Gabriel sat atop the light post breathing the cold night air thinking of the coming day and his much needed slumber. It seemed like ages since he had last felt the cold thoughtlessness of death take over his days. He knew however, that his condition required the fuel of human blood to drive him into a peaceful rest. So, he found a high vantage point on the empty suburban street to begin his nocturnal hunt.

He ran long fingers through is mane of white blond curls as he waited for unsuspecting, and probably intoxicated, prey to stumble down the street. "This is going to take awhile," he thought, rolling his shoulders to relieve the sting from the cold as he adjusted his black leather coat. Gabriel unfolded his long jean clad legs from under him and let them dangle from the safe haven that was his lamp post perch.

"I need to get some food in this damned stomach of mine..." no pun intended, he mumbled to himself absently.

When he began to think that he may need to find a street closer to the busier part of town to look for people making their way home, he heard humans coming down the foggy neighborhood street. His entire countenance shifted from its casualness to the still and strained alertness of a hunter. He glanced down when they stopped under the light of the lamp he was on. He nearly counted the seconds as he made quick decisions as to which he would drink from and how he would take the other two out to keep them from interfering with his feed.

"You see that girl coming down the road Tom?" asked the tallest one of the three men that stopped under Gabriel's current hunting place, the observation kept Gabriel from lunging. If it were true that the human had noticed another person on the street than that would be another human Gabriel would have to dispose of to keep from being seen. So, he waited.

"Yes I see her you idiot, what about it?" asked the skinny one who was obviously Tom.

"Yes, well, she looks like something that would be clenching that hunger I was tellin' you 'bout back at Tooley's." said the tall one.

"Greg, you can't honestly say what I think your sayin' are you?" slurred Tom sounding more eager than concerned.

"Yea, just you and Steve give me a hand will ya?" Greg asked looking at both Tom and Steve.

"If we get a share!" Steve said dumbly, Greg nodded in agreement and all of them glanced toward the woman they were talking about.

What are these ill bred imbeciles going to do? Gabriel thought to himself, trying to discern how much he cared about getting involved in a scuffle or whether he would just leave them to their mischief and be off to find food elsewhere. His head snapped to look down the street when he heard the clicking of female shoes on hard pavement. When he spotted her he understood how she could have satisfied both the human men and his own hunger.

She was a sight for sore, among other things, hungry male eyes. She was tall and curvy with tight ripped up jeans, black boots, and a brown cotton jacket that she buried her cold hands in. Her hair hung in long waves, it was the color of ebony and shone with a chestnut colored sheen when she reached the light of Gabriel's lamp. He could feel his fangs unsheathe as his brain sluggishly tried to formulate a way to discard of the three men and grab her up before she had time to scream.

He watched her, frozen in his indecision, as she tried to make it past the three oafs that were plotting to take advantage of her. Upon reaching the one named Greg he made a move for her and grabbed her arm, she let out a shout and they covered her mouth before she could alert anyone of her situation.

"Hey, baby calm the fuck down we just want a good time." said Tom.

Due to her arms being held behind her she started to kick her legs in a thrashing defensive manner, letting out strangled muffled yells as she fought. Gabriel watched for awhile until she kicked the human named Steve in the crotch when he went to grab one of her breasts. When he saw him hit her hard on the side of the head he knew he had to interfere, he wasn't quite sure whether he was going to her defense of his he was protecting his own interests, but either way he was called to act. Gabriel unsheathed his great black wings with a sickening silence and dropped from the lamp post without a sound into the darkness that lay behind its giving light.

He stayed in the shadows, mildly surprised that no one had noticed someone lurking so near, but Gabriel guessed that the men were very involved with their little project of pinning her two the ground as she struggled to no avail. He saw he begin to weaken and tire from the fighting and that she was bleeding from her head, either due to the blow she received or when she was being pulled onto the concrete sidewalk. He felt a shiver run up his spine when the smell of her blood caught the wind and made its way to him.

Gabriel walked into the light then saying, "Let her go..." his deep voice booming. He knew that he was larger than all of them, both in height and strength, but the fangs and wings would have frightened them on anyone, he tried to keep from smiling.

When they didn't oblige Gabriel's command he shot out a terribly strong punch into Steve's face, causing him to fly back into the street unmoving. He then stuck out a ferocious kick that sent the one named Tom into the street with his friend Steve, they both lay there unmoving. Finally Greg let the girl go, tossing her unconscious form to the concrete in front of Gabriel and he went running from the winged beast before him.

"Easy enough." he said, folding his wings away and grabbing up his leather jacket from the grass. He waited for a few seconds confirming that none of them were going to be much of a bother, he bent down to tend to the girl. She was strikingly beautiful with pale skin like porcelain and long inky lashes. He felt something like tenderness towards her as he touched her pretty face softly.

After deciding that flying through a city was a tad illogical, he began to break himself apart to become one with the wind. It was a fun trick, one he knew not all of his kind could pull off as well as he could, and the talent was helpful when one needed to be invisible, but not always reliable. He picked up her bag before he fell to pieces and found her ID with an address he recognized some what. He grabbed her up as he made his last transition into his shadow self and she easily followed directly into the same pattern.

He let his body detach, his and the girls every atom became one with the night sky as the wind obeyed his direction and took them to her home. Once approaching the two story brick house he followed her now recognizable scent to an open window on the top floor.

So with their bodies still one with the night he flew gracefully to the window and materialized. He placed her on the bed directly under the window as he stayed on the sill. The thought of feeding from her came and went, for some reason he felt she was different, maybe he still has some of her in him from when their atoms were mingling, maybe he was remembering what it was like to be human. Either way he knew he couldn't drink from her, especially because he knew it would weaken her already dismal state. "I wonder what your name is pretty girl." he almost sighed as he shrugged off his jacket and draped it over his arm as he forced his tattered black wings from his now naked back. It was impractical to disappear twice in one night, he wasn't at his full strength now without having fed and breaking himself apart took a lot of energy. He saw her move a little, and knew he had to go before she awoke. It would be dreadful to have to drain her dumb because she was unlucky enough to wake up too early.

Without opening her eyes she said the most beautiful word that ever graced Gabriel's presence, "Eve..." And he froze.

-o-

Eve opened her minutely and saw the familiar furniture of her room through he lashes, her head was pounding and she had no idea why. She then felt the breeze coming from her open window and cast her eyes in the direction of it. She saw something she didn't expect, but she didn't yell or even gasp, standing by her window was a man.

A man of terrible beauty, his eyes completely black and his hair so blond it was almost white, falling in a childish was around his handsome face. However, what made him the most remarkable man she had ever seen was the great black wings that were jutting out of his back like beacons of despair.

"Who are..." but before Eve could finish her question he flew from her window and into the night sky.

She began to fall back into the deep sleep of someone who'd had the energy beaten from them as she contemplated with stupefied wonder about the man who had saved her life, no not a man an angel...an angel of the night.