I do not own Blood Ties or the Blood Books which it is based after. That is the pure genius of the author Tanya Huff and her property alone. So, please don't sue me. I am a poor student and could not give you much. . . Unless you want a nice pair of socks.

Also, I know that the National Expo takes place in late august, but I changed the timing to fit the time line for my stories. Sorry if that bothers anyone.

As well, I am VERY sorry for changing the beginning. I have been re-reading it while working on more chapters and have been trying to figure out what was wrong. The whole thing just didn't seem right to me. I finally put my finger on it so that is why I re-wrote it. Things will make sense soon, so PLEASE be patient.

/REVIEW PLEASE\

Yaoi is a Japanese term for two guys in a sexual relationship.

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Heavy clouds drifted slowly across the darkness of the night sky, passing before the full moon and scattering its light into shadows that danced across the city streets. The only steady illumination came from the stagnant amber light of the street lamps, which stood as sentinels along the sidewalks. A cool breeze tossed dead leaves and debris in its wake, leaving a crunching and decaying carpet beneath the feet of those still around to walk on it. And on this night, there seemed to be quite a few.

Alongside the standard late night shopper bundled up against the brisk fall air, hurrying from store to store, was a rowdy mass, nearly all in some sort of costume. To those unaccustomed to the sight, one might have thought that Toronto had been taken over by the cast of the next Hollywood comic hit, but the truth was much less dramatic. The National Expo was yearly here, the biggest comic convention in the country. Most people did not even give it a second thought anymore.

A small café close to the convention center was relatively quiet, considering how close it was to the 'action'. Suddenly a shrill scream broke the silence, dwindling into dull laughter. Three girls sat at a table near the window, huddled so close they could have touched elbows, giggling amongst themselves. The uproar only caught the attention of the other patrons for a moment before it shifted back to their own conversation, computer or hot cup of coffee.

None of the girls could have been older then twenty but it was obvious that, they too, were there for the convention. The tallest of the three sat alone on one side of the table, huddled over a sketch book with a pen tightly grasped in her hand. It quickly and gently slid over the paper, tracing deep black lines into its pristine whiteness. Waves of black hair draped over the pale skin of her face. The length was tucked into two rather messy braids, falling down her back to just past her shoulders. Her lithe figure was covered in simple black jeans, a purple t-shirt and black hoody, which were all a bit too large for her. Her legs were crossed on the seat, leaving a faded pair of army boots ready to fall off her feet. She would have looked like a scare crow were it not for the constant movement of her right hand.

The other two seemed to be more in the spirit of the convention, sitting on the opposite seat and both clutching steaming cups. The shortest sat right by the window, in a pink bob wig and a maids outfit complete with apron and shiny mary-janes. She had her hands clasped over her mouth, having just drawn a bit more attention then she would have liked. Her peachy skin was blushed to nearly match her wig.

The third choked on her drink, trying to keep from laughing. "Holy crap, you're loud" she whispered, looking around to see if anyone was still staring. She shone her favourite hero to the world in a silver silkscreen on her T-shirt, but seemed to be staying simple with khakis and grey runners. Absent-mindedly, she brushed a strand of dark brown hair away from her face, trying to tuck it into the elastic at the back of her head. Her long leather jacket rustled as she shifted in place.

"I c-can't help it!" the maid said between dwindling giggles.

"You seriously need a hobby, Abby."Abby shrugged.

"All I said was that Batman would do Superman..."

"She said a hobby. I don't think that making random beyond reason yaoi pairings counts as a hobby" the tallest remarked, without even looking up from her drawing.

Abby glared at her, "Hey! At least I'm not obsessed with some comic artist..." The tallest's eyes flickered from her drawing to Abby for only a moment, but the irritation the glance carried was obvious.

"I'm not the one stalking him" she replied.

"Hey!" the maid whined, rather hurt. "It's not stalking if..."

"If you don't steal his hair?" Abby added with a short laugh. The maid pouted.

"I would never take his hair! Just..." she reached into a small pocket on the front of her apron "His pen." The other two burst out laughing. The maid blushed furiously once again, but could not keep the smile off of her face. "Hello. My name is Marie Weir and I am a Henry Fitzroy-aholic" she giggled.

The tallest fell silent again quickly, closing her book and slipping it into a black cloth backpack, which lay on the seat beside her.

"Hey, aren't you going to show us what you've been drawing all night, Elizabeth?" Marie asked when she noticed this. Elizabeth stared at her sadly, pausing for a moment, but then zipped her bag shut.

"Don't... Please don't call me Elizabeth, okay?" she whispered, a hint of annoyance in her voice. She began playing absently with the straw in the full glass of soda in front of her, that had been sitting neglected since she ordered it. The smile, which had been nearly constant on Marie's face all night, disappeared and was replaced with a look of concern.

"I-I'm sorry... I" she stuttered, unsure of what she did. Abby looked nervously between the two. The reaction caught Elizabeth off guard.

"Oh, um. It's okay" she said, relaxing a bit and looking Marie in the eye. Elizabeth forced a small smile, and the brightness in her friend's face returned. "I can't stand that name" she laughed. "Sounds like some old queen, eh? Besides, only my mother calls me that. Just call me Beth or Liz or anything but that, okay?" Marie laughed in turn and, after an apprehensive gaze at her friend, Abby did as well. Marie took a short sip of her drink, then sat back and crossed her arms, looking Beth up and down. She had begun to play with her straw again, staring out the window blankly. When she noticed she was being watched, she shifted her eyes to Marie. "What?" she asked quietly. Marie tried to look as serious as possible.

"You don't really look like a queen." Abby had to cover her mouth to keep from spraying both Beth and the wall opposite with tea. Beth laughed gently.

"I didn't mean that kind of queen..."

A waitress came up to the table and waited for the three to calm down a bit. She smiled a plastic smile, her greying hair tucked into a messy bun at the back of her head. Her eyes were small and dark, circled by deep wrinkles. A pair of old, dark framed glasses hung off the bridge of her nose.

"Are you girls going to order something else, or stick with what 'ya got?" she asked, her voice a smoker's croak.

"No, um... I think were okay" Beth said, being the first to overcome the giggles. The woman appeared to sneer at them and sniffed the air loudly before turning around.

"What crawled up her ass?" Abby whispered, glaring at the waitress' back as she walked away.

"Probably has extra hours or something" Beth said, shrugging.

"I bet places like this do amazing business around this time of year" Abby commented.

"You'd think she'd be happy then!" Marie said with a dry laugh. Beth exhaled quietly, ignoring the comment.

Abby reached into her pocket and pulled out her cell, flipping it open.

"Oh, wow. Check out the time" she said, showing the screen to the others. The clock ticked from eleven fifteen to eleven sixteen as she flipped it shut, sticking it back in her pocket.

"Eeek. My dog is definitely going to need out by now" Beth sighed, swearing under her breath.

"You brought your. . . ?" Marie began but was interrupted by Abby.

"Long story." Marie laughed.

"We're heading the same way, right?" she asked, gathering her skirt as she got up. Beth had uncrossed her legs and gotten to her feet rather quickly, but grabbed her backpack and swung the straps over her shoulders with deliberate leisure as her friends rose. Abby flattened her jacket behind her and pulled the collar up a bit, letting her hair fall over her back.

"Yeah, um. For a few blocks I think. Want to share a cab or something?" Abby asked, smoothing out her collar now, and flaring the jacket's hem.

"N'ah, it's not that far" Marie smiled, waving the idea away. "Let's just hoof it."

"Well then, 'high thee hence'" Abby called, pointing out the door. Their laughter could be heard echoing, even as they turned the corner.

"Chinese or pizza?" Abby asked out of the blue, a few blocks away. They had mostly been walking in silence, moving through the few people still out at a quick pace. The had only stopped once when a few young men pushed past, nearly shoving them into the wall, singing 'I Like to Move It' drunkenly at the top of their lungs.

"So?" Abby ventured again, having not received an answer the first time.

"Huh?" Beth asked. She was hanging a bit behind the other two, her eyes shifting up and down the street.

"Dinner? What do you want for dinner? Chinese or pizza?" Marie giggled. "What world was your head in?" she asked, nudging Beth gently. A small smile graced her face, but only for a moment.

"Oh, um... Chinese?"

"Chinese again?!" Abby sighed.

"You asked. If you didn't want to know, then you shouldn't have asked" Beth said evenly. Abby shrugged.

"I guess... It's just-"

"Do you really want to be eating from that pizza place? Remember the hair the other year?" Beth offered.

Abby shuddered, thinking back to one of the first years they had come to the convention. It was a tradition for her and Beth since they were in elementary school. So was exploring the local food of Toronto. The last time they had ordered from a pizza place had been a nightmare. The hair in the poutine, long and greasy. NEVER again. Although, it had been a bit easier that year. First day in TO they had met Marie, a home-grown comic fan. She knew where all of the best food was.

"Chinese sounds really good" Abby said with a slight sneer at the memory of culinary catastrophes past. Marie giggled gently.

"So, are you coming for Chinese?" Abby asked, trying to shove the memory out of her head. Marie rummaged through her purse.

"Oh, yeah. Sure. I just need to let my boyfriend . . . Shit!" She had suddenly stopped in mid-stride, to Beth's great surprise as she nearly walked right into the back of her.

"What's wrong?" Beth asked quietly, her eyes darting up and down the sidewalk. It was still busy, mostly with other conventioneers. At the next corner a young man bedecked in red and blue tights and a cape clumsily played the guitar to no avail for passers-by. On the other side of the street two young men stumbled out of a bar, clinging to each other for balance. Nothing seemed out of the normal . . . For Toronto, that is.

"I forgot my camera at the café! That thing cost me two pay checks. I need to go get it!" Marie was frantic, digging through the few pockets of her maids costume in hopes of discovering it. Abby rolled her eyes.

"Like it's still going to be there" she sighed. Marie pouted.

"I need to go check." She turned around to rush back down the street.

"Do you want us to come with you?" called Abby politely.

"No, it's okay. It's late. I'll see you guys tomorrow."

"Okay, fine. See you tomorrow" she replied, waving.

"Yeah, bye!" called Beth, but Marie had already disappeared around the corner.

"Do you think that rats can eat fried rice?" Beth asked, continuing at her previous pace down the street. Abby shrugged.

"Like I'm cleaning up after the- hey wait!" Abby had stopped. "Elizabeth!" she called, as her friend had continued to walk.

"Don't call me that!" she reeled around, staring Abby right in the eye.

"Sorry. . . Beth, whatever! Isn't that Marie's camera?" Abby asked, pointing at the cloth strap hanging over Beth's shoulder.

"No, uh . . . It's just my bag" she replied, tugging at the strap to pull the black canvas backpack over to her front. "Oh, dammit . . . " she sighed. Entwined with the strap was the strap from an expensive-looking camera.

"I guess that we'll have to keep it tonight and give it back tomorrow" Abby sighed in turn.

"No, she can't have gone very far. I'll just get it to her now" said Beth, shrugging the camera strap off and tucking it into her bag. "Besides, she'll go crazy if she doesn't find it at the café tonight then finds out we had it tomorrow." Abby laughed gently.

"Whatever. You try to catch up to her, then. I'm going back to the apartment." Abby turned and continued up the street. "Some people actually like to eat."

'Down the street, around the corner, past the grocer. Where was that café anyway? Oh, damn. It's closed. She must have headed back to her hotel. Wait . . . ' Quick movement. A scream echoes from a nearby alley. A dark figure clutching a limp body . . . Blood dripping from her body like crimson rain . . . Eyes fading into death . . . Sharp teeth contort the face, then darkness. Just darkness . . .