Chapter Four

Hell, Duo decided, was a locked apartment with an overly anxious person watching your every move.

His gaze shifted longingly over Relena's head to the clock on the wall behind her. Just after three and sunset wasn't until seven. Damn it. This was slow torture. And it wasn’t like he had a choice. Heero hadn't given him a forwarding address. If he wanted to see the other boy, he had to stay put. Which would have been fine had it not been for Relena following him from room to room, treating him to wan, tired smiles and endless tea. He was surprised his blood hadn't turned to raspberry swirl from all the scones she kept stuffing into him. It was a nervous habit he knew so well, something that dated back to their childhood, when Relena had actually been…chubby. To look at his slender, statuesque cousin, you would never know she'd been an ounce overweight in her life. It was only his memories and photo albums that told a different tale.

Things had changed over time but there were a few constants; Relena's love of sweets being one. And her tendency to resort to eating when she was upset or nervous was another. She was just blessed enough to inherit her mother's genes along with her porcelain skin and wheat-field hair. Anyone else would be popping after that much raspberry jam. 'I know I certainly am,' he thought woefully. 'I just hope Heero will love me enough not to mind the fact I'm being turned into a small house.'

Love. The word brought him up short. Was that what he felt for Heero? The word was too intense, too large to describe something so new but it was the one that kept coming back, dying to fall off his lips despite his stubborn pride. He cared about Heero, he was passionately intoxicated by just the thought of the vampire, but did that equate love? Part of him felt it was too soon to make that judgement call, that he was just letting the afterglow and crush affect his brain, thereby making him feel irrationally. That he was moving far too fast… Then again, how fast was too fast once you'd already had sex with the other person. Really mind-blowing, hot sex...repeatedly...with said person. 'Okay, this isn't helping,' Duo thought, in irritation. If anything, it was only sharpening his desire for nightfall.

"Duo?"

"Hmm?" He dragged his mind out of its gutter frolic and turned it toward Relena.

The blond girl gave him a nervous smile, the kind that put him on instant alert because it usually meant something was on her mind; something big and probably related in some way to him. He wasn't sure he was ready for twenty questions right now. After the disaster this morning with Dorothy, he found himself approaching the subject of Heero being broached openly with a bit more wariness. If Dorothy, who knew about vampires, had handled it as well as she had, then how would Relena, who knew nothing of the creatures that stalked the night, react?

Then again, perhaps Dorothy hadn't been the best person to discuss Heero with. Yes, she knew about vampires, but she had made it apparent that she didn't care for them. Okay, that she hated them outright and if what he guessed was true, then she had every reason to. Therefore, it was hardly likely that she would be receptive to the idea of him sleeping with one, let alone befriending one. He had seen the signs but had chosen to ignore them. And as a result, Dorothy had all but fled his side when they'd returned. She hadn't even come up to the apartment to see Relena with him, so shaken had she been by the incident in the car. Not that he could blame her. The whole thing had freaked him out, too. Even now he found himself shying away, too afraid that thinking on it would summon those horrible images back in full force.

He put those thoughts aside. 'Best not to give Rel something more to worry over.' "What is it, Rel? Something wrong?"

"Oh no… Well, yes… Duo, you know I would never pry," she began, her voice coaxing.

'Somehow I have my doubts about that,' he sighed. "Yes?"

"It's just…" She trailed off, plucking at her skirt, then reaching automatically for another sweet.

Duo reached out and gently took her hand, stopping her from wolfing down another scone. "Relena, what? You can tell me anything, you know that."

"Funny, that was just what I was going to say."

Duo waited, hoping that he kept his face carefully devoid of all emotion. This conversation could not be going in any direction that he wanted it to, not when Relena was trying to be so positively sweet about it. But, there was no way around it, short of running off or locking himself in his room, both of which would just raise Relena's concern.

Duo sighed, resigned to his fate. "You first."

His cousin smiled a bit, and straightened up in her seat, obviously warmed and encouraged by that simple statement. "Well, it's just that … you were gone all night … and that's not like you, Duo. But … well … if you were … you know … with someone … oh, Duo, you know you don't have to keep secrets from me. You couldn't have just told me that there was someone you've been seeing?"

He exhaled, slowly, feeling breath ebb from every cell in his body in something quite akin to relief. Maybe this wouldn't be so difficult, after all. "How did you guess? About me being with someone?"

"Well, your appearance for one," she smiled at him gently. "I've known you a long time, Duo and the first thing you do in the morning, if it’s a regular morning, is re-braid your hair. And the smell… You smelled like…"

She blushed prettily, her fair skin, so like his, turning pale rose with her discomfort. He coughed meaningfully, hoping that he wasn't turning just as red. "Oh."

"And then there's the love bite staring me in the face," Relena continued.

He stilled, mind racing. Had she somehow seen the bite marks Heero had left him with? He hadn't thought any of those were in visible places.

"The bruise on your ear," she replied delicately. "You do have a fairly nice hickey going on there, Duo."

"I do?!" His hands flew to his ears, unsure of which one she meant. How the hell had he missed something like that? He rose to his feet, intent on finding a mirror and seeing for himself.

She stopped him, pushing him back in his chair. "Hang on," she rummaged through her purse, tossing him a small compact. "I've finally gotten you where I want you and the last thing I need is for you to go wandering off again."

"Thanks." He snapped the compact open, angling the mirror. Sure enough, there was a nickel-shaped purple spot on the lobe of his right ear. He touched the cartilage with ginger care. 'So much for being subtle.'

"I'm sure with a little foundation, we can make it less noticeable," she offered.

"I notice you didn't say 'make it disappear,'" he replied glumly.

"Duo, I'm good but, " she paused casting a glance at his ear. "I'm not that good."

"Oh thank you," he replied, sarcastically, tossing her the compact back. She caught it with a twist of the wrist. "Nice to see you remember all those afternoons in the park."

She rolled her eyes, pocketing the item. "Like I could forget that. After being smacked in the face by a softball a time or two, you learn pretty quickly to catch. You were lucky you didn't break my nose."

"Why was I lucky? It's your nose."

"Because I would have killed you if Mom had presented me a nose job for my sixteenth birthday."

"Point taken."

"So why didn't you tell me?" Relena pressed. "You could have just said you were going out to see someone. I would have been far less worried."

"I didn't mean to worry you," Duo admitted. He peered at her anxiously. "You do know that, right?"

"Of course I do. It's just… Well, I'm not sure you always think of the consequences, Duo. I do worry when you don't come home."

"I know that."

Relena sighed, her pale face pinched, the circles underneath her eyes the bruised flesh of a plum. "I'm not your mother, Duo. You don't owe me--"

"Stop," he reached out and took her hand. "I owe you everything, Relena. I owe you my life. If you hadn't acted so quickly both times, I wouldn't be here."

'And I wouldn't have met Heero,' he added silently. His hand tightened around her fingers.

"I'm sorry I frightened you. Forgive me?" He made a puppyish face at her. "Please?"

"Don't be ridiculous." Relena reached out and hugged him. "I wasn't angry to begin with."

Duo raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, I was kind of angry at first," she amended. "Good thing we're not seven anymore or I'd have pulled your hair for this one."

He clutched his braid melodramatically. "Not the hair! Why is it always the hair?" he mock wailed.

"Because it's such a useful leash," she smirked. "So this somebody… Anyone I know?"

'Not unless you travel in the same circles as the blood-sucking undead… Oh, wait. Aunt Charlie is a lawyer… At least Heero has an excuse,' Duo thought. "No."

"Uh-huh. So what's this person like then?"

"Nice," Duo said noncommittally.

"That cute, huh?" She winked at him, scooting up further in the chair. "Hot?"

"Yeah," Duo sighed. "You don't know the half of it, Rel."

"So who is she? What does she do? What does she look like? How long have you known her? I'm going to keep asking questions, you know, until you answer."

Duo bit his lip. This was what he had been dreading. How was he going to tell Relena about Heero? Could he really trust Heero's secret to his cousin? Sure, he loved her and would trust her with his life but this wasn't his life he was putting on the line. And what if she reacted the way Dorothy had when she learned of his vampirism? But how could he hide something like this? It wouldn't take her long to realize that Heero wasn't … normal. And she'd get suspicious when he didn't eat with them or only showed up at night. Hell, he *would.*

"Come on, give me a name. Give me something Duo. Feed my curiosity."

"Heero," the name spilled out over his tongue before he could stop it. He knew that he would have to introduce Heero eventually, and this was not the way he wanted to do it. But Relena had that look in her eyes, like a kid in a candy shop, bright-eyed and eager, and a part of him did want to share.

"Hee-ro." That was exactly how Relena said it, a pause catching in the middle of the name. "That's an . . . interesting name."

Duo could see the wheels turning in her head. Interesting, for certain. Interesting in this case was Relena's way of saying "strange."

"Rel? Something wrong?" He would almost swear that Relena seemed somewhat shocked. 'About what? I haven't even gotten to the fun part yet.'

She shook her head, her expression melting away into one of compassion and determined resolve. "No, not a thing and I want you to know I support you one hundred percent of the way."

"Relena?" Bewildered didn't even begin to describe what he was feeling right now. The world had taken another one of those strange off-ramps without telling him again.

"No, Duo, let me finish. It doesn't to matter to me. I mean, love is love, right?" She paused, a tiny knot creasing her forehead. "Although perhaps you might want to wait a bit before you break it to Father and Mother… You know how they feel about surprises and well, they can be so conservative."

"Relena, I'm not sure--"

Relena caught his hand, squeezing it with utter sincerity in her sky blue eyes. "Oh, Duo, I'll love you no matter what. It doesn't bother me that you're gay."

Duo blinked, somehow unable to find the words to respond to that. His lips tried to move but his brain had spent so much of itself trying to follow the twisting lines of miscommunication of the last few minutes that task was rendered impossible.

"Ah," was the best he could manage when his synapses began firing again.

"And I want you to know that not only do I support you but I'm here for you anytime. Just ask. I want you to feel comfortable with yourself and if this is who you are, then hey, I am so there," Relena blithely continued on. "You and Heero both."

"Ummm, thanks," Duo mumbled.

"And I want to meet Heero. When can I?"

"Well, he's coming tonight--"

"Good," Relena gave him a short nod, then blanched. "Oh, God, tonight! I've got to clean the house and order dinner!"

"Relena--"

"And I'm a mess! I can't meet him looking like this." She ran a self-conscious hand over her immaculate blond tresses, staring down at her jeans and Guess sweatshirt with disgust.

"Rel, you don't have to do anything special -"

"What? You are joking right? That shows what you know about entertaining!" Relena was on her feet in the next moment, ticking off items on her fingers, "Now, I think that there are fresh vegetables, but dessert? What am I going to do for a dessert?"

Muttering to herself, she hurried off, leaving a still surprised Duo staring after her.

'Maybe I'd better leave off the fact that Heero's a vampire for a bit. I'm not sure how many more surprises she can take tonight… Or that I can take for that matter,' he thought ruefully.

***

Hours later, Duo found himself wondering if his conversation with Relena hadn't been for nothing. He peered at his watch, catching the time from a glint in the light behind him. It was already well past sunset, the sky having lost its burnt orange edge and mellowing into a deep blue-violet. The famous New York skyline lit up before him, a Roman candle gone a riot. He had always loved the view, if nothing else about this place besides Relena. The buildings made a slow light up, the power increasing as the sun sank lower, until they reached that perfect moment, just before the sky turned black where they touched deep blue and the light of those buildings twinkled like soft stars. They still shone once true night fell, but there was something terribly harsh and artificial about the light then.

So he had his perfect moment, the night not too airy and the horizon the blue of a Rockwell painting, and no Heero. No lover to wrap his arms around him should his slender frame catch a slight chill, no lover to whisper and nibble on his ear. Certainly no lover to propose all the naughty things Duo had on his mind. 'This sucks,' he sighed, slouching down until he was on his knees, arms crossed over the railing. Where the hell was Heero anyway? It nearly an hour into sunset and there had been no knock at the door. Duo had even made his way out to the balcony, leaving it open just in case Heero had decided to be stubborn about that no front door policy of his.

Duo felt a wave of panic, like a hand gripping his heart. For no reason at all, without any logic or any cause, he suddenly wondered if maybe Heero wasn't going to come at all. What if the words between them had simply been words. Hollow sounds to fill the silence and get rid of the mortal with whom Heero had his night of fun? What if it was no more than a game with Heero, what if Dorothy's words were true, if Heero was just biding his time until Duo went from plaything to hors d'oeuvre?

No, he chided himself. He couldn't think like that. He and Heero had a connection, they had made a connection and not simply on the physical plane, although the physical connection wasn't anything to laugh about. Heero would be there. He was just late. Fashionably late. Okay, more along the lines of unfashionably late, but that would just give Duo a reason to chastise him. And give Heero a reason to make it up to him.

As if summoned by his thoughts of chastisement and reconciliation, Duo heard the sound of feet landing lightly on the balcony. He smiled immediately, but resisted the urge to turn around and throw his arms around his lover. Heero made him wait; it was now Heero's turn to wait.

"It's about time you got here," Duo remarked, keeping his eyes focused on the skyline. "The sun set awhile ago."

Heero said nothing but Duo heard his light tread pick across the concrete towards him. He closed his eyes, willing his breathing to slow down, determined that it would be Heero who made the first move, not him.

Hands touched his back, soft stroking hands that trailed over shoulder blades, massaging the muscles between them before moving upward. Duo sighed, leaning back into that touch, groaning, "Mhmm, God, Heero. You can be late anytime you want to be if this is how you greet me."

"I'll keep that in mind," purred a husky female voice close to his ear, the hands travelling the length of his body tightening and pulling him back in a sharp, jerky movement. The air flew out of his lungs as his back came in contact with body that seemed both soft and hard, soft in curves that no man could ever possess but with a strength in the bones that put him in mind of Heero.

His mind stuttered for a moment, trying to make sense of what was happening when he felt a pair of lips nip his ear, the teeth sharp. Decidedly sharp teeth.

‘Shit.’ Duo thrust his body forward, catching the guardrail before he toppled over the side of the balcony. Laughter filled the air, falling on his ears with a ring of malicious pleasure. Dark eyes met his, staring at him with a spiteful glare that put him in mind of shark setting sights on its prey. She was small, certainly smaller than he, dark hair ringing around her elfin face, willow-like with slender angles and pale skin. *Very* pale skin. Duo gaped at her, his stomach beginning to knot in ways and with fearful suspicions his mind didn't to touch, let alone supply.

Still, he recovered, his mouth glib even as his mind turned in circles. "I'm not usually this forward on the first date."

"I don't usually have a first date, so that makes two of us." She flashed her teeth, small, perfect-pointed canines jutting out of a sea of white enamel and pink gum. His hand lifted reflexively as if to ward her from his neck. He already had several sets of bite marks and those were from Heero alone.

She cocked her head to the side, arms crossed as she studied him. "You really are quite lovely. I can see why he'd be taken with you."

"I'm sorry?"

"Not yet," she said grimly. "But you're going to be."

The words sent a skitter of fear down the nape of his neck in tiny shocks throughout his body.

***

'You asked for it. You invited this when you took that boy in, when you told him and still you are surprised by his betrayal,' Dorothy thought. Bits of wood flew as she viciously worked to fashion a crude stake from what was left of one of her kitchenette chairs that had had the bad fortune to be in her way earlier. Hell, most of her flat had been 'in the way,' she acknowledged surveying the short-term destruction she'd wrought with a grim sense of satisfaction. She'd regret it later; some of those things that now lay broken were priceless but damn it had felt good listening to every splinter and crash.

'Face it, Catalonia, there are some truths that should not be spoken of, some confidences that should never be shared because you can't trust anyone. People will always disappoint given a chance and to expect anything different is not only ludicrous but masochistic.' Still, she had trusted...had hoped that it would be different, that Duo would understand because of their shared experiences. But no, Duo hadn't understood any of it, not one word; he couldn't have and still walked willingly with one of those ... those creatures. He couldn't have understood and allowed himself to... The knife whistled angrily as she suddenly threw it, embedding in the plaster just above the fireplace. Yeats whuffled, peering at her from behind her sofa with an expression that was too akin to exasperation for her taste. He snorted and turned away, not impressed as she turned the full force of her glare on him, laying his head on his paws. 'What am I doing?' she thought rubbing the side of her head. 'After all, it's not Yeats' fault or the apartment's. I shouldn't take this out on either.' Maybe that was true but it was a damn sight better and safer than taking it out on Duo. She was too worked up right now to trust herself not take a chunk out of his hide.

Vampires were monsters, no better than animals and he'd...he'd gone with one... let one touch him... Bile and rage rose, a thick soup that choked in the back of her throat. Her skin erupted in a swatch of goose bumps, the thought causing the memory of unwanted touches to come to mind. For good or ill, whether she liked it or not, her body remembered and it would not let her forget that she knew all too intimately the allure of what Duo had experienced. Yes, her own experience had been hellish and agonizing but beneath it all, there had been such a sense of...freedom? It had been grotesque and horrifying and creepily sensual and she hated herself for thinking that. Hated herself for even wanting to sympathize with Duo. A vampire wasn't a person, she reminded herself. They were parasites who fed off the living. They were killers, pure and simple. There was no love to be found there, just a trap of sex and blood, ending only in death.

Glancing down at the half-carved stick of wood in her hand, she lifted her arm and thrust forward with it suddenly, remembering the slide and feel of such a weapon through flesh. It hadn't taken long after her...her first time with one of them to learn the value of a sharpened stake. There was something to be said for hunting them, almost a perverse sense of enjoyment to be derived from making them the prey for a change. Just after Central America and the incident there, she'd taken a leisurely path back to New York, stopping in every major spot and clearing out as many vampires as she could lure in. Being back in New York had made her feel safer, made her slack off and Duo's experience had been a wake up call. Should have been a wake up call for the both of them. You just couldn't let your guard down, not once or else the monsters would get you or you would go with them willingly.

Shit.

This wouldn't be so damn hard if she didn't like Duo. If he wanted to throw his ass to the wolves, it shouldn't have mattered to her. Oh, she was pissed at him, pissed enough to maybe hit him again the next time she saw him but she couldn't help but still... What? Like him? Want to help him? 'What exactly are you after here, Catalonia?'

Companionship? Maybe? Understanding? Hell, yes. Since his attack, Dorothy had felt more of a connection to any human being than she had since her Grandfather's death. Realizing that he too, had been victimized by a creature that walked like a man but wasn't, she had reached out to him, whether unwittingly or otherwise. Maybe that was the problem, she had reached out and by his very actions, Duo had thrown it back in her face. And that should have been it. Dorothy wasn't one to waste time on stupidity and if Duo chose to ignore common sense then ... Well, it was just one less person taking up valuable oxygen, wasn't it?

Except that it wasn't. This was Duo. And it was different. And she didn't know why yet.

It wasn't love. Not of the kind that might have proved a real problem later on. Dorothy had stopped believing in that Hallmark induced hallucination years ago. She was painfully aware of the fact that she was not a lovable person. She was not the kind of person to receive flowers or chocolates from shy admirers. Hell, she didn't want any of those things, even if the occasional sonnet might be amusing. Most of the time she sensed any interest, she took pains to stamp it out. She didn't want that kind of entanglement, wasn't sure she could handle it. She had too much of an independent streak for one and for another... For another, she wasn't sure she could ever let anyone, man or woman, touch her in an intimate way ever again. What had happened in the jungles had been too close to rape. The thought of letting down her walls and letting someone touch her like that made her skin jump and her heart rate pick up...and not in a pleasant way. Before, before she'd realized that there was more to the world than glittering soirees, she might well have been attracted to Duo. And why not? He was funny and bright and definitely not hard on the eyes. Even with his somewhat tawdry background, his connection to the Peacecraft family would have overcome any of her grandfather's objections. Dorothy grimaced. She'd been pretty shallow back then, so self-assured that the world revolved around her and her money. More than that, she'd been one of those stupid, silly people who tried her patience so much nowadays. That seemed so long ago now, as if she was remembering another person's life and feelings but it still made her cringe. She hadn't been lying when she'd remarked Duo that she'd rather have the knowledge of dark things, to be one of the wolves instead of the sheep, but she did regret the price with which that knowledge had been purchased.

There was no help for it now. That bridge had been crossed, broken, and washed away with blood and whatever innocence she might have once possessed. She could only move forward and that was what she had done for so long. One step forward and then another and another until she was no longer moving forward, she was running headlong away but from what she was never sure of. 'Good Christ,' she rolled her eyes, 'I've visited one too many shrinks, now I'm starting to think like them now.'

Brooding was all very well and enjoyable but it wasn't solving anything and it was only serving to further piss her off. The problem was Duo, his actions and ... his words. Dorothy shivered, skin rippling as she fought hard not to think of his words, of how close they were to memory. It was as if Duo had been there, had seen... She shook her head. 'You're reading too much into this, Catalonia.' And yet... and yet, the pain in his voice, the sheer terror in those few suffocating moments back in the car, she had recognized those all too well. She had only to glance in a mirror after one of her nightmares to see his horrified countenance reflected back sheathed in her own features. Those fears that plagued her, walked her dreams, and threatened to paralyze her, Duo had spoken in just a few broken sentences. Hearing those things given life, given form by his wavering voice had roused the beast slumbering in the back of her mind. Perhaps that was what made Duo different; he frightened her because she suspected that they might not be so dissimilar. And the fact that a vampire had gotten so close to her home, just mere floors below this very room, was enough to make her want to pack up every scrap in the place and find somewhere new to hide. It stripped away whatever sense of security she might have given herself the illusion of and left in its place the dry, harsh taste of fear. She hadn't been well and truly afraid since... well, since Central America. She had taken down vampires, yes and mostly what she'd felt in those moments was something akin to a rage, an icy anger that seemed to add to the adrenaline rush and carry her through. What if the next time she encountered a vampire, she froze up, the fears Duo had resurrected in her causing her to hesitate? She'd be dead, worse than dead. She'd be lunch and she wasn't ready to be on anyone's menu yet. And...

And what was that noise? A low snarl hit her ears, dropping heavy and hard with menace and alarm. She looked over in time to see Yeats rising to his feet, his back ramrod straight in a position that only a cat could possibly imitate. His ears were almost flat against his skull and enough white teeth were showing to make a piano envious.

Dorothy having the seen the signs before, tensed, clutching tight the wooden implement in her hand. "What is it, boy? Who's here?"

True, her place was locked up tight, by both conventional and mystical means but that might not be enough if something was really determined to get in at her. 'A crossbow and a few axes might give it pause though,' she thought, slipping towards the side wall and grabbing a few bolts followed by weapon itself. It was difficult to hold the crossbow with bolts and the stake, even more difficult to try to load it without letting something go, but she kept at it, feeling more security in the crude weapon she'd fashioned than without it. With the task managed at last, she stalked towards her French windows, cursing herself for not having removed the damn flimsy things sooner. Leaning forward, she reached out with one hand, lifting away the veil of cloth obscuring her vision outward and held her breath.

Nothing. The balcony appeared empty. She switched sides, attempting to take in the ledge. Still nothing. Perplexed, she turned and found Yeats not by her side as was his wont but scratching furiously at the front door. As if realizing he had her attention, he craned his head, whining in the back of his throat, the sound of worried eagerness causing her blood to rise. Pausing long enough to slip into the jacket hanging by the door and slip the stake into a coat pocket, she peered out the spyglass. Still nothing visible and Yeats’ growls were becoming louder, more frantic each passing second. Her heart thudding in her ears and throat, she worked each lock, nearly shaking as the deadbolt unsnapped. 'Some fearless vampire hunter,' she thought. It made her furious, both the shaking and the thought. She wasn’t some sniveling little crybaby and she’d be damned before someone, human or otherwise, got the better of her in her own home. That decided, she counted to three then threw the door open, crossbow rising to track the outward swing.

Yeats shot past her, his voice raised in a full bark now. She scanned the hallway, fingers taunt and only a bit damp as they wrapped around her weapon, the stake in her long coat slapping against her thigh, any damage it made have caused blunted. The wolfhound barked again, beckoning her towards the elevator as he lunged and jumped upwards, snout beating against the controls. She stopped short, trained on the slow opening of those mechanical doors. The compartment was empty but she entered with caution anyway, eyeing the overhead hatch. It seemed reasonably secure, nothing rattled and the elevator remained still. The doors chirped then closed, awaiting a destination. It was then she directed her attention to the dog, now raised on his back legs near the inside control panel.

"Yeats…" She trailed off, the adrenaline high wearing off just enough for her to catch a breath. "If you’re trying to tell me you need a walk-"

He yipped, sounding almost insulted as he dropped down to tug on her jacket. "What?" she asked, exasperation coloring the word before a thought occurred to her. "Duo?"

The dog barked, dragging her forward. "Shit," she swore, a jab of her hand bringing the elevator to life. ‘I’m coming, Duo and if you’re not there, I’m going to kill you myself.’

***

"Ex-excuse me?"

Hilde watched him stumble backward, the stench of his fear and dread making her almost as giddy as the dread glittering in those amethyst eyes. Such pretty eyes. She wondered if they'd look just as lovely adorning the ground as in that damnable head. It would be so easy, so easy to just reach out and sink her fingers into soft membrane and tissue, lapping at the blood that would rain in tears down his face from the act. After a moment of consideration, she decided to wait, far more entertained by the notion of a show before dinner. Especially as his movements served little purpose, save to bring his back in contact with the guard railing, reminding them both that there was nowhere to go save down.

She smirked as he realized it as well. "Problem?"

"Not a one," he replied through gritted teeth. "I’m gonna go out on a limb here and guess that Relena didn’t let you in on her way out, did she?"

She didn't reply, almost but not quite seething as she raked her eyes down him. So this was the mortal Heero thought to replace her with, thought to threaten her life over? He was little more than a child; a lithe scarecrow of skin and bones, a ridiculously long braid flapping over one shoulder in the night air. True, there was some beauty in his violet eyes, each changing hue mirroring early twilight and in his skin, so soft and pale. A clumsy grace and charm as he fidgeted, as nervous as a new colt. Pretty, yes. Enough to kill one's sire over? Definitely not. And that was exactly what Heero had tried earlier.

Whether it had been some semblance of old feeling he claimed not to possess or if he'd finally become as pathetic as the mortals they stalked, Heero had let her go. He'd scared the hell out of her and she thought she'd detected a glimmer of dark amusement from her childe/former lover during the proceedings. Had it not pleased her to see that, to realize that despite his words there was some glimmer of the man she had once loved still there, she might well have killed him on the spot for his insolence, him and his little mortal whore. No, Heero could be salvaged, she had reasoned upon calming down. The boy though, he was already proving more of a hindrance than she'd anticipated. 'I should have killed him when I had the chance,' she thought, watching him with open dislike. No, dislike was too tame a term. Hatred was closer, hatred and envy and frustration bubbled, seething through her as she wondered if he could read from the weight and poison of her glare her very real desire to kill him.

"No, I guess not," he continued, gripping the railing as his eyes searched over her head.

"No," she agreed. "I do hope I'm not being forward by just dropping in like this. I wasn't sure when I'd be able to catch you alone, you see, and there's so much you and I need to discuss."

She paced, short quick breaks of movement that came and went so swiftly he had no chance to even think of getting past her should he be foolish enough to try. She hated the confined space of this deck, limiting her movements even as it did his. The streets below... A smile curved her lips. Put them both on equal ground in this city, with all its people and places to hide and she would run him to ground in under an hour. Bitterness tempered her pleasure at the thought. Once, long ago, that had been a favorite game of hers and of Heero's. Picking a victim, giving he or she just enough knowledge to realize they was being hunted then let them run, giving ample opportunity to hide or flee or gain aid. Between the two of them, they had never been outwitted or lost one. Until now. Until this one who threatened to come between her and her chosen.

"Wonderful view," she sauntered ever closer, her movements serpentine with just enough of a gentle sway to keep his eyes glued to her. She could see his mind racing, wondering where or when she would strike, if she would strike at all. "There’s something about the city at night, wouldn’t you agree?"

As if he didn’t trust himself to voice his opinion, he nodded, huge eyes still tracking her. At this point, he reminded her as nothing so much as a small child, the fear rollicking off him in waves so thick she could wrap herself in them. It was heady and add to it the increasing thrum of his heart, the way his blood began to actually race through his veins and she could feel her teeth prick with hunger. She had already fed once this evening but she was a firm believer in seconds.

"I have to admit I was quite put out with you earlier this evening," she continued. "Do you know why, Duo?"

"Lady, I don’t even know why the fuck you’re here, let alone what you’re talking about."

"And so the mouse finds his tongue at last. And such a vulgar tongue at that," she tsked and shook her head. Her hand moved and she had him by the jaw, fingers clamped hard enough to keep his mouth cracked, low gurgling sounds pouring forth. "Have a care to speak more politely to your betters in the future or someone might rip that talent tongue out of your head."

She applied a bit more pressure, listening to the pleasing sound of his jaw straining, popping in release. If she pressed a little harder, she’d break his jaw. And as pleasing as the thought was, she wanted his attention and she would lose that the moment she gave him something besides his terror to think of.

"As I was saying, I’m very cross with you. You took something that didn’t belong to you, something you had no business dabbling in. Do you know what I’m referring to?"

He gargled at her, his eyes as confused as they were frightened. Mortals were so tiresome, she sighed. "Think, Duo. Think very hard about where you’ve been in the last twenty-four hours."

He went still in her grip and she cooed at him, recognizing the flashes of understanding for what they were. "That’s right, baby. I know all about that, about everything you’ve done. More than that mousy little cousin of yours could ever dream of."

"Tell me, did it feel good when he fed from you?" Her lips brushed his ear, licking his sweating skin. "Did you enjoy it as he fucked you? I remember what it’s like. How he sounds and the way he bites your skin, his mouth pulling at every fiber, every cell as if he can’t taste enough…"

Her hand slipped down to wrap around his throat, pulling him close enough that her lips were lightly touching his when she spoke. Mouth free, he somehow managed to form words. She wanted to laugh at the bewildered pain she felt in every word. "How…? Who the hell are you?"

"Such soft skin, Duo," she whispered. "I’ll bet he devoured every inch of it, making you feel as if you were a feast set out for his soul benefit. You see, I’ve been where you were. It was mine. It is mine and you’ve trespassed where you shouldn’t have, little one."

Her teeth were elongating now, cutting through the soft tissue of her lower lip. "Heero and I like to share, Duo. I don’t think he’ll mind if I take a taste, do you?"

He pushed at her, fists pounding against her shoulders. She pushed him backward, almost tilting him over the side. "I wouldn’t. A fall from this height… Well, there wouldn’t be enough of you left to identify. And it would be such a shame to spoil all that lovely hair with so much blood."

Going limp, he stared at her then beyond her, a minute warning coupled with a soft displacement of air that caused her to half turn… a second too late.

"I guess it’s a good thing I didn’t give Relena back her key, isn’t it?"

Hilde hissed, fingers tightening around the boy’s windpipe even as her leg screamed in pain, a short wooden bolt sticking out just below the underside of her knee. From the balcony door, a slender woman, her wheat blond hair stirring around her like a cloak in the night air was reloading her crossbow with equitable calm, a large dog snarling as he crept a few steps ahead.

"Who the fuck are you?" she bared her teeth.

"Nobody much," the woman replied, the crossbow’s double barrels steady as they trained on the vampiress. "As much as I’d like to wring Duo’s neck on occasion, I really suggest you let him go. Now."

"I think that should be the other way around. You put the crossbow away and send the dog back or I’ll rip out his throat."

The woman thought about it. "All right. If you must."

"Dorothy!" Duo gasped out around her chokehold, still somehow managing to sound aggrieved.

"I’m sorry, Duo but she’s set to kill someone regardless. If I put down my weapon then both of us will die," the girl, Dorothy, spoke casually and Hilde felt a flash of grudging respect for this one. This one was no weak child to the slaughter but a predator in her own right. A grim smile played at her lips as the blond continued. "Of course, the moment you try going for his throat, I’m going to shoot you. You’re fast but then so am I and I have two bolts in this plus Yeats here. So I have to ask you if you think taking out Duo is really worth your while."

Hilde considered it, uncertainty loosening her grip. "Are you offering me a trade? The boy’s life for mine?"

"What I’m offering you is five seconds. You let him go and you have five seconds to get your scrawny blood-sucking ass off this terrace and out of my building before you find out what the words ‘magnum force’ really mean."

She glanced between the three of them, the boy half-hopeful as the dog half-crouched, ears flat and back stiff as he prepared to launch himself forward. And then here was the girl…

As a rule, Hilde feared very few things; you lived long enough and it was bound to happen. She certainly didn’t fear mortals who were stupid and slow, content to believe the world as bad as it might seem contained no more than mundane terrors. Most mortals, that was. Every once in a while, you ran into one of them who were a little smarter, a little tougher than the rest of the sheep. They were dangerous; sheep trying to wear wolves’ clothing, dangerous because they saw beyond the veil of ignorance that protected her kind from prying human eyes. Hunters of the hunters, vampire killers who made it their self-appointed task to save the rest of the herd. Many of them were more than a little crazy, having been made aware of vampires by less than pleasant means. This one was like that--she could see it already. She burned with hatred, as much a killer as Hilde was, with only the choice of prey differing. The bolt in her leg, unnoticed until the second it hit, was a testament to her skill. The fact that she was able to sneak up on Hilde without sound or warning was equally infuriating. Given the opportunity, she would happily slaughter the vampiress, even if it meant sacrificing her friend to do it. That she was offering even a little time was an indication that the boy meant something to her. It was five seconds more than she was likely to get alone. ‘Fuck,’ she let out a frustrated growl.

"We’re not done yet, boy," She shoved Duo forward, causing him to trip and tumble into the dog. She leaned backward over the ledge as a set of bolts whistled free of their chamber.

***

"Son of a bitch," Dorothy cursed, skirting around the tangle of fur and limbs to clamber over to the railing, the crossbow dropping against stone, discarded in favor of the stake in her coat pocket. She peered out, the wooden implement taunt and ready in her hand as she gazed downward, careful not to put her hands on the railing for fear of being suddenly pulled over. Open air and the fast moving glare of headlights winding down the street below met her searching eyes. Of the vampiress there was no sign.

Behind her, Duo was struggling to his feet, his voice rasping. "Goddammit, Dorothy. What the fuck were you doing? She could have killed me!"

She ignored him, making a quick check of the balcony both above and below before leaning down to retrieve her crossbow. Yeats was wuffling around Duo, butting his head against the boy’s leg, his lupine face slack with almost human relief. And still the boy ranted on. "Are you listening to me?"

"It’s somewhat hard not to," she replied dryly, "I’m sure the whole building is enjoying listening to you screech like a fish wife."

"It’s not funny! She could have ripped my throat out, she-"

"Duo?"

"What?"

"Are you alive?" She asked, impatience dripping from every word. ‘Honestly, men are so idiotic about some things. Don’t they ever take time to take stock of the important things? He’s alive, what more does he want?’

"Well, yeah," He admitted, rubbing his neck with ginger care. There was a fresh set of hand marks there now, already darkening under the patio light. Her chest tightened at the sight of them, aware of just how close they had cut it. A few seconds later and he might have been dead-either drained or pitched over the side.

"Then shut up, please. I didn’t have to rescue you, you know? You should think about getting a dog by the way," She kept her tone conversational, almost light in spite of the knots of tense excitement unwinding in her stomach, longing for a target, something to strike out. "If it hadn’t been for Yeats, you might be kibble now. Which reminds me…"

She squatted down in front of the wolfhound, rubbing vigorously behind his ears and head as she cooed at him. "I know someone who’s going to get a nice, juicy steak for dinner tonight. Who’s a good boy?"

"I’m good too, you know," Duo sounded indignant. "If you care."

She barely spared him a glance. "Duo, if you’re stupid enough to play with vampires then this is what you get. Just because she didn’t kill you when you were fucking her earlier -"

His face turned a horrified shade of red. "I did not sleep with her!"

"Oh? And you didn’t invite her up here, did you?"

Duo waved a hand in front of her face and she fought hard not to smack it and him out of her way. "Hellllllllllllo? Did you just miss out on the last five minutes of my life, terrifying as they were? I did *not* invite that psycho bitch up here. I just stepped outside for a few minutes. I didn’t realize that I’d be taking my life in my hands by doing that."

"You take your life in your hands every time you wake up in the morning, Duo," she rolled her eyes. "You really don’t know who she was?"

He went quiet, his gaze focused inward, and the sudden distance unnerved her. She reached upward and grabbed the tail of his braid and tugged. "What, Duo?"

"It was something she said," His voice was still a whisper, more hollowed than before. There was something curious about his blank expression, something that revealed more than was hidden. It was disturbing on Duo’s normally mobile features, enough to raise her hackles. "Duo?"

Whatever might have been said was lost as Yeats rose to his feet again, a low whining keen, a sound laced with suspicion drew both their attention. The dog sniffed the air and then turned, loping back the way he’d come, nearly throwing himself at the door. The behavior was all too reminiscent of his earlier warnings and Dorothy touched her lips then Duo’s arm before retrieving the last of her bolts from her jacket, passing the stake to him. They slipped across the floor, Dorothy reaching both dog and door before he could. She rested her palm against the wood, closing her eyes before reaching for the chain and the bolt, not really giving a damn enough to peer out the spyglass. Duo slunk around to the other side of the door, clutching the stake close to him. She wanted to chide him for not having it ready, for holding it like he was going to club someone with it instead of going for the heart. She held her tongue. There would be time for lessons later on, after they took care of this and she yelled at him properly for scaring the shit out of her.

Her throat caught and she bounced as whatever was on the other side had the common decency to knock. ‘Nice to know that even the soulless bloodsucking undead can have manners,’ she thought grimly, waiting for her heart to gain steadier ground before throwing the door open, stepping forward and thrusting the crossbow outward.

A pair of sapphire blue eyes widened and the person belonging to them stilled as she rested the tip of her bolt against his chest, her fingers curling around the trigger as she caught a brief glimpse of pointed teeth brushing his lower lip, confirming her suspicions.

"Dorothy! No!" Duo yelped, smacking the weapon to the floor.

"Duo, what the fuck are you doing?" she nearly screamed in outrage, going for her stake.

He yanked the weapon back, playing an impromptu game of keep away, holding it just above her head. "Dorothy! Stop it. It’s okay."

"Fuck it’s okay. That’s a vampire and-"

"Is this a bad time?"

They both cocked their head towards the door where the man was now leaning against the frame, watching them with interest. He made no move to come further in, seemingly content to watch the scuffle in bemusement. Yeats poked his muzzle forward and the vampire extended his hand, letting the dog sniff at him. The wolfhound appeared puzzled, his tail half-wagging as he leaned his head forward, allowing himself to be petted.

"Yeats," She snapped, vaguely scandalized. The dog graced her with a guilty grin, allowing the vampire to scratch behind his ears a few moments more before retreating to his mistress’ side. She stared back and forth between Duo and the other boy, noting Duo’s sudden rise of color and the semi-embarrassed grin playing at the corner of his lips before stiffly concluding,"Your friend?"

"Uh, you could say that." If it were possible, his expression became even goofier and more apologetic than before. She didn’t even bother to feel bad about rolling her eyes.

Dorothy rubbed her forehead, taking the time to snatch her stake back and holding it loosely at her side. "Imagine my excitement. I swear to God, Duo Maxwell, you are going to be the death of me."

***End of Chapter Four