from the stairwell, and he immediately raised an eyebrow at the young dragon, who slunk behind Amalia, frightened.

"That's Kain, our leader," Amalia informed him. "He won't hurt you."

"And who, exactly, is this?" Kain asked, eyebrow still raised. "Have we not had enough of the antics of children?"

"His name is Syph," Amalia replied, leading the youngling off toward the tower. "Aubrex sent him with us. Be nice, he's a good kid."

Kain merely sighed and, seeing that the rest of the dragons had gone off to do their own thing, turned to follow everyone back down. Perhaps at least now they could finally get some solid information.

Half an hour later, introductions had been made all around, and Syph had endeared himself to everyone, even brightening the spirits of Janos, who had broken down again upon returning to his home to find Eridor and all his toys and clothes gone. Vance was frightened only momentarily, relaxing as soon as he realized the unfamiliar dragon was roughly the equivalent of a ten or eleven year old human boy. Even Kain had softened, opting to sit on the soft carpet of the corridor among his family rather than lean against the wall. The instant Syph mentioned being hungry, Lorrelin went inside to cook something special for him, and he now lay sprawled on his back with his head in Lenore's lap, rumbling happily as she scratched him under his chin. "Will I like the food?" he asked.

"Lorrelin is an excellent cook, I have no doubt that you'll enjoy whatever she comes up with," she replied. "Rahab, do we have anything for that scrape on his wing?"

"Pretty sure we do," Stella offered when Rahab shrugged, glancing at Tantallon, who immediately left to go rummage through their medicine shelf.

"Tell us about what it's like beyond the mountains, little one," Janos suggested hopefully.  

"Well..." Syph began, pausing to figure out where to begin. "I live in Magdellen," he continued, stretching his hind legs out and letting his tail drape across Janos' lap.

"Is Magdellen a city?" the Ancient asked, running his talons along the sharp diamond-shaped tailtip that had fallen across his legs.

"Oh, yeah... It's the capitol," came the casual reply.

"The dragon capitol?" Kain asked, immediately interested.

"Mmm-mmm," Syph replied, shaking his head. "Ancient."

Kain and Janos exchanged glances. "What can you tell us about this place?"

Syph suddenly pulled both wings in, eyeing Tantallon as he returned with a healing potion. "Is that going to hurt?"

"Won't hurt, it'll just itch," Tantallon replied.

"Tell you what," Kain offered, intent on heading off the imminent distraction. "Why don't we hold off on the potion until after you've been fed? You can tell us about your home until Lorrelin brings your supper out."

"Okay," Syph replied, rolling to his feet and sitting back on his haunches. "What do you want to know?"

"Whatever you can tell us," Kain replied eagerly. "What do you know about the Ancient capitol?"

The youngling shrugged. "I dunno," he replied, causing them momentary disappointment... until he finished his thought.

"Pretty much everything. We all live together. Want me to just start at the beginning?"

Chapter Text

"Magdellen is a thousand years old," Syph began. "It's not the first capitol, the first one was called Illythyra. That one was built near a dormant volcano... except it wasn't as dormant as they thought. Arta and Grandfather got there as fast as they could, but..."

"What's a volcano?" Tantallon asked.

"Big mountain that spews molten rock and really hot smoke all over the place on occasion," Syph replied. "You don't have those here?"

"Nosgoth apparently isn't all that big compared to the outside world," Tantallon shrugged. "Probably for the best that none of us have ever seen one, from what it sounds like."

"No one could predict this disaster?" Kain asked.

"Nope. Arta's a goddess, but she can't see the future, and even Grandfather isn't as powerful as she is," he replied with a shake of his head. "The wealthy people who had eyries way up high mostly got out, along with a bunch of poor ones living near a maintenance shaft into the sewer who ran underground. Arta got those guys out, and Grandfather led whoever made it above the... uh... the big wall of ash that came down. I can't remember what they called it," the youngling trailed off.

"Pyroclastic flow," Amalia offered, and Syph nodded, giving her the dragon equivalent of a bright smile.

"Yeah, that! Grandfather led the ones who managed to get high enough in time away. A lot of people died, though, and a lot of neat stuff was lost. We have some archaeologists who have cleared away the shallower ash heaps and uncovered some things, but most of the city is buried under the solidified lava. That's what the rock is called when it's still molten. All the nearby towns and villages were abandoned then, too. Everyone was too afraid to even stay within sight of the volcano. It's still active even today. The archaeologists have to be pretty careful if they go poking around."

"So you founded a new capitol city?"

"Everybody just followed the big river nearby to the coast," Syph shrugged. "The river floods and makes the land fertile, so I guess they figured it was as good a place as any. There are settlements all along the river, and another city called Drerachi up in the mountains where it's cold. Not Nosgoth's range," the dragon clarified. "Nobody lives there; no one is allowed to even go there except for those assigned to do patrols. There's a range north of Magdellen. There are more dragons than Ancients in that city... we founded it. Arta gave those dragons fur and feathers to keep warm, but the Ancients have to use a lot of magic or wear really heavy clothes to live there, which they don't like."

"And what of the other parts of the world?" Janos asked.

"Um..." Syph paused, needing a moment to think. "There are some islands that are kind of far away. It's always warm and rainy there, and food from there is kind of expensive. There are plains way out to the east, too. I don't know how many people live there, but us dragons go there to hunt when the big herds migrate. Grandfather leads the way, it's a big thing every year. I can't go yet, though. You can't go until you're an adult."

"Sort of a rite of passage, then," Tantallon commented.

"Yeah, the biggest. The ones coming home from their first hunt are celebrated with a big feast."

"Are there any humans like me and Vance living outside Nosgoth?" Stella asked.

"Oh, yeah, they have villages all over the place, and some live on the outskirts of Magdellen. We mostly ignore them. They're kind of boring," Syph replied, then gasped as he realized what he'd said. "I mean, uh..."

Stella only laughed. "It's okay... You're really not wrong. We're not very good at magic and we can't fly like you." 

"Well, yeah... but you're nice, and the other lady can cook," Syph replied, craning his neck to look at Lorrelin's door. "Wonder if she's done yet? Think she needs any help?" he asked, starting to get to his feet.

Janos stopped him. "Not so fast, little one," he said, giving the youngster's tail a small tug. "Lorrelin can be a bit... prickly, and she's rather territorial. Best to wait out here. I'm sure she'll be out soon."

Janos was correct; Lorrelin was out her door with a large, steaming platter and a towel draped over her arm before Syph could even sit back down. Immediately the little dragon began to tippy-tap on his feet, overcome with excitement. "Ooh, what is it? What is it?"

"A beef roast that I've seasoned and seared on the outside. It'll be raw in the middle, but I expect you don't mind that sort of thing if you're eating live fish," she began, breezing past Syph and moving to set the platter down on the stone floor near the edge of the carpet. "There are also a few boiled eggs, a roast turkey leg, some fruit, and a green salad. Bit early in the day for this sort of meal, but I thought a variety would be best since I've no idea what sorts of things you all like." 

"All of it!" Syph cried, his dance intensifying with every thing Lorrelin listed until he was practically hopping laps around her. "We eat pretty much everything. Ooh, is that dressing on the salad? What kind?"

"A simple rose wine vinaigrette," she answered, placing the folded towel next to the platter and crossing her arms proudly as Syph shoved his head into the feast. After gulping down a handful of eggs, shell and all, he suddenly froze and eyed his new friends. "Oh, uh... sorry. Would anyone else like some?" he asked politely, though his expression betrayed his fervent hope that no one did.

"No, they would not," Lorrelin answered for them. "That is for you. Everyone else has their own food and if they're hungry, they can go get it. Go on, now."

Now that the youngling had gotten ahold of himself, he seemed to recover the rest of his manners. Sitting back on his haunches, he began to use his talons to eat, pacing himself and using the towel as a napkin as he made his way through his meal, quietly listening to the chatter and never speaking with his mouth full when he did pipe up. "Lorrelin, ma'am," he asked when the only thing left on the plate was the hunk of seared beef and the turkey bones. "May I please have some water?"

"Oh, listen to you, you darling little thing," Lorrelin replied, standing and scratching Syph under the chin with both hands as she leaned down, close enough to his nose that Raziel was certain she was about to smooch him right on the snout. "You can have whatever you like. No need for formalities though, dear. Just Lorrelin will do," she continued, patting him on the cheek as she went to look for a vessel big enough for him to drink out of.

With that, Syph tackled the meat. Using his sharp claws to saw off a bite sized chunk, he raised it to his mouth and used his incisors to rip a smaller piece off. 

"Your manners are impeccable, young one," said Janos. "But you really needn't be so dainty. We've certainly all done our share of bolting our food," he laughed, resulting in a round of nods from everyone else.

"Particularly you, Tantallon," Raziel said, side eyeing his firstborn. "Sometimes I wonder if you even taste it on the way down. You'll run your larder empty before any of us, I'll wager."

"Not my fault I like food," Tantallon shrugged, unabashed. "I'm simply making up for lost time."

"Oh, I'm just doing it this way because this kind of meat is tough when it's not cooked all day. I'll be chewing for an hour if I try to bolt it," Syph explained, though no one present had any doubt that he could simply swallow the whole lot without chewing one bit of it. "It's how we're taught, since we eat the tougher cuts all kinds of ways. Sometimes we slow cook it to make it soft, sometimes we marinate it and eat it raw, sometimes we do it just like this. Lorrelin sure knows her stuff, though. Got the seasoning just right."

"Don't tell her that, she's already haughty enough," replied Tantallon. 

Lorrelin returned with a large pitcher full of water, and Syph quickly thanked her and downed it. Once he'd finished his meat and wiped his claws and mouth on the towel, he remembered the stoppered bottle of healing potion in Tantallon's hand. "Promise that won't hurt?" he asked, ears flat against his head.

"Promise," Tantallon replied, unstoppering the bottle. "It'll itch something fierce, but won't sting or anything. Have you got any other cuts or scrapes?"

Syph reluctantly extended his wing so that the potion could be applied to the outer edge, where the scales had been torn away and the leathery skin underneath rubbed raw. "There's a bite on my left hind leg," he admitted. "And my tail got stomped pretty good, but that's just bruised. My ear and the side of my head kind of hurts too." Before any of his other injuries could be inspected, he shuddered head to toe and swung his head around to gnaw at his wing as the furious itch of the potion set it aflame. "Gah! It's so bad!" he cried as Amalia took hold of his head to stop him.

 "Give it a few seconds to completely heal first, and then be careful that you don't just tear it back open scratching, or we'll have to do it again."

"How did you get hurt?" Rahab asked, though he already had his suspicions. Syph confirmed them once he recovered, though he dramatically left his wing drooping to the floor as if the itching had wounded it anew. "Caught a frog at a pond we stopped to rest at on the way here, before we crossed the mountains. Two other younglings tried to take it away, and I didn't want them to kill it, so I jumped forward and tossed it back in the pond. One of them caught my leg when I extended it, the other one jumped on my tail as hard as he could when I fell," he said, looking at the floor. "Frog got away though, so joke's on them."

"What about the side of your head here?" asked Tantallon, pointing to his swollen ear and the rough spot on his cheek where the tiny scales had been marred.

Syph's expression darkened. "Stupid Kolmanira," he spat. "Earlier. You saw."

"The gold dragon who knocked you over with her tail?"

The youngling glowered at the floor. "Yeah. Her."

"She's an adult as far as I could tell, shouldn't she have outgrown the whole bullying thing?" asked Amalia.

"She acts like her scales shine as bright in the rain as they do in the sun," the dragon scoffed. "She's stuck up and wants everyone to treat her like she's in charge. She's lucky I'm no snitch. Grandfather lets her knock heads when we're acting up, but I wasn't doing anything wrong. He'll whallop her good if he catches her being mean to us for no reason, even when he puts her in charge. Which he doesn't always."

 "You won't have to snitch. If we see her being mean to anyone again, we'll tell Aubrex ourselves," Rahab assured him as Lenore began to coax his hind leg backwards for the potion. "Arrrgh! I hate it!" he cried as the itch set in, contorting himself to chew at it as best he could.

"Don't we all," muttered Lorrelin.

Kain had been waiting for the potion to be applied, and now that it had been, he was ready to get back to business. "You mentioned humans in your city?"

"Yeah... Well, no, actually," Syph replied, standing on three legs and extending his wings and tail for balance as he shook the itchy one. "They can't fly, so they don't really come into the main parts of the city too often. They've made space for themselves on the outskirts," he continued, finally putting his weight back on all fours.

"What's the technology like there? Anything like this?" Amalia asked, holding up her phone and unlocking it so Syph could see. 

He was immediately both dumbfounded and mesmerized. "Woah... look how it lights up! I've never seen anything like this! What is it?" he asked, sitting back and gently taking the device into his talons.

Kain cut Amalia off before she could answer. "Amalia, do you really think it wise to let knowledge of this technological nonsense escape? I'd hoped you'd have the sense to keep it under wraps," he growled. "Everyone is going to want access to every shiny, glowing, task-performing, noise-making thing you've brought here should they find out about them, Ancient and dragon alike!"

Syph craned his neck around to glower at Kain, indignant. "I'm not gonna tell anyone about this," he scoffed, his tone and expression implying offense that anyone would think him so stupid. "Are you kidding me? I know what happens when you have something special all to yourself and everyone finds out about it. They'll take it from you, and you'll get it back in pieces if you get it back at all. I'm not telling anybody anything," he declared with finality, returning his gaze to the phone's screen. "They can all go drown themselves in the lake for all I care."

"I never thought I'd ever say this of a child, but I like this one," laughed Rahab, jabbing his thumb at the dragon. "Of course he'll keep such privileged knowledge all to himself," he continued with certainty. "For once, he's got something valuable that no one can forcibly take. Why on earth would he blithely hand it over to them?"

"Yeah, see? He gets it," Syph replied, his gaze firmly fixed once more on the device in his talons.

Forced to concede the point and knowing that there was nothing he could do about it anyway, Kain merely sighed and relented, irritated that the conversation had been steered away from the subject of the outside world.

Amalia scooched over to sit next to Syph, taking the phone back and tapping the screen. "I'm not sure you can operate it with your claws, unfortunately. Here, try, but be very careful not to scratch the screen."

The dragon turned his claw to the side so as not to make contact with the pointed tip and gently touched it to the screen, confirming her suspicions. "Aww," he whined, ears and wings drooping. "That's no fun. Why won't my claws make it do anything? That's how you operate it, right?"

"It is, yeah. It only works with bare skin. We all conduct tiny amounts of electricity," she explained, "And it senses it and responds. Hard things like claws don't register."

"Wait, so how is it powered if it's not tapping into a source? I don't sense any magic."

"Do you know what a battery is?"

"Like a gravity battery?" the dragon asked, puzzled.

"No, one that stores electrical energy," she replied, eliciting a blank stare. "Okay, so you haven't invented those yet."

Syph narrowed his eyes at her, the gears in his head beginning to turn. "What do you mean, 'yet'?" He asked. "Where are you from? And what was he talking about a minute ago?" he asked, nodding toward Kain.

"I'm from somewhere that's very advanced in technology. Nowhere near here."

"You talk like me, though. You're the only one here who does."

It hadn't even occurred to Amalia that they did indeed have the same accent. "I... am not even going to try to speculate as to why that is," she replied truthfully. "There's a lot of weird stuff going on in this world."

"So... you're from a different one?"

"Yeah, I am. No one in my world knows about this place. There's no magic there at all."

"Oh..." he replied, continuing to work things out. "Well, anyone as smart as us is usually pretty creative and inventive... You should see what the humans in Magdellen have done to get up to high places in their own neighborhoods. They didn't have enough space to sprawl, so they had to build upward. Instead of wasting their energy going up and down spiral staircases everywhere, they've built platforms that raise or lower with a counterweight."

Amalia laughed. "An elevator... yeah, that makes sense."

"I'm really confused," the dragon announced. "You're from a place that has no magic, but you're some rare subspecies of vampire. You have magic. How did you get here?"

"That's something we have yet to figure out."

Syph squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head as if he suddenly had a headache. "This is all really confusing."

"I have something you can use," Amalia offered, hoping to simply steer him away from asking questions that none of them had the answers for. It worked. Syph lit up.

"Which you can play with after you've told us a few things about your own kind," Kain said with finality.

Syph's expression shifted. He glanced around at everyone present, looking sadder and sadder until his eyes landed on Kain again. "That's all you want me for, isn't it? Once I tell you everything you want... we're not going to be friends anymore, are we?" he asked, voice breaking toward the end. Amalia immediately intervened.

"No, Syph, that's not the case at all. I promise," she said, leaning over to hug him around his neck. He hugged her back, curling his tail around her as if he expected her to disappear any second. "We like you for you. We want you to stay." She pulled away a bit, and he let her, somewhat reassured. "We're just curious about the outside world, is all, and he isn't very good at expressing himself," she gritted, the last bit directed over her shoulder at Kain, who at least had the decency to look guilty now that his entire family was giving him the side-eye.

Get over here and reassure him, will you? He's suffered enough without being made to think we're only using him.

Kain wasn't about to obey a direct command from Amalia of all people, so despite his guilt he stayed put. "Forgive my impatience, little dragon," he implored, lifting his hand. "Amalia speaks truth. We value you for more than what you can provide us. We are merely excited to discover that there is more out there than Nosgoth."

"Promise?" Syph asked him, still looking injured.

"We promise," Kain answered, and everyone quickly nodded and agreed.

"Want some chocolate?" Amalia asked, remembering that she and Raziel hadn't eaten the last frosted cupcake she'd brought back from her last trip home.

"You have chocolate?!" Syph gasped, his melancholy forgotten in an instant. "That stuff's so hard to get!"

"Not for me," she replied smugly, standing to go back into the house. Syph followed her in, and Raziel trailed behind him, alarmed that a lion-sized creature with wings and a long tail was entering his residence.

To his surprise (and relief), Syph moved through the house with the casual grace of a vampire. He seemed to instinctually know exactly where his wings and tail were, making quick glances backward and to both sides to ensure he had enough room to move. It was a vast improvement over the bull-in-a-china-shop behavior Raziel had seen of his kin earlier. When the youngling turned around to sit outside the kitchen, he curled his tail close alongside his body, glancing over his shoulder once again before backing up a few steps and relaxing onto his haunches with his tail wrapped around his feet. Raziel was fairly certain he hadn't even brushed against anything on the way there.

"Nimble little thing for your size, aren't you?" he asked the dragon, staring wistfully at the cupcake in his talons. He'd been planning on eating it before bed, but couldn't really begrudge the youngling the treat that he was so excited to have.

Syph noticed his expression and gave him a piece anyway. "You could say that," he replied, somewhat smugly. "I'm a bit smaller than the others, but I'm way more agile, and I can move faster. The other younglings have figured out that they can't beat me up unless they sneak up really close."

"They're jealous," came Rahab's deep voice. He'd apparently followed Raziel in after a few minutes. "That's why they bully you, and it's why they take your things. They can't steal your obvious superiority in this regard from you, so they find some other way to bring you down."

"What's your superiority?" Syph asked in reply, the cupcake in his talons momentarily forgotten. He'd correctly surmised that if Rahab knew these things, he must know them from experience.
 
"I'm smart," Rahab replied, tapping the side of his head. "And I have the tenacity to achieve my goals once I've got an idea of how to go about it. Brainless oafs with nothing to boast but brute strength can't stand it," he finished. Amalia and Raziel smirked to themselves, knowing that he was speaking of Turel.
 
"He's brave, too," Raziel chimed, pleasing Rahab to his core. "A bit of a thrill-seeker, in fact."

"Me too! I'm always doing stuff the others are afraid to do," Syph replied gleefully. "I dove straight into one of the deepest oyster farms once, way offshore, because a few other younglings kept insisting that the ones out there would have pearls, even though they're just for eating same as the rest and aren't kept long enough to make any. The sea dragons get so mad when we do that," he laughed, clearly regretting absolutely nothing. "I came back with five oysters and none had pearls, just like I said."

"Did the other younglings attack you for proving them wrong?" asked Raziel.

"Pff, no," he scoffed. "I threw them at them from the air and landed on a roof to see what happened once they opened them to find them all empty. I knew that if they couldn't take it out on me, they'd take it out on each other, which is exactly what happened. The adults in the shop I was hiding above heard them start fighting and caught them with the oysters, and I snuck off and took to the air to get out of dodge. They got in big trouble," he finished, snickering. "You can't get whole oysters anywhere but directly from the farms. The meat and shells are sold separately in the markets. If the meat is still in the shell, they're definitely stolen. That's why they were too scared to go get them themselves."

"Didn't they just rat you out?" Amalia asked, surprised.

"Of course they did," Syph replied cheerily, the cupcake halfway to his mouth. "No one believed them because they're always trying to get me in trouble, and I almost never am. I even felt bad about stealing the oysters and snuck back to leave money for them." He bit off half of the cupcake and immediately shuddered head to tailtip with delight. "Oh, this is really good. It's so good. I forgot how good it is!" he gushed once he'd savored and swallowed it. The rest followed, and he sat licking frosting from his talons, gloating over his special treatment.

"They're all eating fish," he laughed. "They get plain fish and I get proper food, and chocolate! Even Kolmanira is eating fish. We didn't really bring any rations with us save for some seasonings in pouches we carry. She'd be so mad if she knew."

"We're not particularly inclined to give her any, to be frank." Rahab replied, offering him a cloth that he'd taken the liberty of wetting.

"She'd be too proud to ask anyhow," Syph laughed as he cleaned each talon and wiped his mouth. "Thank you. It was really good," he said to Amalia when he was done, offering her the cloth. Rahab intercepted it before she could touch it. 

"Is there anyone among your own kind that treats you with anything even resembling kindness?" Amalia asked.

"Oh, yeah. Most of the adults do, when they notice me. Grandfather certainly does."

"Do you have parents?"

"Somewhere," he shrugged. "They don't raise us. Viable eggs go to a big collection in one of our nurseries. Once we're hatched, we're looked after and taught there until we're a little younger than me. Then they turn us loose to become everyone's problem, as the adults say."

Raziel snickered. Realizing that the others would want to hear any further talk about dragon society, he began to usher everyone toward the door. "I'm starting to get the impression that impulse control isn't a strength among your young."

"Nope," Syph laughed. "Grandfather says I'm one of the few gifted with it. Most adults don't pay any attention to us because they're too busy dealing with the others, which is fine by me," he continued before pausing. "Although... it is kind of nice to have friends now. A bunch of them, too. And important ones!"

"We could claim you as our official dragon ambassador," Rahab offered, knowing that it would send the youngling straight over the moon. "The other younglings will have to go through you to speak with us."

"Really?" Syph asked, jumping catlike from the staircase to the corridor floor and starting to tippy-tap again.

"Aubrex will have to approve," Raziel pointed out. "But I don't see why he wouldn't."

Syph giggled, then chuckled, and finally flopped onto his back, completely overcome with laughter. It was contagious, and everyone who was still loitering in the corridor began to laugh with him, though no one had any idea what they were all laughing at. Janos finally recovered enough to ask. "Pray, tell us what is so funny, child, before we all go to an early grave unaware," he implored, wiping his eyes.

"Just... her face," the youngling gasped, trying to get ahold of himself. "I can't stop picturing her face when she finds out!"

"Whose?" Kain asked. Even he had laughed a bit, though not nearly so helplessly as everyone else.

"Kolmanira's!" he cried triumphantly. "You guys don't get it. She's gonna be so mad!"

Chapter Text

The late morning sun was largely obscured by clouds, but occasionally a ray would make it through to the citadel's stained glass, casting a dozen different colors onto Syph's mottled green scales as he spoke. Kain had finally got him settled and talking again.

"No, we don't actually live together... at least not for the most part. Some places have been designed to house both Ancients and dragons, but most houses are built for one or the other. Just because we can both fly doesn't mean we can use the same size furniture, or utensils, or kitchens, or baths, or toys, or beds..."

"What sort of beds do dragons like?" asked Amalia.

"Depends," the youngling shrugged. "Usually we have big bowls carved down into the rock that we pile soft things into. I like hammocks, but I haven't managed to figure out how to enchant fabric to hold up to me sleeping in it for long," he continued, illustrating his point by holding up his tailtip and tapping his horns with his sharp claws.

"You can already cast magic?" asked Janos.

"Not really..." he admitted. "Not very well, at least. We don't really gain that power until we're adults. I mean... can you imagine?" he asked. "The other younglings would have brought the entire city down on our heads if they could cast anything beyond magelights or simple levitation spells."

"That's a good point," Janos concurred. 

"It's hard to really describe the city," the dragon continued. "It's big enough to have districts and neighborhoods, and that's just inside the walls. There are farms and more homes outside. Most of the big important stuff goes on in the oldest part, where the government buildings were built when it was founded. Everything there does need to be shared between both species, and the humans besides when they actually go there, so it's sort of complicated. It's built big enough for dragons to move around in, but most places there are run by Ancients."

"I hope we can visit someday," said Lenore. "It sounds lovely."

"Well, we're going back there before we make any big moves here," Syph replied. "Our group came to do some scouting and get as much information as we can to take back home. The Ancients are going to want in on this, trust me. They've been mad about what happened here for centuries."

"Why didn't any come with you this time?" asked Janos.

"They wouldn't have been able to keep up flying with us. Grandfather summoned us from within Nosgoth and we all just dropped what we were doing and met him in the mountains. He didn't tell us to bring any Ancients on our backs, so we didn't."

"Ah," the Ancient nodded sadly. "That's how you got here so fast, then."

"What's wrong?" Syph asked, concerned. "Didn't you want us to come?"

"We did, little one. It's just that... Arta had brought one Ancient here herself, as a kindness to me. A babe, only a few months old at most. She took him back soon after you arrived. We'll miss him, is all. I haven't seen another Ancient in thousands of years."

Syph's eyes widened. "Oh... right. I guess I hadn't really thought it through... you've been here this whole time, huh?"

Janos nodded again. "But things have changed now... I finally have something to live for once again."

"We all do," replied Raziel. 

A flash of colors suddenly zipped past the windows outside, and Syph's eyes narrowed. "Those weren't adults. Grandfather's going to be mad, he told everyone else to stay in the courtyard." Everyone turned to gaze down the long hall at the door leading to the landing, watching as three younglings bounded through the archway and skidded to a halt on the carpet. Syph got to his feet, stepping out to face them. "You're getting awful bold, Syph," the biggest youngling called, his voice echoing off the stone. He scales were a brilliant red, and he began to lope down the corridor towards the gathering. "Grandfather told everyone to go to the courtyard." The other two dragons, a blue and another green, followed close behind and came to stand beside him when he reached Syph. 

"Not me," Syph replied smugly. "Grandfather sent me here. He told you to go to the courtyard. You'll be the ones in trouble if he comes back and catches you here."

Janos stood and stepped up beside Syph, patting him on the head. "He speaks the truth. You children ought to mind your patriarch and go back where he commanded you to stay."

"None of you get to tell us what to do," the red youngling spat. The other two had already gotten distracted and were headed toward the closest door... the door to Lorrelin's home.

"Oh no you don't!" she cried, jumping to her feet and running to plant herself in front of the steps. She stood glaring at the pair, looking so fierce that they actually stopped in their tracks.

"Are you two seriously afraid of a human?" the red dragon sneered, turning to advance on them.

"We're not scared of anything!" they both protested simultaneously, baring their fangs.

Things quickly turned to chaos. The smaller two immediately launched themselves at the red, and everyone else scrambled to get out of dodge as the dragons began to tumble about, rolling over and over as they snarled and snapped. None of them saw the flash of gold until it was too late. Kolmanira bounded down the corridor on all fours, slamming into the fighting dragons and breaking their hold on one another. Lashing out with claws, fangs, and tail, she sent the frightened younglings scrambling back toward the exit, trailing blood from at least a dozen wounds between all three of them. "Stop!" she roared. They obeyed instantly, huddling close to the floor, tails tucked and sobbing. Satisfied that they weren't going anywhere, she rounded on Syph, narrowing her eyes as she stared him down, towering over them all.

He stared right back, though he was clearly frightened. "I'm... I don't have to go! I'm their friend!" he said, glancing back over his shoulder. "Grandfather said I could be here!"

Regaining her composure, Kolmanira cleared her throat and stepped around him as if she'd forgotten he even existed. "Please excuse these four," she stated to Janos. "I apologize for their appalling behavior. They will be punished, and their mess cleaned up. You have my word."

"This one speaks the truth," Janos replied, wondering how many more times he'd have to say it. "The other three are trespassing. He is not. We have chosen him to be an ambassador between you and us."

The gold dragon blinked down at him, raising one scaly brow. "...Right," she replied. "I suppose he may stay, then," she shrugged, turning to leave.

"That's right, Kolmanira! I get to be the dragon ambassador!" Syph called after her. "And I got chocolate!"

Her head swiveled around, her expression one of utter contempt. "I don't even know your name," she sneered, not caring for a word he said. With that, she rounded up the troublemakers and sent them limping away, herding them up the stairs before carefully squeezing herself through the arch to follow.

Raziel immediately rounded on Lorrelin. "Have you lost your mind?" he demanded, pointing to her home.

She crossed her arms, staring coolly back at him. "Right around the time I started working for you, yes," she replied.

"Oh, for the love of-" he snarled, throwing up his hands. 

"That dragon is extraordinarily unpleasant," Amalia said to Syph.

"Told you," he shrugged. "She's going to get worse once Grandfather gets back. She didn't take anything we said to her seriously, but when it's coming from him? Suddenly it'll matter. Just watch."

Aubrex had done some fishing of his own, and he returned to the Citadel around mid-afternoon only to be greeted by a very irritable Kolmanira with three disobedient and battered younglings cringing behind her. He had them all back in the corridor in minutes. "Why did we come to Nosgoth?" he demanded of the trio.

"To help the locals hunt a monster," the red one mumbled.

"And yet the first thing you do is disobey my orders and go directly to them to cause trouble!"

"We saw Syph come down here and thought he was disobeying! We only came to get him!"

"You," Aubrex growled menacingly, "are children. It is not your place to enforce my commands. Now, apologize at once."

"We're sorry. We won't come down here again, we promise," the youth said.

"Back to the courtyard with you, this instant," he growled, dismissing them. "Kolmanira, stay." 

The gold dragon sauntered up next to him to sit on her haunches. "That one," she said, nodding toward Syph, "has proclaimed himself an ambassador between us and them." Her tone was patronizing, and she clearly expected Aubrex to dismiss the idea as unneccessary. This only made the look on her face when he agreed to it all the more amusing, causing Syph to snort as he fought his laughter.

"A fine idea," he said. "Need I remind you, Kolmanira, that Reirsyphys is one of a favored few who have been blessed with natural impulse control despite his young age? A bit of responsibility will be good for everyone, him included. Reirsyphys, you will remain with our friends. Learn their ways, keep track of their desires and greviances, and be prepared to speak for them when they are not around to advocate for themselves. Furthermore, you will report to me every evening at dusk, that I may provide you with orders and updates on our war efforts."

"Yes, Grandfather," Syph nodded eagerly. "I can handle it, promise!"

Aubrex nodded once, turned to survey the spatters of blood and damage to the carpet, sighed heavily, and made it like new once more with a toss of his head and a wave of his talons. "Come," he commanded, and Kolmanira fell into step behind him, waiting for him to shrink down to fit through the exit before following him out.

"Syph, can we ask you something?" Amalia began, waiting for the little green dragon to nod and cock his head to the side before continuing. "How, exactly, are your fellow younglings going to aid in our fight, if they can't control their behavior?"

"Cause chaos as a distraction, probably," Syph shrugged. "It's about the only thing they can be trusted to do. Grandfather must have something in mind, or he wouldn't have brought so many of us along."

The first war council was that evening, and Aubrex explained his intentions to everyone at the Citadel then.

"First, we shall gather information from our brothers and sisters assigned to guard the borders. Prerrahar, you will fly south to the sea and speak with the dragons who live beneath the waves. I have already contacted them to let them know you are coming. They will draw maps and write down any other information they have and will be waiting on an island several miles out from the largest city along the shore." 

The dragon Prerrahar, a beautiful navy blue male flecked with golden scales, nodded. "Yes, Grandfather," he replied. "Shall I return immediately, or do you have additional orders?"

"Nothing further. Simply bring whatever scrolls they've prepared directly back here. Autuath, Avalges, you will fly to the mountains to the west. Split up when you get there and fly north and south to the two outposts there, where similar information will be waiting for you. Erasto and Jalavad, you two will fly to the posts in the eastern range, and Rhazin and Suliya will fly north. Return as soon as the information has been handed off. Now, go. The sooner you are back, the sooner we can get started."

The dragons went to prepare for their trip while Aubrex addressed the younglings. "Heed my words, young ones," he began. "Seeing as some of you have already proven yourselves untrustworthy and lacking in the maturity to maintain good relations with those we came to help, you are to leave them alone. You will not approach their living quarters or attempt to speak with them. Should you need to contact them, you will call upon Reirsyphys. He has been appointed an ambassador between our kind and theirs. To make it perfectly clear to every last one of you, his station is now above yours. You will treat him with respect, or Kolmanira will be the least of your worries. As for you, Kolmanira, you heard what I just said. Your station remains above his, but you will respect him nonetheless." The massive silver dragon then bared his fangs at her threateningly. "And if you ever strike him again, you will regret it."

"Someone ratted her out," Syph whispered to Amalia, covering a laugh as he watched the golden female avert her eyes and stare at the ground shamefaced, mumbling her assent.

"The younglings will be assigned to adults once we have our information from the borders," Aubrex continued. "A score of volunteers are needed. You will fan out in all directions and sweep the land to become familiar with Nosgoth's landscape and confirm any locations where this parasite has anchored itself. Stay well out of sight of the humans and look for the energy signature of this monster. You will know it when you sense it."

Arta sailed down from the clouds then, coming to land on Aubrex's horn like usual. "Nothing to report on the way back from Magdellen," she informed her mate, shrugging her wings. "The parasite is still anchored where we found him last time, appearing to be no weaker than it was, but also no stronger. Kain, is it still your opinion that your fight with it weakened it greatly?"

"Yes indeed," Kain replied, stepping forward. The dragons shuffled backward to give him plenty of space, peering curiously at his odd appearance. "I liberated him of a few of his loathsome tentacles with the sword I carry. It appears to be the only thing that can do him harm."

"That is a problem that must be either solved or circumvented before we can engage. Magdellen may have answers," she replied.

"Then that is where we must go. Janos, I expect you approve of this plan?"

"Very much so," Janos replied fervently. "Though I may have to be carried into the city. I expect I'll faint upon sight of it."

"We'll be carrying the rest of them anyhow, seeing as they've no wings," Kolmanira shrugged, apparently having recovered from her embarassment. 

Lorrelin, who'd been hanging back with the other humans behind the vampires, was immediately alarmed. "Oh my god, we have to fly there," she breathed, as if only just now realizing it. 

"Well, yes, how else do you think we'd get across those mountains?" Raziel asked, eyebrow raised.

"No. No, absolutely not," Lorrelin stated flatly as she stared at the assembled dragons. "That is not happening. You all go and have fun, I'll just stay right here." Raziel caught her around the middle as she turned to flounce off and hauled her right back to where she'd been standing, earning himself two punches to his arm and a kick to one of his shins along with a deluge of foul language. "Cut it out, you overgrown toddler," he growled as the dragons stared in surprise, many laughing under their breath. "We're not leaving you behind. Who knows how long we'll be gone? You'll regret not facing this fear after a single day of listening to nothing but your own footsteps reverberate off the walls in there, you know you will!"

"The only regret I see in my future is what I'll be feeling when I've fallen and find myself plunging to my own death!"

"We won't let you fall, little human," said one of the dragons, a copper-hued female who'd begun to edge closer when she overheard the argument. "None of us have ever lost a passenger, and we often ferry humans around the city on our backs. The oldest buildings were designed for winged citizens, after all, and though humans have tacked on their own little enclaves, they still need to come to the downtown area for official business, or to buy and sell in the largest market."

"See, Lorrelin? There's an entire market, a big one, even. You'll forget all about the journey once you're flitting between stalls with some coin to spend," Raziel said breezily.

"All I'm hearing is that I'll have to do this more than once."

"It's a ways off, anyhow," Arta said, gently. "And I thought ahead and brought back enough saddles for everyone. You'll have some time to come around to the idea. And if you truly wish to stay behind, you may."

This placated Lorrelin, who immediately stuck her tongue out at Raziel. Rahab, on the other hand, was practically vibrating with excitement.

"Do we, er, have to wait until then?" he asked, eager to climb onto a dragon's back and take to the sky. 

The copper female huffed a laugh. "No, strange little vampire. I will take you now, provided the council of war is concluded. What is your name?"

"Rahab," he replied. "It's a pleasure to meet you. To have met all of you, really."

"My name is Venmara," she replied, dipping her head. "And we are all happy to be here. It's not every day that we get to do something so big and important as hunting this monster." The other dragons nodded and murmured their asssent.

"We are not finished, Venmara," Aubrex said, and Venmara reached out with a paw and beckoned Rahab closer to wait with her until dismissed. "There are more mundane matters to discuss. You younglings will have jobs assigned while we wait for the couriers to return," he said, drawing groans from the assembled youngsters. "You will be kept busy under the watchful eyes of your elders."

"What is there for them to do?" asked Raziel. "The place is largely a mess outside the parts you were so kind as to restore for us. And if they cannot use magic yet..."

"Precisely. There is a mess to be cleaned up. And seeing as they cannot do it instantly, as I can, it will serve to keep them occupied and out of trouble until time for the scouting mission."

"This citadel was once an important part of Ancient vampire society, after all," Arta explained. "There are historians and archaeologists among the modern Ancients who will be eager for a chance to learn about the history of those who remained behind to follow the false god. For now, we have a few experts among the dragons here. They will oversee the cleanup of the worst of the rubble and ensure that nothing of historic or archaelogical value is damaged or lost, as well as ensure the younglings learn a thing or two. When the damage is assessed, rubble cleared, and structures reinforced where needed, the way will be paved for the Ancients to go over this place with a fine-toothed comb."

"It isn't all bad," said one youngling with a shrug. "We get to explore an old ruin. Who knows what we'll find?"

"Well, considering all the cool stuff is probably in the town part, where we're not allowed to go now because some of us ruined it for the rest..." another chimed in, glaring at the three guilty dragons.

"Nuh uh, the parts that aren't around the residential district were used for war stuff," the first replied.

"She's right. There's plenty to explore there, and those parts are largely intact, now that I'm thinking about it," Raziel replied, wanting to encourage the young dragons to embrace their task and remain in the other parts of the citadel. "You won't be bored."

"Reirsyphys, you will stay with our friends while the others go out to scout. You are more valuable here than out there," said Aubrex.

"Do I still get to fight when we attack?" Syph asked hopefully.

"We will see. We cannot afford to lose you; you are far too rare and have far too much potential. That concludes our business; you may go about your own."

Syph didn't argue. He simply shrugged and returned to Amalia. "May I go play with your toys now?" he whispered, making sure that none of the other dragons overheard as they dispersed. Amalia nodded, watching as Venmara dipped her shoulder to allow Rahab to climb up and seat himself at the base of her neck. Lenore protested immediately. "Don't you need a saddle or something?" she asked, alarmed. 

"Lady Arta said she brought some back," replied Venmara. "We'll go straight to her to get one before we take off. Besides, It's only a short demonstration. No acrobatics. Your kind cannot withstand sharp dives, twists, or turns even with a saddle; you'll swiftly lose consciousness."

"I'll be alright, darling, I promise," Rahab assured his bride, demonstrating his firm grip on Venmara's neck spikes. 

"Very well, Rahab, if you must. But please come straight home afterward," Lenore sighed.

Rahab did as she asked, returning home to gush about the experience for nearly half an hour before setting off for the pool to work out the residual adrenaline. Everyone else went to relax. Amalia got out her laptop and put on cartoons for Syph, who laughed uproariously at the antics of Tom and Jerry. Dinner was held at Lorrelin's place, and she even allowed the little dragon to have a bath in her tub. Afterward, they all gathered in the corridor to talk the night away. Finally, when the moon was high in the sky, they all went home to bed, with Syph curled up in front of Raziel and Amalia's fireplace. 

"I hope when I'm big I'll be able to come visit," he mumbled sleepily as Amalia extinguished the room's magelights with a wave of her hand, leaving only the soft light of the fire dancing off the walls. "It's a long flight from Magdellen."

"We'll come visit you, too," she replied. "I doubt we'll only want one trip to this city you've told us so much about."

"You don't even know the half of it..." he replied with a yawn.

"Just you wait until we're there."