• Chapter 9



    Nikki sat on the cold ground and watched at what was happening as a look of terror started to come across her face. The moon had broken through the cover of the clouds and was now shining down on nick, which was now changing into some kind of animal. His large muscled body was now growing and taking on an animal form and his face was bending into what looked like that of a wolf. His face was beginning to now grow longer into a snout filled with razor sharp teeth. Massive paws and claws begin to take place of his hands and feet and the sound of ripping clothes rings in the air as he takes on the changes. Nikki looks up at nick from the ground and he seemed to be done changing now. She looks up at the 7 foot tall feral creature standing above her and begins to shake with terror. The massive creature lets out a howl and brings one of its arms up and begins to bring it down on her meaning to kill her. She shuts her eyes tight and waits for what seems to be an eternity for her life to come to an end. But it doesn’t. She waits a few more moments to feel the creatures claws rip into her and rip her life away from her. But it never happens.

    She opens her eyes and is shocked at what she saw. Standing in front of her is a young man in a long black jacket is standing in front of her and had stopped the monster’s claw from hitting her. The claws, however, had kept going though and had gone straight into the boy’s arm. Blood was pouring out of the wounds and was now dying the grass under him a deep crimson red. The boy suddenly sprung up from his crouching position and brought his fist up crashing it into the side of the wolf’s face. The wolf stumbled back a few steps from the blow and the boy took advantage of that and pulled his arm away from the wolf’s claws and clenched his hand into another fist. He sent his fist flying again smashing it in between the wolf’s eyes. The wolf howled with pain and stumbled backward falling to the ground but quickly getting back up. He then quickly reached to his side and pulled out a sword from a leather case and charged the wolf at a shockingly quick speed. Nikki sat on the cold ground and watched with amazement at everything that was happening. She could now see the boy perfectly and images from her dreams raced through her mind, she now recognized him. It was him, the boy from her dreams. He was exactly how she had seen him. Everything was the same, the dark symbol on his jacket, his long black hair, even the scar on his face were all exactly how she seen him in her dreams. Her mind began to reel as she watched in shock trying to figure out how any of this was possible.



    Lance knew that Nikki had seen him and that she was watching him. He would have gone over to help her up, but he was a little busy being attack by a seven foot tall super human wolf. Lance caught sight of a massive grey claw coming down at him out of the corner of his eye and brought his sword up at the last second knocking it away. He spun around and brought his right leg up kicking the wolf dead center in the chest but tumbled backward when a massive shock of pain shot through his leg when it hits the wolf. Lance swore under his breathe when he felt the pain and tumbled backward trying to regain his balance. He should have known better. He felt more pain go through his leg when he leaned on it and quickly tried to relieve the pressure off of it. He had for the moment forgotten about one of the werewolves’ nature advantages. A werewolf’s skeleton in its full form was harder than any metal and their hides were as tough as stone. Vampires had advantages too though. They had super human strength and speed and were a lot smaller than wolfs making them quicker. Lance quickly glanced around trying to find a way to put the fight back into his favor. The wolf had quickly recovered from the kick and was now charging lance brining both its claws down at Lance. Lance hadn’t been paying attention and only brought his swords up just at the last possible moment. He had stopped the wolf's attack but was now being pushed down to the ground. He could feel the massive weight pressing down on the sword that he had crossed over his head. He winced when he felt pain begin to go through his leg as the wolf continues to press down on him with all of its strength. Lance looked up into the wolf’s savage yellow eyes and cursed under his breathe when he felt the ground underneath him getting closer.



    Nikki finally snapped out of her trance and began to panic. She looked around for the boy who was now being pinned down by the wolf that was nick. She looked around for some way that she could help him and started running around searching. She spotted a large heavy iron rod and grabbed it, almost dropping it. It was very heavy and she had to drag it on the ground. She drug it along the ground until she was closer to the wolf and got ready as she aimed for the wolf’s head. She began to swing the rod when suddenly the memory of her elbowing nick flashed into her mind and she fond her self swinging the rod toward the wolf’s side instead of its head.

    The wolf yipped out in pain when it felt something hard crash into its side sending a surge of pain through its ribs. It stumbled backwards and fell over, caught off guard by the blow. Nikki had aimed it perfectly and had hit him right where the sore ribs where. She now remembered and realized that, even though he was now this monster, it was still nick inside. Nick growled angrily and swung at Nikki sending her crashing to the ground. Nikki felt the arm hit her and felt herself come crashing down to the ground until she felt her head hit the ground hard on a rock and everything around her began to go dark.



    Lance sprung up from the ground and growled angrily when he saw Nick knock Nikki to the ground. He reached at his side and pulled Grief from its sheath. He charged forward and threw himself into Nick. A wave of pain burst through his body when he felt his body crash into Nick. It had caught Nick off guard though and sent him crashing to the ground. Lance quickly disregarded the pain and brought his sword up and slashed out at nick. He grinned when he heard when he had hoped to hear. Nick had let out a howl of pain as the sword cut into him slicing a large cut across his chest. There are not a lot of blades that can pierce a werewolf’s super hard hide, which is why most vampires used guns or other weapons. Grief, however, was very special, with its razor sharp edge, can pass through almost anything that gets in its way.

    Nick let out an angry howl and charged Lance at full speed crushing or smashing anything that got in the way. Lance had been predicting this and decided to take a defensive stance and try to catch Nick off guard again. Bad idea. Nick jumped suddenly and threw his weight down on lance coming crashing directly down on him. Lance jumped back and brought his sword up in a defensive stance doing his best to protect himself from the reckless attack. Nick swung at Lance with his jagged claws from the right then left, left, right, left, left, right, He goes into a frenzy of attacks that overwhelms and begins to overpower Lance as he does his best to block the intimidating creature’s attacks. He had caught him off guard though and now had the advantage over Lance.

    Lance brought his sword up and batted one of Nick’s arms away as it came down on him, but just as he did another came up and crashed hard into Lance’s arm. He felt a sharp burst of pain go through his arm and then his arm went completely numb from the blow. Lance cursed under his breathe and suddenly realized something. He was now wide open for an attack. Lance shut his eyes as a flash of burning pain shot out across his chest. A warm feeling creeped across his skin as a flow of blood began to come from the deep wounds. He stumbled backwards from the force of the blow and felt his back slam into one of the trees in the park. He opened his eyes just in time to see a large black claws come straight for his head. He quickly moved his head and heard nicks claws rip into the tree and saw splinters go flying. Nick rebounded back from it and brought both his arms at nick. Lance quickly reacted to it and jumped up grabbing one of the branches of the tree. He pulled himself up and twisted midair and dropped back down swinging himself behind Nick. He felt his foot crash into the Nick’s skull as he kicked at him from behind then dropped from tree branch when he heard the whine of the tree as nick crashed into the tree. Nick had stumbled forward from the kick and had managed to break the entire tree down from his weight as he fell on it. Lance had rebounded off from the kick perfectly and landed gracefully back down on the ground. He turned around to face Nick as he got up and was covered in pieces of wood and splinters. He screamed angrily and stared at Lance with rage filled eyes. Lance still had his sword at his side and rushed forward using his superhuman speed to get to him before he could even realize what had happened. He brought his sword up and Grief up, aimed directly at his heart. Lance suddenly yelled out “Wolf Bane! “And Grief begins to change suddenly. The sword edge glows brightly and when the glow goes down the razor edge of Grief is now silver and shines brightly in the moonlight. Lance thrusts the sword upward and rolls when he feels it pass through nicks chest impaling him. Nick swings at lance but only stumbles backward when he feels the sword lodged in his chest. At first he doesn’t think it much of a threat but soon realizes the full effect of the silver as an intense burning pain works its way from his chest out. Nick begins stumbling backwards uncontrollably and looks as if he would fall back onto the tree, impaling himself on its broken remains. He begins to sway and fall but begins to regain his balance. Lance silently curses under his breathe and watches nick, trying to think of what to do next.



    The darkness began to disappear as Nikki as she began to wake. Her hearing and sight begin to come back as she hears the howls of pain coming from Nick and see the boy standing not to far away from him. She shook her head but stopped when a throbbing pain echoed in her skull and a sharp pain shot in the back of her head. She looked around trying to figure out what all was happening. When she saw Nick and the boy she began to remember and began to panic. She watched the boy wondering who he was and why he was just standing still and not fighting the monster that use to be Nick. Then she saw it. She saw how Nick was teetering over the broken remains of the tree and saw the dark metal of the handle of the sword sticking out of Nick’s chest. She began to look around franticly for someway to help this strange boy fight and finally kill the monster. She looked around and then saw the metal rod she had used earlier. She ran over and picked it up off he ground. She turned toward Nick. If she was going to do this she would have to time it perfectly. She started to run and then with all her strength threw the metal rod straight toward Nick. It whistled through the air until it came crashing into nick, smashing into his chest. He began to come crashing down, that final push had thrown him completely off balance and he was now falling down onto the shattered remains of the tree. He fell over with a loud crash onto the splintered and broken tree. The tree must have been made a very hard wood because when Nick fell, he had impaled himself on the jagged edges of the broken tree. He lay still on the trunk as he bleeds from the numerous holes punched in his body. The blood runs down from his body like a small river and that dyes the wood of the tree a deep crimson red.

    Nikki sat down on the ground exhausted and tired and let out a long sigh. She sat trying to collect her thoughts and as they spun around in her head. She was trying desperately to try and figure out just what had happened. She lay back trying to catch her breathe and trying to relax herself.



    Lance watched Nick fall onto the tree and did not move his gaze until he was sure that he was dead. A burning pain begins to singe him through his chest and arm as he tries to steady himself. He grasps his arm tightly when the pain begins to grow more and more intense and he falls to his knees slamming his eyes shut. He feels more warmth stream down his chest and begins to soak his shirt.

    When Nikki finally catches her breath she sits up and looks at the dead body that was her old boyfriend. Then it finally hit her. She quickly began to panic and sprung up from the cold ground. She frantically began scanning over the park looking for the boy who had saved her life. She finally spots him and a look of fear comes over her face. He is now sitting on the ground doubled over in the now growing pool of blood. She quickly rushes over to him panicking and fearing the worse. “Are you ok?” She asked almost yelling. She didn’t mean to sound so panicked, she couldn’t help it. She was worried. “I’ll be fine”. Lance said quietly. “Are you sure?” Nikki asked, suddenly stumbling over her own words. She wasn’t sure why she asked the question. There was just something about his voice that drew her in. Even though he had only said one thing, she could already tell what kind of voice he had by how dominant it was and how much it stood out. “Yes, I'm sure”. Lance said in a calm and controlled tone, hoping it would convince her. He searched his body silently and tried to draw out what energy he could find in himself as he tries to stand but staggers and falls back to the ground. “Do you need any help?” Nikki asked her voice full of concern. Secretly, she was hoping he would answer so that she could hear his voice again. There was just something about his voice that drew her in with each and every word that he said. There was just something completely irresistible about his dark cool voice that she just could not resist. His voice wasn’t very deep, but it was very dark and there was something dark and haunting about it. Something made her sad though about it, every time he spoke, she could sense a lot of pain in his voice. She could that it wasn’t physical pain either. Something inside was hurting him. Nikki listened to him as she spoke again. His voice extremely smooth and elegant, but yet it wasn’t at the same time. “Are you offering?” Lance asked looking up at Nikki. She looked down into Lance’s eyes. There they were. Those mesmerizing blue and red eyes that she found herself hopelessly lost in each and every time she dreamt of him. She tried to answer him but she couldn’t find her breath and just stammered as she locked eyes with him again. She began to panic when she couldn’t find her breath and blushed when she realized just how much of a fool she was making of herself. Nikki quickly looked away trying to escape his gaze “yes” she answered over her shoulder. She was trying to catch her breath and breathed in a lung full of air as she tried desperately to breath. She could feel her face growing warmer as she could feel his stare behind her. “Good”. Lance said lifting one arm up into the air, inviting her to help him up. She moved under his arm and lifted him up off the ground allowing him to put all of his weight on her. She kept staring at him as he was now closer as she felt his weight against her. : do you really find me that fascinating?” Lance asked, looking over at her grinning. “Oh ummm”. Nikki said, tumbling over her own words as she tried to find the right ones to say. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to stare”. She said looking away as she felt her face get warmer. “It’s ok” Lance said giving her a warm smile. “So…” Nikki said trying to start a conversation with this enchanting young man. “Does my hero have a name?” She said looking at him curiously. “Lance” he replied quietly, almost as if his own name upset him. “And what about you?” he asked even though he already knew her name. “Nikki”. She replied cheerfully, trying to lay some charm on it as she said it. Lance repeated it a few times in his head and looked away. Something seemed different about her name now that he had finally met her. Lance looked over and watched Nikki quietly. He was surprised at how beautiful she looked in the dim light of the full moon. Just the way that he long black hair reflected the light of the moon and the stars and how her brown eyes shone in the dark of the night. He soon shook his attention off as he realized just how “improper” he was being and looked away from her.

    They soon arrived at a dark intersection in the road and the streets. Lance looked around the shadows of the streets and began to pull away from Nikki. “I have got to go down this way now” He said quietly. He didn’t want to leave her, but he had to. If he didn’t, he would be in a lot of trouble Serist and The elders. He had no problem with getting into trouble with the elders; it was Serist he was afraid of. When Nikki felt Lance pulling away she quickly pulled him close again “no” she said without even realizing she said it and began searching her mind desperately looking for some way to cover it up. “At least come back to my house and let me take care of those cuts”. She said, genuinely concerned for him. Lance though about it and finally gave in. “Fine”. Lance said letting her drag him down the other street. “I can’t be long though” He said looking quietly away from her. “Why?” Nikki asked, curiosity getting the best of her. “Because, it’s not good for my kind to spend time with yours”. Lance said looking away trying to hide his face. “What do you mean?” Nikki asked turning her head so she could look him in the face.

    Lance began to explain himself and explained the best he could about himself and his kind. He explained about vampires and how everything worked in their world. He explained how vampires naturally age slower than humans and how they were given natural “gifts” at birth. Nikki listened intently and tried her best to understand and asked questions often. She had a very hard time believing him , as would anybody, but something about what he was saying just seemed right to her. They soon arrived at Nikki’s house and every light in the house seemed to be off and the house seemed to be completely dark. Nikki walked up to the door and fished around in her pocket. When she felt the cold surface of the metal she pulled it out and shoved the key into the key hole of the door. She quietly unlocked the door and began to make her way into the house when she heard Lance suddenly speak up “you don’t believe me do you?” He asked her looking away sadly. Nikki looked down into his eyes and stared into them a few seconds. They drew her in as the dim light of the moon lit street bounced off the red and blue of his eyes. “No, I do”. She said quietly locking gaze with his eyes. They continued to stand there staring into each others eyes a few more moments before Nikki picked him up again and helped him into her house.

    Chapter 10

    Nikki walked into the house and looked around, looking to see if her mother was home. The entire house was dark and it didn’t look like her mom had been home since she left this morning for work. She walked down the hall and searched in the dark for a chair to set Lance down on. She walked around the house and turned a few of the lights on as she looked around making sure that her mom wasn’t home. It was still really dark in the house and she could barely see anything in front of her. “Wait here, ill be right back” she said walking back into the room that lance was in and then going down one of the halls. She had been through her house plenty of times in the dark and knew her way around. She needed to go up to her room to find some bandages for Lance. She walked down to the end of the hall and walked up the stairs tripping a few times on her way up. Half way up the stairs she began running, even though she wasn’t sure why she was hurrying so much. She flew up the stairs and down to the end of another hall almost running into the door of her room. She opened the door the door and ran into the bathroom next to her room searching the cupboards for some bandages big enough for Lance’s cuts. When she found some she walked back into her room and threw the bandages on her bed. She rushed out of her room and back down the stairs catching herself as she almost falls on her face when she trips on one of the last steps. She slowed herself down and walked back into the room she left Lance in and helped him back up and started down the hall again. “So, now where are we going?” Lance asks smiling. “Up to my room”. Nikki answered back quickly. “Why?” He Lance asked curious. Nikki thought hard, not quite sure herself why they were. She had to give him an answer though, so she though up something quickly. “Because, my room has a bathroom right next to it we can use”. She said trying to focus and not get distracted by him “it will make it easier to clean your cuts”. She said simply. They continued up the stairs and down the hall until they reached Nikki’s room and she helped him through the doorway setting him gently down on her bed. Nikki walked over to her dresser and picked up a pair of scissors and walked back over to the bed opening the bag of bandages. “Now, let’s see how bad they are” Nikki said quietly as she pulled the jacket from Lance’s shoulders. He winced a few times when he felt Nikki lift the jacket off of him and she eventually got it off of him setting it down on the bed next to them. She gently reached down and started to lift his shirt off, trying to avoid the cuts on his chest as best she could, and jumped when she suddenly felt Lance’s hand clamp down hard on her wrist. She drew a sharp breathe and a small sound jumped from her lips. She was surprised at how strong his grip was and she could feel her hand going numb as his solid grip on her wrist began cutting off the circulation to her hand. She looked along her arm and followed it down to his chest and saw why he had done it. When she was lifting his shirt it had caught onto one of the cuts, it was only a reflex. Lance looked down at his hand and unlatched it from her wrist watching Nikki as she rubbed her numb wrist. “Sorry” Nikki said, apologized as she moved the shirt off of the cut. “Sorry?” Lance asked surprised. “I'm the one who should be sorry”. He said looking down at the red marks on Nikki’s wrist. The both of them just sat and stared at each other with apologetic looks on their faces for what seemed like forever. Nikki continues to stare at lance a few more moments before going back to taking off his shirt, after she neatly folded it and set it on top of his jacket on the bed. She looked at his now bare chest and traced a hand over the deep cuts in the defined muscle of his chest. She was surprised at how defined the muscle was. It wasn’t big; it was just extremely defined and strong. She looked down at his arm and traced her fingers over the claw marks and holes in the flesh of his arm. She reached over on the bed and grabbed some of the bandages cutting them into strips with the scissors. She carefully wrapped the strips around his arm, being as careful and gentle as she could, making sure not to touch the claw marks and holes. He began tracing her fingers over his chest again feeling the cuts and lance drew in a quick breathe when he felt her gentle touch on his bare skin. He tried to breathe again and let the breath out but he just couldn’t. He tried again but still couldn’t find his breathe. He sat and watched Nikki, wondering how she had so easily, taken his breathe away. When Nikki finally took her hand off his chest, lance was finally able to let his breathe out and began breathing again. She ran her hand along his chest one last time, somehow fascinated with each muscle her hand touched. She reached over to pick up some more bandages but suddenly felt Lance’s hand touch her hand. She suddenly felt her face get a little warm as she looked down at his hand on hers. A warm feeling began washing over her as she tried to think of what to do. She looked up at lance hoping that maybe he would do something, but his face had gone red and he had the same expression on his dark face. She kept looking back up to Lance and soon enough, got hopelessly lost in his crystal blue and red eyes. She suddenly felt herself throw herself at him and she wrapped her arms around his neck and closed her eyes. She didn’t know what she was doing; it all was happening without her trying to. She felt herself slowly get closer and closer to him until she felt her lips press gently against his and she kissed him. When she finally realized what she was doing she pushed herself away from lance taking a few steps back. She opened the door of her room and turned back around to look at lance. “I’ll be right back” she said quietly as she slipped out into the hall and into another bathroom at the end of the hall. She flicked on the light and looked at herself in the mirror. Her face was red and her chest rose heavily as she tried desperately to catch her breath. Her thoughts were racing around her head and she could feel her heart racing in her chest. What was it she has felt when he had touched her hand? She looked deeply into her image in the mirror. Was it love? Was it love she had felt? It couldn't be. She just met him, she couldn't love him. Did she love him? Nikki quietly tiptoes down the hall and peeks around the corner into her room. She watched Lance and she suddenly felt her face begin to get warm and turn red again. She races back to the bathroom, trying to be as quiet as she can. Nikki stares back into the mirror, brushing her long bangs out of her face. She rubbed her eyes and hoped that it was all just a dream and that she would wake up from it soon. When she pulled her hands back and saw her still red face in the mirror, she realized it wasn't a dream. Nikki stared into the mirror, trying to convince herself that this was all impossible, that this could not and is not happening. Soon enough though, she found herself walking back out in the hand and walking back into her room. It was true. She did. She loves him. Nikki knelt down by him and picked the bandages back up. She looked at all the cuts along Lance's chest. She gently runs her hand along his chest and feeling the muscles of his chest tense a little from her touch. She didn't know what she was doing, she just felt irresistibly drawn to him. Lance closed his eyes as he felt her gently touch on his skin. He didn't know why he was reacting the way he was, but he just couldn't resist the feeling of it. Lance opens his eyes and looks down at Nikki. She was looking right back up at him. The moonlight coming in from the window was shining down on her, the pale light reflecting off he eyes and casting a faint glow on the beautiful brown color of her eyes. Nikki climbs up onto the bed and puts her hand flat on his chest. She looks up into Lance's eyes and gets hopelessly lost in them. The red streaks in his eyes had completely disappeared, leaving behind only a mesmerizing sapphire blue behind. Nikki begins to feel herself moving closer to him until she is only a few inches away. She was trying to resist the feeling growing inside her, but but it was just growing stronger and stronger and it was beginning to overwhelm her. She suddenly feels Lance's hands come out and push her back. Nikki looks up into Lance's eyes. " No". lance says quietly, looking away. " It isn't right for my kind to be with your kind". He says sadly, starting to stand up. Nikki springs up and pushes him back down onto the bed. " Then blood me" She says quickly, not even realizing that she had just said it. Lance had explained to her how a human could become a vampire. She had been thinking about it ever since he had told her. lance looks away deep in thought for a few moments then looks back. " Are you sure?" Lance asks, still very unsure about it. " If you become one of us, you will have to leave your entire life behind. There is no way back and you will never get to see anybody you know again". He says, reminding her of what she already knew. Nikki looks over at the small table by her bed. Sitting on it is a small picture of her and Jessi. Doubts begin o run into her mind and she is just about to say no when she spots another picture. A picture of her and her " mother". She thought back to that day when the picture had been taken. That was one of her most miserable days ever since she was adopted. Nikki pushes lance back until his back is flat against the bed and she gets over him and pins him down. " yes, I am sure" She whispers in his ear, Shocking even herself with this new side of her that had suddenly surfaced out of nowhere. lance thought deeply about this and tried to think of the consequences that would follow. He finally turns back to Nikki when he had finally made his decision. Lance looks up at Nikki. She was staring down at him with her angelic brown eyes. She slowly lowers herself down and Lance brings himself up until he feels his lips against hers. He holds it that way for a few minutes and then pulls back gently and looks up into her eyes again. " Are you sure this is what you want?". He asks one last time. " Yes". Nikki whispers in his ear and brings her head by his neck and kisses it gently. Lance takes in a quick breath when he feels her lips on his neck. He runs his tongue over his front teeth until his tongue rests on one of his fangs. he bites down hard until he feels a good amount of his own blood in his mouth. he gently wraps his arms around Nikki's neck and kisses her neck a few times gently. he rears his head back a little then bears his fangs and bites down into her Nikki. lance could feel a small rush of Nikki's blood rush into his mouth and it tasted so sweet to him. Nikki lets out a pleasurable moan as she feels him bite down, unsure why she was even reacting the way she was. Lance begins to suck up her blood until he finally snaps out of it and remembers what he was doing. Lance bites down a little harder and pulls Nikki a little closer, hoping that it might help her a little. He begins to force his own blood from his mouth into the two small bite wounds in Nikki's neck. Nikki was already completely out of breath and the feeling had grown so strong that she had lost complete control over herself. She had wrapped her legs around him and the feeling had grown so strong that she could feel her entire body shaking. She was relieved when she felt Lance move away and his teeth pull away from her neck. She let out a long breath and looks down at lance. She was glad that he was done now, but the feeling was still there. She suddenly found herself pressed hard against him and attacking his neck and chest with kisses. The other side of her had taken complete control over her. She wrapped herself around him and her hands quickly began exploring ever inch of his body as she continued to kiss him. That was it, she had lost all control over herself.

    Chapter 11



    "I'm going to need my clothes back" Lance said standing in the middle of the room looking over at Nikki who was still laying in bed. "your going to have to come and get them" Nikki said impishly from underneath the comforter of her bed. Lance walked back over to the bed and kissed her a few times gently on the lips. He reached under the covers and grabbed his clothes away from her. It was still dark out and it had started raining again. Lance walked over to the window and threw on his pants and shirt and realized that he was still missing something. " I'm going to need my jacket back too". He said, looking over at the grinning face sticking out from under the covers. He watched her as she stood up and threw the sheets off of her and walked over to him. There were still two small red marks on her neck from the night before and still showed pretty well, even in the dark. She walked over and wrapped her arms around Lance's head and gave him a few long kisses before looking back into his eyes. " I have to go now" Lance said, trying to his jacket back from her. A sad look came across Nikki's face when he said it. " when will I get to see you again?" She asked sadly, looking into his deep blue crystal like eyes. " you had better get dressed, your mom will be up soon". Lance said, avoiding the questions. Her started to head for the window when Nikki rushed over and wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his chest. " I don't want you to go!". She said, pulling herself closer to him. She could feel Lance's gently touch on her face, leading her up until she was looking up at him. Lance looked down into her deep brown eyes and kissed her gently. Nikki wrapped her arms around his neck and closed her eyes as she felt his lips against hers. She gently opened her eyes expecting to see his gently blue eyes, but he was gone. She looked over at the open window and out into the black void of the night. He was gone. Had it all just been another dream? Did she imagine the entire thing? She walked over and to her bed and looked at the messy sheets and blankets, remembering what had happened through out the night. She searched around the room, looking for just one thing that would tell her that it wasn't all just a dream. She looked over at her pillow and she found it. It was a rose. A single rose. Nikki walked over and picked it up gently and looked at the deep crimson red of the petals. The rose gave off a very strong scent that reminded her of Lance. The stem of the rose was a dark emerald green and had several protruding thorns from its dark green skin. The thorns were an even darker green and the tips of them were a dark red. It was one of the most beautiful things Nikki had ever seen. She held it close to her for a few moments before she looked back down at it. She walked over to her bathroom and began searching through the drawers. She pulled a glass container out and filled it with cold water from the sink. She walked back into her room and gently set it on her dresser, gently putting the rose in the cold water. She could feel a sadness come over her heart. She wanted to be with him so much, she missed him already. She was happy that she was able to finally meet him and that it wasn't all just a dream. She looked over at the small digital clock by her bed. It was almost 6:00 o'clock. She needed to start getting ready for school. She walked over and grabbed a small short sleeved black shirt and some light black jeans from her dresser. She started for the bathroom when she felt a warm feeling on her neck. She reached up and felt the two small holes in her neck. She ran back over to her dresser and retrieved a black turtle neck shirt. She threw her clothes on the counter in the bathroom and turned the shower on. She was glad that today was Friday or else she would have to come up with an excuse for wearing a turtle neck every day for Jessi. Something told her that Jessi wouldn't believe a single one of them. She quickly undressed and jumped into the shower and felt the warm water fall onto her face. She couldn't get the image of Lance out of her mind. She wondered when she would ever see him again. She decided that it wouldn't be for a while and tried her best to get him out of her mind for the moment so she could focus on what she had to do for the day. What she didn't know though was, she would be seeing him again a lot sooner than she thought.



    Chapter 12


    Lance dropped down from the window and landed gracefully on the concrete sidewalk. he took off down the street, avoiding being seen by anybody who might be walking out in the rain. His jacket flapped noisily behind him and kept out the cold of the morning rain. The scenery around him began to change quickly and went from busy streets of the city to a calm fields and forests as he left the city limits and crossed into the forest outside the city. He began to slow his pace when he saw the dense forest in front of him until it was down to a quick walk. He looked around at all the trees of the forest. The forest was one of the few things left that the humans had not tainted with their industrialism yet. Mother wouldn't allow that to happpen though. Sarah certainly wouldn't go down without a fight either. lance slowed a little until he was at a calm walking pace as he started to enter the forest. He stopped for a moment when he saw a young girl playing and skipping around in the forest. She had short brown hair that blew gracefully along with the gently breeze. She was wearing a short green and brown dress that blended into the forest perfectly. She also had a very childish face and was pretty short, although she was about the same age as Lance. Lance walked over watching from a distance as her radiant green and brown eyes looked around at the forestry happily. There was one feature that stood out more than anything though. Small fragile crystal like wings fluttered happily behind her as she ran around the trees. She was a forest sprite. Forest sprites were the healers and protectors of the forest. Sadly though, because of the constant destruction of forests, she was one of the very last of her kind. Lance knew this because he had known her since he was a very small child. Her name was Sarah. Lance walked over to her and greeted her as he usually did. " How is mother today?" He asked, smiling at the small energetic child. He was of course referring to Mother Earth. They all just called her Mother though and the forest sprites were her children. " She is making some progress" Sarah said sadly, her musical voice blending in perfectly with the musical fall of the rain in the forest. " Serist is looking for you" Sarah said absent mindily. " Is there anyone who doesn't know that Serist is looking for me?!" Lance said laughing. " Is he really that upset with me?" Lance said cheerfully. " nah, he's just worried about you". Sarah said plainly. " you've been gone for almost three days after all". she said looking at the young vampire. " yes, I know" Lance said quietly, thinking back to the events of the past few days. He looked ahead of them at the trail. It was beginning to come to an end as they approached the vampire home. The vampires all lived in a large community home to avoid being discovered by humans because of their reputation of being thought as monsters. " you better hurry, Serist is waiting for you". Sarah said, turning and giving a wave before running back into the forest. Lance approached the massive iron gates of the home and opened it, closing it behind him as he walked onto the vampire home's grounds. The gate closed with a loud crash as it shut behind him. lance looked up at the massive mansion that was his home. It was a massive building that towered over even the tallest of the trees in the forest and everything else. It was very old and almost seemed abandoned. The building was large and dark and the design looked like an old english victorian gothic design. As old and quite the building looked, Lance knew it wasn't on the inside. An entire community of vampires all lived inside of this building and they all called it home. Lance walks quitely up to the door and and slips into the home quitely. He looks around the vast halls of the home. The halls are all filled with tons of people, all of which are busy casually lounging about and conversing with one another. Nobosy seemed to notice lance as he snuck in and he tries to sneak past them all unseen. " there you are!" Comes a loud booming voice from behind. Lance sighs and turns around to face them. " yes legion, I am finally back". Lance said sighing again. " is there something I can help you with, I'm rather tired and I would very much like to go take a nap in my room". He said starting to take a few steps away. " Oh, no you dont" Legion says, reaching over and grabbing lance by the collar of his jacket. " Serist is very angry with you and wants to talk to you". Legion says, a big grin on his face. " I see you still havn't returned Serist's cloak to him" lance said, trying to change the subject. " Don't change the subject boy" Legion said, letting out a loud hearty laugh. lance tried to get away but gave up when he couldn't. Legion was alot stronger than him and had alot more muscle than lance. Legion gave him a push as he led his friend down one of the other halls, opening one of the doors and pushing him in. " Serist, I found him". Legion said across the room. " Thank you, legion" Came a voice from the other end of the room. " Yes, thank you legion". Lance said smugly, grinning a wide grin up at legion. Legion grinned a grin twice as big and then left the room. Lance brushed himself off and stood back up and looked at the vampire sitting in a desk across the room. He is wearing a elegant red silk shirt, black dress pants, and a long black jacket. He had short black messy hair and emerald green eyes. He had a long leather sword sheath strapped to the chair behind him and the handle of the sword shone in the dim light of his room. " you were looking for me?" Lance said, taking a few steps forward. " yes". Serist said simply, standing up out of his chair and walking out infront of his desk. " I'm not even going to bother asking where you've the past three days" Serist says starting to pace back and forth. " However, I would like to know why there is werewolf blood all over the park". He says, looking at Lance, not really expecting an answer. Serist gave him a big smile and Lance smiled back, relieved that Serist wasn't really mad at him. " i'm just glad that your ok" Serist says, genuine concern filling his voice. " Aside from a few scratchs, Im ok". lance says looking at his kind mentor. " this cannot go unpunished though Lance" Serist said, his voice suddenly serious. " And, I'm not talking about the wolf...." He says quitely. " The elders are not going to take very lightly to this" Serist said, trying to lighten up his own mood. Lance looked away and then back up at Serist. " yes, I know" he says quitely. Serist looks down at the child that he had watched over and raised all of these years when his parents died. A silence begins to form between the two until Serist finally breaks it. " So, whats this I keep hearing about my cloak?" He asks light heartitly. Lance burst out laughing and tries to catch his breathe. " Ask legion" He says simply. " Legion?" Serist asks suprised, opening the door to his room and stepping out and leading lance out as well. " yep" lance says with a smug look on his face. " oh, by the way". Serist says, shutting the door behind him. " I would suggest you find her some friends before you bring her here to live with us" he says over his shoulder as he walks down the hall. At first lance just nods until he realizes what Serist had just said. " wait a minute...." He says to himself. " how did he...." he says looking down the hall. " hey, serist wait up!" He shouts at Serist, running after him back down the hall.