AN: 1. there's no Mickbeth here. These will be a series of vignettes providing background on Shane and Sara's (Shara) life in Resurrection Alaska for those who are interested. It will help provide a better idea of who these characters are when reading stories in the Half Breed Universe. 2. I don't think any of them will actually be rated M, but I've chosen to put them in that category because I feel it wouldn't be fair to offer them to those underage who then would be unable to read the rest of the series. 3. All characters here are original and created by myself (except for mentions of Josef, who belongs to Moonlight. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is coincidental.

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S o n g s o f L i f e: Shara

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Love and pain, sacrifice

Flesh and blood are the songs of life

You say I will not go quietly in the night

--Songs of Life, Bret Michaels

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Chapter One: Land of the Midnight Sun

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Look at you all standing proud,

Dressed to kill, talking loud, guitar in your hand

You see sex and violence, love and rage, still survive in this day and age, and you sing about that.

Life's for the taking so break these chains

Come alive, the worlds your stage

--Songs of Life

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It reminded him of home. Land of the midnight sun. Breathtaking scenery, still relatively untouched by modern civilization so that you could almost think you were living in another era. The long winters spent in darkness and the arctic cold were perfect for a vampire. The summers would be more challenging, days when the sun almost never set, but nothing he couldn't handle. It was north of Fairbanks by several hours, just a little place barely on the map. Even the name of the town sounded appropriate for yet another new life. Resurrection. He had a good feeling about this place. Josef had almost busted a gut laughing when he heard Shane was going to take over as Sheriff for a small Alaskan town. No matter; he could make this work.

The deputy's name was Greg Bannister. Greg was in his mid-thirties, tall, with brown hair and a friendly smile. His welcome was sincere, and held no trace of animosity or resentment.

"Good to meet you, Sheriff."

Shane took the offered hand. "Call me Shane."

"Greg. No reason to stand on formalities here."

"I realize it might be a little awkward for you, me coming in like this and taking the job while you've been deputy here for years. I just want you to know that I value and respect your opinions and input. This is your town, and you know it. So when you have something to say, I expect you to say it. I can't do this job without you, and I hope we can work together."

Greg was nodding; he could tell he'd made an impression…but then, Shane Alexander always made an impression. "I'm sure we can."

"Great. Why don't you show me around?"

XXX

By late afternoon he'd had the grand tour and met many of the locals. It was amusing how many of them were vamps, and poor Greg had no clue – and weren't they surprised to find a vampire was now Sheriff, too bad for them the free pass was over. They would now have someone to answer to if they broke the rules the community lived by. Alaska had always held a special appeal for those who live on the fringes of society, and that included the undead.

The boredom would take some getting used to, he supposed, as he studied the Wanted posters in the outer office, committing the faces to memory. Maybe the wild Alaskan vamps would keep him busy. Shane snorted to himself at the amusing phrase. Wild Alaskan Vamps. Sounded like a good name for a band. Or maybe some sort of local fish…

"Mind if I cut out on you a bit early?" Greg asked him, as he pulled a guitar out from behind his desk. "I need to stop at the music store before they close, to get this thing restrung."

Funny. Only his first day on the job and the music was already haunting him. Or was that taunting? "Uh, sure. No problem," he managed. He'd always lived in the present, moved on when it was time and didn't look back. This time… this time it was going to take a bit longer.

"You play?" Greg asked, as if he'd noticed something in Shane's expression, or maybe the way he was staring at the guitar. His deputy was sharp, smart. The kind of person who's good to have at your right hand, but conversely also someone he'd have to be especially careful around, considering his secrets.

"Used to. Guitar, sing," he answered shortly.

"I used to play bass, believe it or not. Had a high school band, dreamed of being famous one day, the whole nine yards." Greg laughed. "Nowadays I just play in my room. My daughter yells at me to turn that music down!"

Shane couldn't help laughing. Despite the unwelcome reminder of his past life, he had a feeling he and Greg were going to get along well.

XXX

It was only a few weeks later, while having drinks together at the Last Resort, that Greg mentioned it was too bad the bar didn't have a band. Resurrection was seriously lacking entertainment, and about a decade behind the times as small towns usually are: the last thing they were interested in was alternative or grunge. Good old fashioned rock and roll, they could appreciate. The next thing Shane knew, they'd hooked up with a vampire drummer named Silas who was the local blood supplier, and Freddy the real estate agent. Shane and the Boys were born. It might not be perfect, but as least he was keeping his hand in the hobby he loved.

Undead life was looking up again.

And how did I get from a rock and roll bad boy, to sheriff of a small Alaskan town? Maybe I'll tell you about it someday. Then again, maybe not…

End Chapter One: Land of the Midnight Sun