Wendy awoke to a forceful knock on her hotel room door. The redhead reporter rolled over and glanced at the clock -Noon. Must be the maid service.- “Give me a moment, I will be right there. I thought I put the sign on the door to not disturb.” Wendy grumbled and pulled on the robe provided by the hotel.

“Mrs. Richards? Police. We would like to speak with you for a few minutes.” The man outside the door explained.

Quickly tying the robe tight, Wendy answered the door. “Miss Richards. Wendy Richards.”

“My apologies, Miss Richards.” The officer displayed his badge, “Nicholas Gemelli, May I come in for a couple minutes?”

Wendy looked over the older detective, guessing he was in his early forties based on the amount of gray in his brown hair. “I have a couple minutes. Have a seat, Officer.” She directed the man to a chair in the corner of the room.

“Thank you for your hospitality.” Nicholas said coolly and went where he was directed. “I am sorry for waking you up, but this is a matter of some importance.” His brown eyes scanned the room spotting the reporter's badge and her closed laptop on the dresser. “I saw your broadcast last night, impressive coverage. You were in the right spot at the right time.”

“Pure coincidence, I assure you officer.” The reporter pointed to the bathroom, “Let me get dressed and we can talk more.”

Standing up, the officer walked to the corner of the bed and noted there was no window for the restroom. “Help yourself.” He took out a small notebook and pencil, writing a few lines.

“You travel alone?”

Wendy’s calm voice permeated through the closed door, “Most of the time, yes. Currently, I am here with two others. I was assigned a cameraman and a driver. I never understand my producer.” She trailed off sounding slightly confused.

“When was the last time you saw either of them, Miss Richards?” Officer Gemelli inquired.

“Last night.” Wendy mentioned as she came out in a pair of faded jeans and a purple blouse, brushing her deep red hair. “Why do you ask?”

Writing a few more lines in the tiny notebook the officer peered up from the tops of his glasses. “Just routine questions.” Nicholas paused for a breath and continued, “Can you tell me where they are staying?”

Wendy put the brush on the counter and pointed at the door, “Right across the hallway. I doubt they are there, since it is noon.”

The officer raised his eyebrow, “Lunch?”

Chuckling and nodding her head, “Right. The two of them were pretty much on a schedule. Right about this time every day that I have known them, they get lunch.” Wendy affirmed.

Officer Gemelli stood up and plucked his radio from his belt, “Officer 684, Detective Gemelii 10-78, at SunnyDew Suites, room 214. Obtain the key from the front desk.” He pointed the antenna at Wendy. “You wouldn’t want to get lunch as well, would you? I have a few more routine questions.”

“I am not daft, You just asked for backup for Jeff and Ted’s room, Why?” Wendy held her elbows and perked her eyebrow questioningly.

Sliding his radio on his belt once more, the officer pointed to the door. “All the more reason to get lunch. You might not be hungry after you know everything.”

“I am not really all that hungry, I am more interested in what is going on.” Wendy added.

Walking to the door, Nicholas pulled the reporter's coat from a hanger and handed it to her. “It’s cold out there, let’s take a ride.”

“Am I under arrest?” The redhead asked.

“No, Miss Richards. Let’s get to where we need to go before I explain everything.”

Wendy buttoned up her coat and tugged the fur lining close to her neck. “Against my better judgment, I’ll go.” She chuckled, “This is the time in the movies where the person asks for a lawyer.”

Ignoring the offhand comment, Nicholas closed his eyes briefly and shook his head. “It is all routine, I assure you. There are questions about your cameraman and driver I need to followup on.”

The reporter watched mindlessly as the buildings sped by, mesmerized by the fast moving blurs as the two made their way through the city. Wendy found herself mumbling polite responses to Officer Gemelli whenever they’d stop at a traffic light. Peering up at the sky, the reporter saw the white puffy clouds and the rune shapes that seemed to form. -Clear. Water. Awaken.- She looked down at her hand and the imprint on her hand. -Someone else has become awakened. I have to find that person..why is someone being awakened here?- Her mind riddled. She looked once more at the clouds and the message disappeared, “Where are we going? I have something urgent to attend to.” She held up her phone and waved it. “I have..um..to call my producer, he’s saying it is urgent.”

“We are almost there, Miss Richards.” Nicholas glanced over to Wendy, then back to the road. “I didn’t hear anything go off on the phone.”

“I have it on silent.” Wendy rebuked.

“Silly me, I didn’t think about that.” He paused and parked the car. “Here we are.”

Wendy knew exactly where she was, having seen buildings like this many times in the past. “Medical Examiner's office.” She sighed and looked at the older man. “Now I see why you wanted to eat first, coming here is never a good thing.”

Reaching over the attractive redhead, he opened the door for her. “I did try to get you lunch first.”

Confused and shocked that Officer Gemelli reached over her body to open the door, Wendy tilted her head and smacked her lips. “Why, exactly, did you do that?”

“Sometimes the outside handle gets stuck in the cold.” Nicholas added.

“I could have pulled the handle myself.” Wendy remarked flatly. She knew what the officer really wanted, given how he’d leaned into her chest when he pulled the handle. -Comes with the territory.- Wendy commented to herself and stepped out of the vehicle and onto the sidewalk.

Officer Gemelii led the two through the glass doors and through a long blue-gray painted hallway to a nondescript bone white door with the number fifteen on it. “Here we are. Just be prepared for what you are going to see, Miss Richards.”

Opening the door to the metallic covered room, Wendy instantly noted the sheets over two bodies. -Shit. How the hell did they find them so fast?- She took a breath and gave a worried look to the officer. “I…who…”

“Miss Richards, We believe these men to be your cameraman and driver, respectively. We found their identification on them, but I brought you down here to be absolutely sure.” He walked over to the examiner’s computer desk and held up the men’s station badges. “If you wouldn’t mind looking at them to confirm what we believe, it would be a great help.” He then pulled back the sheets to expose both of the men’s faces.

Wendy forced a few tears and faked shaking for the officer. -How do I get something out of this guy? What does he actually know?- Her mind raced as she kept putting on the act of being surprised. “W..where...” She caused her voice to quake and took a breath, “...did you… find them?”

“They were found just after sunrise, washed up on shore. Close to the hotel.” He pulled out the small notebook and pencil again. “Can you positively identify both of these men to be your co-workers?”

Wendy nodded and produced a few more tears that streamed down her cheeks, “Y..yes that is…them. Jeff and T..Ted.”

The detective pulled the light sheets back over the men's faces and escorted her out of the room. “Thank you for your time, Miss Richards.” Nicholas consoled and offered his arm for her to use.

“Th..thank you, you are so kind.” The reporter reached out to clutch the detective’s arm, feigning the need for assistance. She wiped her eyes and cheeks before exiting the building.

Drawing a deep breath of cold air, Wendy looked over to her escort. “I…I think…I could use a drink. Do you have a place that you’d recommend?”

Nicholas smiled and opened the passenger door without any issue, “Looks like the handle is working now, Miss Richards. I am supposedly on duty for a bit longer today, and do still have a couple things to follow up on with you.” He helped the reporter into the car once more, closing the door before getting into the driver's side. “However, I have a little place that I have taken a few interviewees to for just such an occasion.” Holding up his finger for a moment, “Officer 684, Officer Gemelli, 10-7.” He listened for the dispatcher to affirm that he was going out of service before pulling away. “That should take care of official duties for a little while.”

Wendy woke up for the second time, just to see Nicholas getting dressed in her blurry vision. “Leaving so soon?” She quietly purred.

“I do have a few hours that I have to work, Miss Richards.” The officer teased. “However, I can confidently tell you that my questions for you are complete.” He chuckled and pulled his white t-shirt over his semi solid frame. “I would enjoy seeing you again, perhaps for a late dinner?”

“Trying to get me to fall for a police officer?” Wendy quipped and crawled over to the edge of the bed on her knees. “Come here.” She waited for Nicholas to lean down and gave him a short yet passionate kiss. “I know I am married to my job, I can only imagine you are as well.” She wiggled her finger at him, “Don’t make plans you can’t keep, Officer.”

He gazed down over her naked frame, his brown eyes settling on her large nipples. He licked his lips once and smiled. “No, rest assured, I will keep a date. Let’s say ten?”

“You want dinner after you’ve had dessert?” Wendy laughed. “Sure, ten sounds lovely. I assume you will pick me up? Maybe use that stupid excuse of the door handle?”

“Don’t tempt me anymore you redheaded devil. I am very close to not working anymore today as it is.” Nicholas winked and buckled on his police belt. “Hey, that handle thing worked didn’t it?” He laughed and headed for the door. “Ten o’clock. I will come up and get you like a proper date should.”

Wendy waved her hand, “Yeah, yeah. Thank you for the afternoon.” Playfully bowing to Wendy, Nicholas winked and left the hotel room.

Wendy hopped off the bed and entered the bathroom, and started the shower. She looked at herself in the mirror and frowned at the few hickeys on her neck and small finger shaped bruises starting to form on her breasts. “Wendy, you really have to watch how many martini’s you drink.” Wiping her hands gently down her cheeks she shook off the lingering swimmy thoughts the gin had and stepped into the warm shower, focusing on her target.

Wendy started thinking about the woman she was to find. -What is the best way to find a person these days, Wendy?- The question popped in her mind a few times as she cleaned the afternoon sex from her body. Shampooing and rinsing the sweat from her hair, the answer to her question came to her. Quickly finishing up her shower, she grabbed a couple towels, wrapping one through her hair and the other firmly to her body. “The answer was literally staring you in the face.” She chastised herself and hurried to the table that held her laptop.

Flipping up the lid and powering on the device, quickly dried herself and brushed the wet knots from her hair then put on a clean set of clothes before sitting down and starting her search. “Let’s see. Let’s start with Facebook.” She quickly plugged in the name Casey Rivers and the screen displayed a thousand results. “This is going to take more time than I thought.” She spoke to herself and looked away from the screen for a moment, and turned on the television to a music channel, where the song “Devil Woman” was playing.

“...She’s just a devil woman, with evil on her mind..

…Beware the devil woman, She’s gonna get you..

…She’s just a devil woman, She’s gonna get you from behind..”

Wendy looked up from her massive name search as the music registered in her mind. “Very funny. I am hardly the one here that is a devil woman.” She spoke aloud to the television, shaking her red locks before resuming her search. “Forget the song, let’s see. Lower this to Virginia Beach.” She adjusted the filter and it popped up ten names. “Much better.” She scrolled through the ten names the site provided and looked at the profiles, settling on a twenty-three year old local college student. “Hello there Miss Casey Rivers.” Wendy clicked on the profile and saw the girls complete history. “Even a public profile, I love it. Let’s see.” The reporter grabbed a pen and the hotel stationary and started writing down items for reference, then stumbled onto the final piece of the puzzle. “Oh, look. A fan of the Flying Cannibals. I found you girlie.”

She folded the paper and stuffed it in her pocket when her eyes glanced over the young woman’s status’. Curious, Wendy clicked the link and it popped up the name Brian Ashburn. “Something…why does he look so familiar?” The redhead questioned herself and clicked on his public profile and browsed the pictures. It took her about five minutes of browsing before she found what she was looking for. “Brian Ashburn. You and I are about to become wonderful friends.” She rubbed the soft lime colored mark on her hand as she looked at his picture showing the exact same mark on his right hand.

Vivienne lay quietly with her new girlfriend and progeny, spooning the green clad woman. Gliding her hand and nails across Faye’s arm, the French blue eyed vampire enjoyed the silence that had finally settled between the couple. While she deeply loved everything about her curious new girlfriend, Vivienne had grown accustomed to being alone and quiet, giving her time to think and plan her evening, down to the minute. Unlike prior evenings, the upcoming one would be out of the norm and more akin to her teaching the lovely Korean currently pressed against her. Recalling how Faye did not want to be a killer, Vivienne listed a few things in her mind that she would mention in the effort to get the newborn in the mindset of not killing. Thinking about what to say to her partner, Vivienne reflected back to her first night and her first true hunt.

---

Freed of her brother's trap, Vivienne ran miles in minutes. Terrain didn’t mean anything to the fledgling vampire. She leapt streams, climbed hills and crossed small canyons without stopping. Driven by one single purpose. She needed to stop the scorching of her throat, and knew instinctively that the only way to do it was blood. Voluntary or involuntary Vivienne knew she needed the sanguine substance. Hunger pressed the hunt. Barely giving attention to the sweet scents of pine, fig and chestnut trees, Vivienne slowed when she caught wind of a heavy iron scent. Slowing her pace so she would be undetected, the new vampire silently stalked her prey.

She saw the man crouched and waiting for something, much like he too was hunting. Feeling a shift in the wind, Vivienne moved fluidly to avoid detection. Climbing a thick cypress Vivienne was finally able to see the entirety of the land where her mark lay in wait. The small foot trail opened to her eyes, followed by the soft plodding of horses in the distance. Another quick inhale told her everything she needed to know. She knew that there were two humans, and the man below in wait. His scent didn’t match the other two, and had an undertone of death that the youngling initially missed. -He’s like me- Her mind echoed before her beast started laughing. -You are going to die, little one. Do you think you can simply pounce on him and expect to win?- A strange voice that didn’t belong to her came from a dark place, nearly causing her to gasp. -Silence, keep him unaware. I will help you this one time, little one. You’ve seen your brothers hunt, Where do they spear?- She didn’t have time for the games this thing was playing with her. The horses clopped closer by the second, their own pumping blood urging Vivienne forward. The heavy death blood from the man waiting, giving her visions of bathing in red. -They speared them through the heart- Her mind finally answered. Cackling loudly the dark beast started clapping.

-Good job, little beast. Make a spear, use what you know. You and I have a long time together, little one.- Grateful for the silence of her annoying beast, Vivienne carefully broke a thick branch and prayed to herself that the one below her didn’t look up to see what was going on. Using her claws to whittle the tip of the thick branch, she created a makeshift spear and held it in front of her as she made her way back down the tree. Circling the tree like a squirrel, Vivienne crept until she was in lunging distance to her victim. A pulse of uncertainty shot through Vivienne and her hands started shaking just as she crouched to spring from the side of the tree. -Get control of yourself. You need to hit his heart squarely, and you cannot do that while you are shaking. He has what you need. Blood.- The word made her throat flare up once more, sending fire through her body. Willpower overriding confusion, her nerves calmed and her hands stopped shaking.

Using the tree to propel her faster, Vivienne leapt and landed on the man pinning him to the ground with her clawed feet. A solid and swift swing, she plunged the spear through his back and perfectly through his heart and into the ground, pinning the other vampire in place. Her prey didn’t die, but rather let out a piercing howl that startled the horses in the distance, making the riders start yelling in confusion. She left the spear in place and sprinted towards the frantic sounds. Driven into a frenzy with the heady scent of blood from her pinned victim and the two men trying to regain control of their horses, Vivienne blazed between the two humans, razor sharp claws tearing open the flanks of their horses, dropping them both to the ground, dazed. Leaving the horses, she dragged the two men back to the site of her initial prey and threw them to the ground.

Blood.

Vivienne lost herself in the frenzy of the moment. Twisting her fellow vampire’s head to the side, she plunged her four fangs deep into his neck, and drained the rich dead blood from him within seconds. His body turned to ash and blew away in the breeze. The remaining two men started whimpering and begging for their lives. Beautiful black hair blew over her blood stained visage and she shook her head no. Vivienne didn’t care, she knew only one thing. The delightful taste and scorch quenching fluid the two men had. Desperate to get away from the vampiress, the two men attempted to scramble away and were quickly captured. Vivienne gorged herself on the first man’s life as it pulsed from his neck, into her mouth and streamed down her throat and sides of her lips. Crazy with blood lust, the blue eyed beauty pulled the last man close to her maroon lips and smiled, showing her four elongated fangs to him. She saw the fear in his eyes and felt his heart racing in her grasp. Puncturing a hole into his neck with a claw, his blood splashed into her hair and face, dribbling down her filthy handmade shirt. -This is what you are now, Vivienne. A hunter and the world is your prey.- Pulling the crying and dying man to her lips, the new huntress of the night consumed her last meal of the evening.

---

“Vivienne?” Faye whispered to her partner. “You’ve been quiet and I…it felt like you weren’t with me.”

The master vampiress snapped back to the present. “What? Oh, Faye.” She kissed her partner on the neck softly, “Yes, my love I am here. I was just thinking about the past.”

“Nothing bad I hope.” Faye sat up and cupped Vivienne’s cheek. “Want to tell me about it?”

“You are the reason I thought about it in the first place, mon amour.” Vivienne gently leaned in to kiss her partner. “I was thinking about how your hunt this evening will go, and it reminded me of my first kill.” Shrugging Vivienne continued, “Upon reflection, it seems that you and I both consumed one of our brethren for our first meal.”

Faye wrapped her legs through Vivienne’s and glanced over her shoulder. “You think it means anything that we both did that? Drake deserved it, I think. I am still not really sure about this whole killing thing.”

Vivienne cooed with the gentle kisses to her neck and took an imperishable heated breath, “Your lips, mon amour…”

Vivienne tapped Faye on the shoulder and helped her girlfriend turn over before kissing her softly, nibbling lightly on Faye’s lower lip for a split second before parting. “...I do love your supple lips against mine.”

Lost in the moment, Faye held her puckered lip in place for a couple seconds after Vivienne pulled back. “...That wasn’t fair. You clouded my head again.” She sensually expressed, “However, I didn’t forget my question. Perhaps I am becoming immune to your little game.” Faye smiled and wiggled her eyebrows.

First tucking one of the pink braids she’d twisted earlier behind Faye’s ear, Vivienne ran her finger down the length of her partner's jawline then cupped her cheek. “I do believe that I have it within my ability to rectify that situation, my love.” Vivienne lightly blew a whimsical warm breath over Faye’s face, “It is all part of my nefarious plan to keep you holed up in this dungeon with me as…” Vivienne giggled when she noticed the glassy stare come over her partner’s pulsing green eyes. “...Faye? I didn’t use anything with that breath. Are you alright?”

-No, I am not alright!- Faye’s mind melted into a pool of mushy goo, when the intoxicating iron infused breath permeated her senses. -I wonder how fast I could tear off that gown?Faye fluttered her eyes and forcefully banished the lustful thoughts to the back of her mind. “Really, unfair.” Faye muttered and turned to kiss Vivienne’s hand, gasping lightly as she did so. “Wasn’t it you that said newborns and younglings have problems with control?” Faye teased, “I…I feel low on blood, and you're teasing me right to the edge.”

“Perhaps I want to see you layered in tiger stripes again, mon amour.”

A warm pulse shot down Faye’s spine, “Pl…please..um…I…” Faye babbled and closed her eyes to regain control of herself. “...You m-m-mentioned a way to…um not k-k-kill.”

“Indeed, I did.” Vivienne pulled her hand back and kissed Faye’s forehead. “Relax. I saw the red rim in your eyes just now, we do not have much longer before the sun goes down.” The vampiress soothed her partner, rubbing Faye’s tight shoulders. “I shall answer your inquiry right now, mon amour.” Vivienne took another breath, “It is imperative that you understand your nature now. We are not human any longer, although we appear as such.” Vivienne waited a moment, “Your body just went through an abrupt change and it takes time for the mind and body to work as one. It took me about eight years.” Vivienne rubbed her chin a moment, “I have seen it as early as five years.”

“What does all that mean, Vivienne?”

“My love, it means that while you do not want to kill, it may be unavoidable.”

“A murderer for five years, Vivienne? I don’t like the sound of that.”

“Allow me to try and impart this to you.” Vivienne paused for a moment, “This will take us back to the moments where you first realized you were undead and a vampire.”

“Drake. I said it was a dream, then the reality hit me.”

“Indeed.” Vivienne paused to steal a kiss from Faye’s maroon lips. “I mentioned this before. All you need is the willpower to not kill.”

“That is probably easier said than done, since I already feel like my throat is boiling.” Faye mentioned harshly.

“It is nature that we hunt. You will figure out what works best for you, Faye.” Vivienne held up her finger, “If you don’t want to kill, you follow your instinct to feed, then count to ten.”

“No way it is that easy, Vivienne.”

“Perhaps not, I did say that new and younger vampires have difficulty with self control.” “That was a little condescending.” Faye sat up and crossed her legs and arms, with a stern look on her face.

Vivienne sat up as well and raised one eyebrow, “Now you are just acting like a child, mon amour.” She mocked and grinned. “Pulling away because you didn’t like what you heard. It occurs to me that it is rather childish.” Wiggling her finger playfully, Vivienne continued. “I will offer my apologies, Faye. What I mentioned was not in any way meant to be obtuse. It was a matter of fact. You are newly transformed and have a drive to feed when you can.”

“Hey!” Faye unfolded her arms and scooted back into Vivienne’s lap, “I am not a child.” She gave Vivienne a quick peck on her perfectly sculpted cheek, “So, what happens after counting to ten?”

Gleefully wrapping Faye back in her arms, Vivienne refocused on the topic. “Please allow me to redeem myself with my insensitive comment about age.”

“I will allow it this time.” Faye smiled and giggled.

“Taking into account that you can stop, all you have to do afterwards is blow or kiss over the punctures. Kissing will make the person susceptible to suggestion, the breath will make them dizzy and lose time.” Vivienne took a breath, savoring the chai sensation emanating from Faye. “Blowing will also make them forget anything happened.”

“Then why kiss the wound?” Faye asked curiously.

“You can plant a suggestion and still leave peacefully. It can be almost anything plausible.”

“That isn’t overly complicated.”

Vivienne took Faye’s hands into her own, “Perhaps you should go and get dressed, it is almost time.”

Faye sprung from the bed and got a wide smile on her face, as she stretched her legs. “I want to flex my muscles again.” She quickly kissed Vivienne, “I will be right back.”

Vivienne heard her progeny laughing to herself as she reached the bottom floor. “Might I inquire as to what is making you laugh, mon amour? Obsessed with your legs, like before?” Who wouldn’t be?- She told herself. With one fluid and graceful move, Vivienne stood up and opened the doors to her antique wardrobe. Pulling her silk nightgown from her frame, Vivienne grabbed a navy blue tee and a pair of faded button up jeans. Rolling the top to pull over her frame, Vivienne heard Faye return to the room. Twisting to face her partner, the elder vampire smiled when Faye placed the second armoire on the floor with a tiny ‘thump’. “Upset with its location?” Vivienne teased.

“No, I wanted to…aahh….um…” Faye stammered as she caught the glimpse of her girlfriend’s perky ivory breasts, sparkling blue eyes and lastly, her bare bottom. Moving faster than she realized, Faye leapt over the bed and grabbed Vivienne by her hips and pulled the two into a tight embrace.

Vivienne dropped her blouse and hugged Faye back, and relished in the soft pulses of pleasure racing up and down her spine. Running her hands through Faye’s short black-pink hair, Vivienne let out a short gasp and threw her head back when her partner started kissing and nibbling on her neck. “Mmhmm, Yes Faye, Yessss…”

Finally able to grab Vivienne’s perfect ass, Faye rumbled happily once before lavishing her tongue and fangs on her partner’s neck, trailing down until she’d nipped her way down and suckled Vivienne’s perfectly sculpted twin tits. -That’s it little tiger, take what’s yours.- Faye paid almost no attention to the taunting voice in her head, and aggressively slipped one hand away from her ass to start rubbing between her slit.

Burning passion raced through her body with the sensations that Faye was producing. Vivienne felt her knees beginning to get weak, and she lightly fell into her lover’s hungry grasp. Rolling her hips to match Faye’s probing fingers, Vivienne found herself almost lost in the sensual moment. “Ohhh, juste comme ça mon amour…”

-Listen to her, little tiger. She’s yours. You know you want her blood. Take it.- Faye’s throat began burning with the intensity that it had moments before she’d started tearing into Drake. Knowing the voice taunted with half-truths, Faye had to admit one part to herself. She did want Vivienne’s blood, not to consume but to savor and revere as part of their lovemaking. Lovemaking??- Registering the French exclamation, Faye pulled away from Vivienne. “I… I…” -Almost had you that time, little lily.- Her dark animal laughed and retreated.

Vivienne righted herself from the short sexual moment and tilted her head, her blue eyes dancing with excitement. “I..what…Aah..beg your pardon?” She stammered before seeing the deep red ring around Faye’s green eyes. “Future reference, my love…” Vivienne quickly dressed in a blink of an eye and closed the gap that Faye created between them. “I can see you are very hungry, mon amour…” She cupped Faye’s cheek as she’d done a few times, “...I was indeed lost to the fun little moment, so whatever that was, know that I enjoyed it.”

“I saw you standing there naked again and couldn’t help myself.” Faye leaned once more into Vivienne’s delicate touch. “I heard that voice thing in my head and you spoke French. It was telling me to take you, take your blood.” Her tone both tremulous and dubious, Faye kept speaking, “I knew I had to have your blood, but not because I wanted to feed…but because we’d share it. Then it hit me to pull away, I am not ready to…but my body seems to be.” Vivienne planted a sweet kiss on Faye’s quivering lips. “Faye. Be proud of yourself.”

“Why? I lost control and…” She glanced down at her slick sex coated finger. “...I nearly cost us everything.”

Purring lightly, Vivienne pulled the wet finger between her lips, cleaning it. “Lovely, if I say so myself.” Playfully saying before she stepped back. “Faye, you didn't cost us anything, my darling. What I just saw gives me hope.”

Still upset with herself, Faye shook her head and hugged herself. “What hope?”

Darting over to Faye’s wardrobe, she opened the wooden doors and started flicking through the clothing. “You controlled yourself, my darling. You stopped yourself when you knew something felt wrong. Amazing for a newborn.”

“I heard you speaking in French and it kinda snapped me out.” Faye paused. “What was it you said anyway?”

“Of all things to ask me, while I am digging around to find you something to wear, other than that sheer green nightie.” Vivienne remarked.

“I can dress myself, thanks.” Faye hopped over the bed and reached for a blouse that Vivienne was looking at. “I don’t like that color.” She played and started a small tug-of-war with the top.

“Perhaps I would enjoy seeing you in it.” Vivienne held firm and lightly tugged back. “If you must know, I said “...just like that…” and Vivienne let the garment go, causing Faye to stumble back and bump into the wall.

“Very funny.” Faye tossed the lime green shirt in the closet and dug out a white one.

“You might want to reconsider your choice.” Vivienne giggled, “You’ll clash.”

“What do you mean? White is a normal color.”

“It clashes with red, silly.” Vivienne laughed and pointed to a maroon blouse. “That might be better for camouflage.”

Faye got the terrible joke. “You should really stop trying to be a comedian.” Shaking her black and pink locks, the youngling pulled the maroon top and a pair of equally faded button fly jeans. “These jeans are way out of style, Vivienne.” Faye hesitated and then slowly turned to look at Vivienne. “Um, where did all these clothes come from?”

“A store, I would assume.”

Faye squished her eyes shut and groaned. “Viv, please. You really need to stop trying.”

“Perhaps I will become a comedian right after I have tried my hand at being a chef.” Vivienne played.

Ignoring the comment, Faye pointed to her clothing. “Come on now, where did all these come from? They don’t look like they fit you. I mean look at this, a leather mini-skirt?” “That is Casey’s. The rest are, I suppose…um…” Vivienne half smiled. “...Leftovers.”

“Really, Vivienne? Three times in two minutes?...” Faye held up her hand. “Wait, I am wearing other women’s clothes?”

“Indeed, you are. An unfortunate side effect of becoming a vampire and losing your home in one evening.” Vivienne closed the doors on her armoire and shrugged. “I didn’t have time to plan for your arrival, mon amour.”

“That is hardly the point, Vivi…” Faye stopped talking as Vivienne held up her finger. “Perhaps it is wise to save the questions until after.” Vivienne then pointed towards the ocean and smiled.

Faye’s eyes got wide and started gleaming with delight. “I felt it, Vivienne. The sun just went down didn’t it?”

Vivienne finished her look by tying her long hair into a tight black bun. “Indeed, I hoped you would have felt it.”

The newborn nodded, “I am pretty sure I did. There are just so many things in my head that I didn’t say anything.” She paused and emulated Vivienne raising her finger. “It was when you motioned for me to stop talking.” Faye knew that she’d felt the sun dip below the horizon and committed the feeling to memory so she wouldn’t forget again. Jumping a few times in place, Faye looked like an athlete warming up before an event. Curling her toes in the plush carpeting, Faye realized she didn’t have any shoes on. “Oh, I forgot…”

“You won’t need them, and it will just destroy a pair of shoes.”

“You did that again…You have to be reading my mind, Viv.” Faye chuckled and squatted as if she were about to sprint out of the room. “Here goes nothing. Time to be a vampire, Iguess.”

“I have done no such thing, Faye.” Vivienne raised one eyebrow, “Tigerlilly, I learned fast that no shoes helped in hunting, if by accident you start to delve into your darkness.” Closing the doors to Faye’s dresser, Vivienne spoke once more. “I cannot begin to tell you how many pairs of shoes I have lost.” She headed to the door, “After you. I will meet you on the beach. I have one final thing to say before you sedate that burn, mon amour.”

---

Vivienne reached the open door at the back of her home and admired the last vestiges of the deep red sunset combined with the gentle sounds of the ocean water lapping on the shoreline. Closing her eyes briefly, the ancient vampire recalled the rays of the sun from a distant memory and how it used to kiss her skin with a subtle warmth. -Faye is that same comfort and warmth.- Her mind reflected for a few brief moments before spotting her Tigerlily running in quick circles through the sand along the surf's edge. Taking a healthy intake of the salt air, Vivienne detected the alluring scent of blood from multiple points along the beach.

“Faye.”

“Vivienne!” Faye bolted over to her creator, half smiling with excitement. “The water. I was out there and it felt like having my hand in tap water.” She exclaimed happily. “I should be shivering from it being near freezing.”

“Very good, mon amour.” Lifting her finger, Vivienne expressed a concern. “I may remind you that we are trying to look human. You will notice that none of them are playing out there.

Secrecy is our best ally.”

“Right. What was it that you wanted me to know? You mentioned one final thing?” Faye commented quickly, and wrapped her arms around her partner.

A light coo rattled its way from Vivienne before she spoke, “Very distracting, my love.” She laughed and kissed Faye’s forehead, “Alas, this is important.”

“All ears.”

“Very well. This is an unlikely event, but there are humans that I have deemed true believer’s.” Vivienne holds up her finger when the mystery flashes in Faye’s green eyes. “These are people that have in some way become too attached to a belief. That belief in whatever system it is, it can be Christianity, Taosim or even ancient beliefs. As far as I can tell, it is their conviction of a higher power that does it.” Vivienne twirls one pink braid, “That kind of person will resist your abilities and their blood won’t even nourish you. It is best to just leave them be.” Vivienne laughed, “You can almost tell that person in a crowd. Worry not, the chances are minuscule that you will meet one here in Virginia Beach.”

“Do they have a different scent or anything?” Faye pulled from the hug and looked questioningly at Vivienne.

“I never looked into it that closely. We can certainly do so, should you run across one.” Vivienne paused and pointed at the houses along the shore with lights on. “Do us both a favor, keep your hunting away from the house the best you can. I suggest at least a mile from here. Happy hunting, mon amour.”

Vivienne changed into her small raven form and took to the skies, circling once around Faye. Vivienne marveled to herself as the Korean woman’s body once again decorated itself in thick black stripes. -Fascinating. I love how she associates hunting with a tiger. My Tigerlily.Taking a quick updraft of night air under her wings, Vivienne flew off in the opposite direction.

It took a few minutes of flying, but Vivienne found what she knew to be a rental unit with a small gathering of six people. Circling silently, Vivienne noted that the six were split off into pairs, with two of them dancing to Ozzy Osbourne’s song “Shot in the Dark”.

“…But just like the wounded and when it's too late

They'll remember, they'll surrender

Never a care for the people who hate

Underestimate me now

But a shot in the dark

One step away from you Just a shot in the dark

Nothing that you can do

Just a shot in the dark

Always creeping up on you, all right…”

-I love this part- Vivienne told herself as she circled one final time, to ensure that there weren’t any onlookers. Folding her wings to her tiny form, she dove headlong towards the little group, relishing the cold air thrumming her feathers. Leveling off when her claws clipped one of her victims hair, Vivienne flew around until the six were swatting at the air trying to fend off the erratic attack.

“What was that?” A woman questioned and looked up to the sky.

“A bat?” One man answered, now holding a broom. “Come on back you little motherfucker.” He glanced up as well.

“That is just a touch rude.” A French accented voice came from dunes. “I will admit you have a fun taste…” Vivienne chuckled, “...taste in music.” She appeared to the shocked six on the deck and placed her finger over her mouth. “Shhh, this won’t take long. It will be better for us all if you do not scream.”

Hunger overcame the vampiresss and she sprinted between five of the six, pressing her lips quickly to each of their throats, sending them into a euphoric state. Vivienne stopped in front of the man with the broom and blinked her startling blue eyes. “I haven’t forgotten you, My rude morsel.”

Overwhelmed with fear, the man felt a warm river flood his pants and stream down his leg as he noticed Vivienne's four fangs lock into place. "Th...this...no..you..not...re...real..please...dd-don't." The man pleaded desperately.

Quick as lightning, Vivienne’s hand clamped around the man’s throat. Glancing once more around the area and seeing it clear, the French woman drove her fangs into the soft flesh of the man’s neck. Flooding through the four holes and over her dry tongue, Vivienne sighed with contentment and relief as the blood coated her throat and quelled the burning. Vigorous.- She told herself as his heart beat wildly, sending pulses of his hot life between her lips. All too soon, Vivienne felt the man’s body succumb and float away in a light dust into the night. Infused and reinvigorated, she licked her lips and walked to her next meal, “Not a drop wasted.”

Catching the scent of sex from the woman she’d approached, Vivienne paused for a moment. A warm pulse from her mind shot down her spine and between her legs thinking about Faye’s finger that had penetrated her earlier in the evening. Rather than gripping the woman, Vivienne slid her hand down the front of her buttoned jeans. -Focus, the charm will wear off.With an unsatisfied grunt, she resumed her feeding. Thankful that the woman’s blood didn’t fill her with extended desire for Faye, Vivienne consumed the remaining five people and left the house with a slight sloshy feeling in her belly. “Time to see how Faye is doing.”

Brian walked along one of the myriad of concrete paths that made up the small university he attended. Choosing this path afforded the big man the chance to enjoy the wintry air mixed with the smell of pine and wood smoke from the nearby homes as he pondered what things he needed to do next. Typically, Brian thought about minor things like when a project was due, what he would eat the next day, football practice or what classes he had the following day. Tonight he had one thing on his mind, Casey. Replaying the events of the last few days, Brian shook his head trying to piece it all together and form some sort of answer from all the mystery that made sense. “It certainly seems like its trading one obsession for another.” He grunted and turned towards the gym, “Maybe getting some of this frustration out would do me some good.”

“Only one thing makes a guy talk to himself like that, a woman.”

Brian looked over to where he’d heard the light feminine voice come from, “Excuse me?” He inquired softly.

Wendy looked up from the compact mirror she was holding, “I said only one thing makes a guy talk to himself. It is my experience that it is a woman that causes that.”

“Do I know you?” Brian questioned and crossed his arms.

“No, but I know you, Mr. Ashburn.” The red-headed reporter quipped and closed the little mirror, finally turning to face Brian.

“Great, now are you going to tell me who the hell you are?” He looked around confused, “What’s more, how the hell you knew I would be walking by as you were doing your makeup in the freezing cold.”

“The first question is the easiest. Wendy Richards, pleasure to meet you.” She waved playfully, “The next question is a little harder to explain.”

“Here I am talking to a strange woman, in the cold while she does her make-up. Something tells me that I really should walk away right now.” He unfolds his arms and takes a step towards Wendy, “However, this isn’t the strangest thing I have seen in the last few days.”

“I don’t really have a problem with the cold. It keeps my head clear.” She points across the small street to a local coffee shop, “We could always go get a cup of coffee.” Curling one eyebrow up, Wendy flashes her smile. “It gives me time to finish what I was doing and answer your question…” She hesitated briefly, “...and perhaps you will learn a little more about your girlfriend.”

“What?” Brian immediately turned red, a flash of anger washing over his eyes.

“Relax, relax.” Wendy stood up and tossed her purse over her shoulder, “I said learn more, nothing else. Let’s get warm, and talk a bit.”

Little warning tingles bolted across Brian’s spine and it took him a couple seconds to force his feet to move. He took one heavy step and his shoe caught for a brief moment forcing him to stumble and grumble.

Wendy quickly turned to the side, and her red hair bounced across her face. “Everything alright?”

“Yeah, I am fine. I just feel stupid is all.” He shook his foot that had also started tingling. Reaching the door to the tiny cafe, “That is a couple warnings that I have ignored.”

Wendy walked up to the counter and looked over the menu for a moment before glancing to Brian, “Dark chocolate, with ginger and a sea salt rim? Sounds downright sinful.” She turns to the barista, “I want that, with an extra espresso shot please.” The girl behind the counter punched in the codes and looked back at Wendy and began to speak when the reporter cut her off. “Oh, whatever my large escort would like as well.” She handed over her credit card and finally answered Brian, “What warnings would those be, good sir?”

“Just a normal cup of coffee with sweet cream, no sugar.” Grinning widely the young lady behind the counter nodded and looked away from Brian when her face turned deep red. Nodding his head lightly, Brian gently offered, “My thanks. She and I will be sitting by the window.”

Walking over to the small chair, Wendy unbuttoned her heavy coat and hung it up on an empty hook near the entry. “You were saying warnings?” The redhead sat down and pulled out her make-up bag again. “I supposedly have a date in about two hours or so, but I am not really sure he will show up.”

“That explains the make-up and the cold.” Brian shrugged and took his own seat. Nervous and still puzzled, Brian started spinning a stir stick on the table. “I did say warnings. First was that creepy feeling that you stalked me to speak outside, then I tripped while coming here.” He shrugged, “I usually listen to things like that.”

“Do you?” Wendy blotted away the red-copper lipstick she’d just applied.

“If you hadn’t mentioned my girlfriend then I wouldn’t be here.” Brian mentioned while purposefully keeping Casey’s name to himself. -A test.-

Quickly snapping her fingers, Wendy tossed her lipstick in her purse and pulled out her phone. “Here we go.” She held up her finger fast, “Wait, I forgot something.” She reached back in her purse and pulled out a small business card. “Wendy Richards, Journalist. I work for fourteen news.” Sliding the card to Brian she kept her light chaotic antics going, “Right, okay. Let me press play here and..” She handed the phone to Brian and waited for part of her interview to come up. “Listen closely.”

Brian waited and heard Casey’s voice clear on the video, “K-K-Karen Collins…” He pushed the phone back across the table. “What was I supposed to hear?” Brian asked and leaned back in his chair, once again crossing his arms.

Wendy got silent when the barista delivered their coffee’s, then grabbed her phone once more and tapped the screen. “You were supposed to know Casey’s voice.” She took a sip of her decadent coffee, “Mmm.”

“That could have been anyone, the place was a circus.” Taking a sip of his own coffee, Brian waved dismissively to Wendy. “You still haven’t answered anything really.”

“If the voice didn’t convince you, then I am quite sure this will.” She opened a folder on her screen labeled ‘public access’ and pulled up the video of the woman being rescued from a pole camera. “Ah, there we go.” She slid the phone back. “Can’t deny that, you can see her face pretty well from that angle, Brian.”

Defeated, Brian leaned on the table and rubbed his temples. “The image is a bit fuzzy, and I am not saying anything to a reporter.”

“I am not recording anything, Brian.” Wendy commented and took another sip of coffee. “You really should have gotten the dark chocolate, it sends little tingles all over with the ginger.”

Frustrated, Brian hit the table with his fist, making the employees and the few others in the shop jump in surprise. “Look…” Brian huffed and took an exasperated breath, “You’re annoying me to the point I ju…”

“I annoyed you?” Wendy inquired after another pull from her coffee. “You are angry at your girlfriend, not me. I am just showing you what you asked for.” She pulled back her phone and dropped it into her purse. Grabbing her mascara and the compact again, she started applying the black liquid to her eyelashes. “I followed the ambulance they took her in and then she simply disappeared from the hospital.” Screwing the cap back on the tube, she pulled out an eyelash curler and gently worked the tool so the soft hairs had a soft semi-circle shape to them. “That footage was seen by others and I was subsequently informed that her name wasn’t Karen Collins, rather Casey Rivers.” Wendy softly licked the salt from the rim of the cup and took a sip. “This is almost like a drug.” She winked at Brian.

Brian attempted to regain his composure, “Sorry. I don’t usually get angry.” Not thinking clearly, he grabbed his cup, and took a healthy swig of the hot coffee and coughed when it partly burned his tongue. “That was stupid of me.” He muttered and wiped the water from his eyes where they’d teared up. “How’d you know I would be walking by?” His voice now hoarse from the burn in his throat.

“I didn’t.” Wendy handed the serving woman her card again, “Keep the tab open, I think I am going to get something to eat in a few.” Nodding once the server went back behind the counter and started working on the second coffee for Wendy. “I found her on Facebook and found you just after. You both have your residence public.” She pointed to the small quad of walkways and the bench where she’d been sitting. “The gym and your hall is there and Casey’s opposite, where you were walking from.” She paused and finished off her first cup of rich coffee. “I played a hunch that I would see you at some point.”

“Lucky.” Brian heard his stomach rumble. “I guess that answers that.” He waited a second, “You mentioned helping Casey?”

Turning over her wrist to see the time, Wendy lets out a loathsome sigh. “Figures.” She looks up at Brian, “Never trust the police.”

Chuckling Brian shrugged one shoulder, “Cops suck, what can I say.”

Wendy gets up and walks to get a small paper menu with the different pastries and sandwiches the cafe offered, “You can say that I got dolled and now have no date.” She points to the menu, “You hungry? I apparently have lots of time now.”

“I could eat.” He glanced at the menu when Wendy passed it to him. “We are discussing helping Casey?”

A swift breeze passed over the street, making pine needles from the thick trees splatter all over the shaking window. The couple looked at needles with a light trance gleaming in their eyes, and spoke at the same time. “Windy. Eyes. Clear. Brother.”

The incident passed about as fast as it came upon them, the needles that formed the runic words skipping down the pavement as though nothing happened. “You are the one.” Wendy came out of her trance and grabbed Brian’s right hand and saw dark lines that matched her own symbol on her hand. “Tell me, where did you get that mark?”

Brian jerked his hand away and rubbed his palm. “What the fuck are you doing? What made you think you could just grab my hand, you nutcase? What do you mean I am the one, what one?” He rattled off questions in a flurry of confusion and anger.

Wendy quickly went to the counter and ordered a couple quick sandwiches to occupy the workers in the cafe and sat down returning with her second cup of coffee, “Look, I don’t have lots of time. Those sandwiches will be finished soon enough, and I have questions as well.” Closing her eyes, she let the dark chocolate resonate with her a bit and calm her so that she could speak clearly. “All of the others and I have the same symbol or mark, but mine..” She opened her palm to show Brian the soft lime green glow coming from it. “You have it as well, but it's not radiating yet.” She rolled her eyes and smiled. “Now I get it." She peered up at the dark pines across the street, “Thanks for that.” She focused back on Brian. “It literally called my name, Wendy and said open your eyes, he’s your brother.”

“I…it's a birthmark.” Brian blinked and hesitantly touched the glowing mark on Wendy’s hand. “I…was born with it. My mom always called it my lucky charm.”

Wendy leaned closer to Brian and whispered lightly, “I think I was meant to awaken you, Brian. There are things that you probably know but think are just superstitions.” Wendy hesitated and looked around, “Let’s eat and discuss this further.”

“You promise this will…help Casey?” Brian nervously looked at his palm and felt the blood anxiously coursing through his veins.

“I said you would learn about her, helping her is another matter.” She sipped on the rich chocolate again. “We will get to that, Brian. All in good time.”

Stepping outside for a bit of fresh cool winter air, a young man walked to the edge of a faded wooden deck and sat down on the steps leading to the cold ocean. He opened his phone and tapped an icon to open a game. Little battling swordsmen took the field and conquered their way to his opponents gates, laying digital siege to the little castle on the screen. “I have you now, Ace3400. You’ve beaten me long enough. You can’t escape this time; I will be number one.” His little swordsmen and catapults raised their victory flags and the young man, full of triumph and glee yelled, “Yes!” A puzzled look crossed over the young man's face as one of his earbuds fell to the ground, interrupting his short-lived victory. “That sucks!” He yelped missing part of the music that played for his glorious moment.

Faye waited for the man to bend over before pouncing. The fledgling vampire with black striped hands had him pinned beneath her before the little sound device hit the ground. -Yes, little tiger. Feel how soft his flesh is. See that fear in his eyes. You can hear his heart..bumbum..bum-bum.- Faye felt the fiery need to feed. A quick inhale and the newborn caught the fresh and iron-copper scent of the man's blood just below the surface of his skin. -Good my little tigress. Tear his fucking heart out like the animal you are.- Frenzied by the thrill of the hunt and desire to taste the man trapped under her knees, Faye swung her almost paw shaped hand down and plunged it through her victims chest. Clamping and crushing her meal’s breastbone, Faye felt the rush of hot blood race over her fingers. Emitting an ear splitting scream a second later, Faye grabbed his throat silencing him.

Blood gushed from the hole in her meals chest, streaming down his sides and into the waiting sand. “No.” Faye growled, knowing she was being robbed by listening to the voice that was now laughing at her. Thinking quickly, poked a hole in the biggest artery she knew, his aorta. Blood flew from the source and she quickly clamped her lips and desperately drank the precious fluid. When the first pulse reached the back of her throat, it almost felt like she’d taken a swallow of hundred degree soda. The scorching sensation subsided with a tingle and once it settled comfortably in her stomach, she felt control of herself returning. -So rich, so thick. Cool satisfaction. Pure and metallic. Keep drinking..what did she say? Every drop?Purring contently as she drained her meal dry, Faye caught the light scent of perfume in the air. Unable to move her lips from her prize, her famished green eyes looked up in time to see a short haired woman calling out. “Doug are you out…”

Instinct took over and Faye jumped on Doug’s sister, pinning her to the deck before the girl could finish the question. Horror washed over the girl as she registered the blood smeared over the Korean vampire's face. She started shaking uncontrollably once Faye exposed her twin sets of fangs with the flesh of her brother embedded within. Faye reared her half-paw once more and stopped when a soothing French voice echoed in her mind. -You do not have to kill. Use your lips.- Snapping herself out of the blood frenzy she was in, the Korean vampire pressed her lips to the girl's neck and watched as her second blood-trophy slipped into a delightful coma.

Satisfied after watching the young girl sleep for a couple minutes, Faye bounded back to her first kill. No sooner had Doug’s corpse disintegrated, Faye heard yet another voice approaching. “You have to be kidding me.”

“They were just out here. Hey you two, get a coa…” an older woman walked through the sliding glass door and stopped, frozen in place. Faye stood up from the place the woman’s son had been and considered what she had to do. The young vampire knew that she had the speed to stop the woman from screaming and drawing attention to whoever else may be inside the house. -Fear is a useful tool, little tiger.- Once more the voice from the dark spoke delicately. Listening to the urging, Faye let the woman scream to the top of her lungs and smiled as the mother of the two dropped to her knees.

-More. Smell all that blood. Much, much more. A river full.-

Darting over to the crying mother, Faye picked the panicked woman up by the head and plunged her fangs into the woman’s jugular. -Joyous.- she praised herself and cherished the stolen stream flowing into her body. -Count to ten if you want her to live.- Faye reminded herself. Ignoring the advice that Vivienne had given her, Faye actively pulled more life than the woman’s rapid heartbeat could provide.

Hearing the scream from his wife, the last remaining member of the family came out with a butcher's knife and immediately witnessed the blood-soaked visage of Faye, drinking from his wife. “Monster!” He screamed in fury and lashed out with the knife hitting Faye squarely in the shoulder, hoping to free his wife from Faye’s grip. When the knife’s tip broke against the vampire’s stone skin, the man looked down at the broken blade in shock.

Finishing off her second meal, Faye wiped her lips free of the woman’s blood and showed the man her dripping fingers, “I never wanted it to be this way.” She muttered with disdain, forcing the black voice deeply back in her mind once more.

“Fuck you!” the father growled and attempted to tackle the small vampire.

Control over herself firmly in place, Faye side stepped and tripped the man and watched as he hit the ground, crashing his head into the wood plank. Kneeling over the groaning father, “This will be over soon, I promise. You won’t feel a thing.”

Gorging herself on the ichor of her last two meals, Faye took a useless breath and licked her lips clean. Dejected, Faye started to walk slowly down the deck stairs and onto the beach when she caught a familiar scent in the air. “Vivienne. I killed them all.”

“I deduced as much, given your horrific state.” Vivienne silently strolled over to Faye, lifting her bloody chin to look into her green eyes. “Mon amour, you were left with very little options from what little I saw.”

“I want to say that I didn’t enjoy it.” Faye hesitated with the realization of what she was about to say, “It felt great, like I was meant to do it.” Faye leaned in and gave Vivienne a quick kiss. “I told myself to count to ten like you said, but I ignored it. I wanted to hunt them.”

“Naturally.” Vivienne exclaimed and walked onto the small deck.

“How much of this carnage did you see?” Faye asked half pouting from losing the feeling of Vivienne’s lips on hers.

“I arrived when the mother started to scream.” Vivienne responded while looking over the scene. Blood was all over the place, claw marks in the wood slats, and cracked where the father had been slammed down. Vivienne kept looking around the scene taking meticulous notes in her mind over the evidence of the attack here that couldn’t be explained by any natural means. “We have a little bit to clean up.” She pointed to little bits of flesh, bone and hair that were strewn all over. “I am willing to bet that you didn’t even know you did this.”

“No. I…I thought the other kills were cleaner.” Faye glanced around and took in the full scene where the family had been eviscerated. “I only remember clawing into the young man on the stairs there.”

“Mon amour, it will take time and experience.” Vivienne stepped inside the house and checked for the most obvious means to remove the tidbits of evidence. Finding that the house used natural gas, Vivienne darted through the kitchen and found the weakest line linked to the stovetop and cracked it along a kink that had formed. A small hiss began and started filling the home with the smell of sulfur. Swiftly, Vivienne tore up the wood planks that held the trace amounts of bodily remains and sealed the remainder of the house.

“This isn’t perfect by any means, Faye.” Vivienne remarked and started counting in her head. “We just need to give enough of an illusion that when people do arrive to put out this fire, they have the excuse not to delve into it any further.”

“He called me a monster.” Faye sighed and collapsed into Vivienne, smearing crimson carnage on her blouse.

Swiping some of the clotting blood from Faye’s cheeks, “I would classify you more as a green eyed, tiger striped, blurry, puce, people-picker.” Vivienne licks the thick fluid from her finger, and smiles.

Faye felt the feeling of dread disappear and pulled back, a look of disbelief crossing her vampiric eyes. “Ugh, Vivienne…” She chuckled, “...that is the fourth attempt this evening.” Faye shook her head a bit more and pats her partner on the shoulder. “Stay a doctor or take another thousand years learning to be a chef. Do everyone a favor and don’t try to be a comedian, you suck at it.”

Vivienne winked, finished her internal countdown and lit a few bushes around the perimeter of the house aflame before walking to the edge of the water. “That shouldn’t take long to..” Vivienne was cut off when an errant ember landed by the weak door seal, sending a roaring flame through the home. “There we go.”

“I am still hungry.” Faye commented.

Vivienne took Faye’s hand into her own and whisked down the coastline. “Let’s see if we can avoid killing the rest of the evening. There is a gathering of unsuspecting people just waiting to be fed on.”

Faye had no problem keeping up with the inhuman sprinter’s pace that she and Vivienne were in. The young vampire was taking note of exactly how her body had changed overnight. Her muscles never seemed to get tired, she never needed to breath, never had any sweat no matter how hard she pushed herself. “This is amazing, Vivienne.” Faye marveled to herself as she took air into her lungs without the old burning feeling she used to have while exercising. “I feel the tension in my thighs, I feel my calves moving, down to the wet sand being forced between my toes.”

“All fueled by blood, mon amour.” Vivienne added.

“It also feels wrong somehow.” Faye offered quickly before continuing. “When I used to run before, I knew that I was subject to where I was running. Now, I feel like it is subject to me.”

“What do you mean, Faye? You sound confused.”

“Alright. It's the feeling that the sand is at my mercy, like it has no recourse but to do what I want it to.”

“I think I get what you mean. Indeed, you are correct. Your world is now at your disposal.” Vivienne confirmed as they stopped just out of sight from a very large crowd.

Her mouth watering from the sweet scents of the humans gathered and milling about, Faye wiped a small amount of scarlet drool from the corner of her mouth. “The more I use the more I need. I want it.” Concentrating on the crowd and the gentle thumps of their hearts,

Faye looked up at Vivienne confident. “I count twenty-five.”

Vivienne surveyed the area quickly and returned to Faye’s side. “I do believe this is a meet and greet of some sort.”

“Speed-dating.” Faye shrugged. “Let’s eat.”

Vivienne placed her hand on her girlfriend's shoulder, “Let’s plan this out a bit more.”

Faye felt the ache in her throat rising once more. The new vampire knew that she needed to devour the hot and thick iron rich blood that the group had in order to quench that thirst and keep the dark-tiger at bay. “We can be in and out before they even hit the ground.”

“I thought you didn’t want to kill.” Vivienne urged.

Faye sighed and fought back her ever growing hunger when she looked into her partner’s gentle and equally hungry diamond blue eyes. Faye happened to glance down and plucked a dried droplet of blood from her cheek. “I look like a nightmare, I don’t think I can just walk up and say hello.”

“I am not exactly presentable at this point either, my love.” She pointed to her smeared blue blouse. “We have to be tactical at this point.” Vivienne pointed to the grove of bay oaks that circled the small patio that the group was using. “That is where I stood and watched the crowd for a few seconds. It should provide enough cover for the two of us to feed quickly and quietly.”

“We could make it a bit more dark, so they won’t just see the others being jerked out of the area.” Faye pointed to the twin circuit boxes near a makeshift stage where a live band could play. “Right now all I hear is a stereo playing a song, ‘It’s not over’ of all things.”

Vivienne nodded and smiled at her progeny, “Indeed. I will be right back. You sit tight, let me see if I can work a little magic.”

Vivienne changed into her raven form and followed the little protected wires as her hollow bones allowed her to float silently and gently over the crowd. A swift bank to the right and Vivienne made a loop behind the boxes and landed without making a sound. Staying in the shadows, she took her normal shape and turned the lock into metallic dust. Opening the tiny panel, she looked at the labels and mysterious symbols that were imprinted on the boards. All this time and you never looked at electronics?- Lacking any real idea what she was doing, pulled a bunch of wires at random. The lights that lined the outside of the veranda went out, casting deep shadows everywhere there weren’t string lights attached.

Vivienne effortlessly turned back into her small raven form and flew between the trees, landing on the Korean vampire’s shoulder. Faye glanced at the bird that landed on her shoulder and let out a little tiger-like purr when she lost herself in the dreamy crystal blue eyes. “I am not sure I should be looking at you like that little birdie. I have a girlfriend and partner.” She tapped her lips for a moment. “Although, I am sure that I could find a nice and decorative cage for you.”

Vivienne blinked her eyes once and hopped to the ground where she quickly changed into her natural form. “A cage is it, mon amour?”

“As you would say, indeed.”

“Indeed.” Vivienne mirrored, “You know me well already.” She pointed to the dead lights before slipping her arms around Faye from behind, the elder vampire blew lightly across her partner's ear. “That should do it, my love.”

Faye felt the strength of her thighs fade and she fell comfortably into Vivienne’s arms. -How does she do that with one little whisper?!?- Lacking the ability to speak to Vivienne, Faye twisted slowly in her partner’s arms and nodded in agreement.

“It’s alright everyone, give me a couple minutes to see if we can fix the lights.” The hostess waved her hands frantically to the crowd. “It is more cozy like this.” A few from the crowd offered, with others nodding and humming in agreement. “Vote then. All that want the lighting to stay like this, raise their hands.” Vivienne and Faye watched silently as a majority of the crowd raised their hands and started giggling quietly. “Looks like we keep it like it is. Just keep things PG-13.” The hostess laughed and resumed her seat by the stereo.

“You pilled…pulled..um the right w-wires.” Faye breathed blissfully and crumbled into Vivienne’s arms when the ancient vampire teased her with another metallic blood-soaked breath. “That was sex in a breath, Vivienne.”

“Exploring that statement could take years, mon amour.” Vivienne gave a delicate peck on Faye’s neck. “However, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that our current goal is just over there.”

“Can’t it be both?” Faye winked and gave a playful lick to her partner’s fangs.

-She licked my fangs!- Vivienne felt a sexual sliver race through her legs, making her lose focus on the task the two were about to embark on. It took a heavy gust of wind carrying the delightful scent of blood to snap the French vampire from her tiny stupor. “When you are ready, mon amour.” Vivienne pointed out a quiet couple that had taken a seat close to the edge of the copse. “Together now. You take the gentleman and I will handle the lady.”

The hungry vampires wasted no time in plucking the quiet couple from the bench. Vivienne quickly entranced the lady with her lips and carried her back a second before Faye returned. Whereas Vivienne’s catch was in a grinning sleepy haze, Faye’s meal was kicking his legs wildly, grasping at the newborn’s fingers trying to pry them away from his throat. “I thought the goal was not to kill?”

“He’s not dead.” Faye stated flatly as the guy's eyes started reflecting a maddening fear.

“We can’t return him like that either.” Vivienne shook her head and placed the man into the same trance the woman was in. “There we go, quiet and calm.” Vivienne pointed at the man’s neck. “Find your spot and then drink. Remember to try and count to ten and then close the holes with a breath or lick.”

Using her index finger, Faye silently traced up and down the contours of the man’s neck until she found the heaviest source of blood. Blood gushed from her meal in a steady pulsing stream of sweet-iron just after the Korean punctured the vein she’d just traced. Closing her fierce green eyes, Faye tried to concentrate and began counting. -One, two, three…Suddenly, an unfamiliar and virile flavor saturated her tongue as the man started to giggle lightly and begin touching himself. -Four, Five..oh shit!- Faye pulled away after licking the wounds closed. “Viv…why is…??”

Vivienne had just finished feeding and whispered a few fleeting innuendos for the woman to enjoy once she awakened, when she heard Faye stutter. “Hmm, Yes.” Her voice turned flat and clinical, “Humans do that on occasion.” Grabbing the couple Vivienne returned the potential lovers back to the bench, “You can taste the difference. I always feel oddly refreshed after dining on aroused blood.”

“Sexy blood. Two words I never thought to put together.” Faye finally started to feel the effects Vivienne just described. “Vigorous. That’s it. I feel more energetic. The family didn’t make me feel this way.” Smiling, Faye added, “At least I didn’t kill him, and I even counted to five.” She blew her partner a kiss, “I feel wonderful now that I have done it at least once.”

“Lick my fangs again, and you will need that vigor.” Vivienne winked playfully at her partner. “Are you still hungry?”

-More.- Faye nodded her head excitedly. “I want to try it by myself this time.” Spinning on her heels, she darted to the next bench where two disinterested women were talking. Quick as a tigress, Faye darted between the two women and blew her enchanted breath across their faces. Returning to their feeding spot, Faye triumphantly displayed both charmed women.

Vivienne clapped lightly, “Sexy and impressive.” She sauntered beside Faye, “Tiger…lily.” Vivienne extended the name by rolling the ‘L’s. “Hunter’s choice.”

Losing focus, Faye drove her fangs into one woman’s neck and failed to seal her lips properly. Flowing wildly from the corners of Faye’s lips, the blood coursed its way down her tanned neck and between the vampire’s breasts, staining her blouse deep red. -Damn it!- She cursed herself lightly and drained the catatonic woman completely, sending her ashes to the ground. Opening her eyes, Faye glanced up in time to see a set of hungry luminous blue eyes staring back at her. “Vivi…”

Caving into a quick craving from the plasma-stained woman before her, Vivienne stepped in front of her partner and rolled her tongue over her fangs with an anticipatory moan. Reaching up and tracing Faye’s lips with her finger, Vivienne swiped and smeared the remaining plasma so that her partner looked to be wearing a macabre lipstick. Withdrawing her finger and licking it clean, she then leaned in and traced her fangs lightly over the wet corners of Faye’s mouth before licking both sides clean. “MMmm, what made you think hunter’s choice meant you, mon amour?” Vivienne teased and ripped open Faye’s shirt, exposing her bellshaped chest. “Stand right there, Tigerlily.” Vivienne teased lightly.

Exposed. Faye felt her skin burning with delight as her tee was torn away, relishing in the partial fear of being seen in the semi-hidden grove of bay oaks she shared with her partner. Faye heard the gentle words float into her mind asking her to stay put. She knew it wasn’t an order, but a request from one partner to another. Rustling like the leaves on the trees, Faye snapped a couple quick nods to Vivienne and waited with anticipation for what was to come.

Convinced that Faye would stand in place Vivienne purred, “That blouse was ruined anyway.” Turning to the charmed woman in Faye’s grasp, the ancient vampire licked the woman’s ear and whispered to the stranger, getting her to emit a shy giggle. Vivienne lightly pried the lady from Faye’s fingers and walked her slowly in front of her creation.

Goosebumps sprung up Faye’s arms and her skin flushed just below her neck. Barely registering the cold air, Faye knew it wasn’t the environment that was causing her body’s reaction. -Is she yours or are you hers? Look at yourself, naked from the waist up..again.“Mine.” Faye whispered into the wind.

Winking lightly at Faye, Vivienne leaned over and once more whispered into the woman’s ear. Vivienne watched as the woman’s body tensed up and quaked all over, letting out an impassioned cry as she did so. Waiting for the second convulsion to wrack the woman, Vivienne sank her four fangs deep into the woman’s heated neck and withdrew. Four lines of hot and iron-aroused blood splattered on Faye’s chest, coursing its way over her nipples and creating rivers that flowed downward between both glorious globes.

“Yessss….” Faye hissed with delight as the scents of cinnamon, hot chili and hints of chocolate waifed through her nose. -Amazing what one night makes- Faye thought, as she arched her back when two more pulses of blood impacted her chest. “More…give me more…” Faye pleaded.

Vivienne licked the four wounds closed and left the woman swaying gently with the breeze, turning her attention to Faye. “Ebullient, mon amour.” Vivienne started smearing the thick gooey lines over her partner’s ripe chest. “Three times we have done this, three different outcomes.” Vivienne purred and worked the blood into Faye’s skin. “All three times, the look on your face has been, Mmmm…priceless.”

Her muscles relaxed and Faye opened her eyes slowly when Vivienne’s hands retreated. Watching her partner lick her fingers clean of the aphrodisiac-scented blood, Faye finished off the unsteady woman quickly. “Rude.” Faye added after licking her lips clean. “What am I supposed to do now? I am excited, covered in blood with my blouse unusable. So much for being discreet.” She placed her hands on her hips and looked down at her bare chest. “Well? Do we zip home and change, or do we keep eating.” Faye felt the answer bounce in her head immediately. -More. Always more.-

Vivienne grabbed the bottom of Faye’s tattered shirt and tied it in a tight knot just above her navel, recovering most of her body. “That was an easy solution.” She cupped Faye’s chin and gazed into her partner’s green eyes. “Humm, not hungry.”

“Depends on your view of being hungry.” Faye puckered her lips and blew the French woman a kiss.

“Love, You no longer have a red rim in your eyes. I did tell you that before.” Vivienne winked. “We still have a crowd that we can feed on.” She plucked off a piece of clotted blood from Faye’s cheek, and placed it on her tongue to melt.

-Did she just pluck that from my face?- Faye asked herself a half-second before the blood she’d just consumed dropped the newborn to her hands and knees in a wave of euphoria. “V..vv…” She sputtered as red spit went all over the ground. The sudden scent of rosemary broke through the illusionary effects and Faye felt herself being pulled up. Gathering her footing and leaning against Vivienne, after a few quiet minutes stopped shaking and meekly asked, “I..is that going to keep happening? I don’t like losing control like that…so much.” Faye glanced up into her partner’s eyes confused, “I know you said at least five years…but, I…don’t really remember who I am. I don’t know w..what I like…” She pulled away and kept looking at Vivienne. “I am yours and you are mine.” Closing her eyes, Faye tapped on her forehead gently, “I just don’t know what it all means and to have my body flooded with someone else’s last moments is almost too intense.” Wiping the spit from her lips she continued, “It is smothering me, the love…the reaction…the desire…the need..” She trailed off in a haze.

“I am smothering you, Faye?” Vivienne inquired softly.

“Yes, no…perhaps?” She sighed, finding herself frustrated like she was a few hours before. “It has been so sudden and sweeping. I have barely grasped any of the concepts we discussed during the day, and now I am thrust into this sexual tornado.” Blinking her eyes open, Faye corrected herself. “No, you aren’t smothering me with love.” She reaches out to grasp Vivienne’s hand, “I don’t know who I am anymore, I just want time with you to discover it.”

“I like this plan.” Vivienne kissed Faye’s hand. “Let’s start with something I know you like.” She points to the crowd. “I promise to show you all the cute things I can do with blood, that doesn’t involve smearing it on our breasts.”

A warm shudder rippled through Faye and she ran her finger between her boobs, gathering the thickening blood on her fingers and licking it like ice cream. “It does feel great on them, doesn’t it?” She wiggled her eyebrows.

“It is why I did it that time. Your bloody rampage with Drake didn’t count as feeling great, then in the tub you pressed what was left of you on me… which made me feel your last moments.” Vivienne paused and plucked another dried button of blood from Faye’s opposite cheek. “I wanted you to experience what it could be like without…death involved.”

“Thank you.” Faye gave her girlfriend a quick kiss on the cheek. “No more killing. What can I do looking like this?”

“Speed. Speed is your only ally since you look like an un-living disaster. “ She pointed to the crowd. “The plan is simple. Dart in and enthrall a small group at a time. Carry them one at a time to a little spot outside their normal view and feed. Count to ten like I said and return them. You can do it without any of them knowing, if you are fast enough.”

“I would really like a working example.” Faye smiled and pointed at the people milling about.

Rather than discussing it further, Vivienne pointed to the electrical box and took off. She did one full loop around the people and settled on a small group of five chatting among themselves. With precision accuracy, Vivienne stunned four and had the fifth one hidden behind the metal control box. About a minute later she returned to Faye and kissed her gently, giving her a mouthful of blood in the process. “There you are, mon amour. Was that the example you wanted?”

“T…that was incredible, Vivienne.” Faye expressed joyfully just after the kiss. “My turn?” Faye raised her eyebrow and looked a little uncertain.

Creeping behind Faye, Vivienne wrapped her arms around her shorter companion’s waist. “I am certain you can do it, hunting will come to you naturally.” She pointed to where a small set of twin trees hid in the shadow close to the edge of the parking lot. “That should provide you cover.” Vivienne kissed her lover’s neck once more, “Try not to think about it. Just go.”

Feeling Vivienne push her in the direction of the group, Faye jumped a few times to steady herself and took off into the crowd. Faye took a wider path in her scouting trip and noticed a small group of people heading to their cars. -Five easy and fast targets.- She sped around and waited for the first man to use his key to unlock and open the door. Darting around the car, Faye reached the guy and blew her vampiric breath quickly over his face and waited for him to pass out. Feeding on the helpless human, Faye counted to ten and forced herself through willpower to stop drinking the precious fluid. Satisfied with herself, she licked the wounds closed and closed the car door. -Success again!- Faye praised herself, and tried to repeat the process to no avail. Running back to the deeper grove of trees, she stopped in front of Vivienne dripping with blood. “I did it once and got overconfident. I killed the other five.” She muttered dejectedly.

Vivienne swiped some of the fresh blood from Faye’s cheeks and licked her fingers after. “Indeed.” Kissing her lightly, “Nothing to be upset about. Are you still hungry?”

Faye shook her sanguine soaked head, “I could eat more, sure. I am not what I would consider hungry though.” She waited a brief moment, “I had hoped I wouldn’t kill anyone.”

“Let’s get you home and cleaned up, so you don’t look like an extra from a horror movie.” Vivienne chuckled and turned to leave the little grove of bay oaks.

Faye winked playfully and nodded her head. “Can we sprint home, I have a bit of…energy I need to expel.”