The chirping of birds and brilliant sunlight seeped into my lifeless, dreamless world. I resisted the urge to fall back into that state, where nothing but darkness floated around me. Struggling to open my eyes, I breathed a sigh of relief when they opened to spy the pale blue sky above me. Not a cloud was in sight. Basking in the sun's warmth, I nearly forgot about last night.

I started when a shadow fell over me, and I looked up at the dark shadow that stood in front of me.

"And so the sleeping princess awakens from her deep slumber."

Sitting up, I asked, "Where were you?"

Raven crouched down so I could look straight into his eyes. "I was hungry," he answered, shrugging. "So I ate."

I looked away, trying to mask the feeling of disgust that I'm sure was displayed on my face. "Did you kill them?"

By Raven's silence I knew he had.

"Why?!" I cried, staring boldly into his eyes.

"Would you rather have them remember their nightmare, their terror? Would you rather have them commit suicide out of pure fear?" Raven looked away from my piercing gaze. "This way, they're death is on my head, and not their own."

I stayed silent.

"I'm sorry about last night as well," he said.

Which part? I wondered.

Raven reached out, gently trailing his fingers across my jawbone. "All of it." He answered. I forgot he could read my mind with just a glance. I forgot so easily. Before I could brush away his hand, Raven caught mine, pulling me to stand.

"Come." Raven led me down the vast green slope I had slept on for the night. An emerald forest loomed in front of us, the air seeming to spring alive as we stepped closer to the oasis of beauty. All kinds of smells suddenly assaulted my nose, and I couldn't help from closing my eyes and smiling as I breathed in the overpowering aroma.

Catching my hand in his, Raven hesitated before the forest. "Don't let go of my hand." He commanded. "This forest is interwoven with hundreds and hundreds of years of magic. Much of it is to ward off humans, other parts to draw them in. If not protected, you might find yourself walking in circles and never find your way out." His crimson eyes sought mine. "Do you understand, Melanie? Don't let go, no matter what happens."

At my nod, Raven continued to step into the magical forest. I breathed in awe as I looked around me. Sunlight streamed in through the trees in little patches here and there. The trees themselves seemed to have an ancient wisdom untold of. A variety of what must be millions of different flowers grew everywhere; on trees, on the mossy ground, even from the vines that stretched between tree to tree. The magnificent sight made me think of Heaven.

I abruptly lurched out of my thoughts when I tripped on a protruding stone, nearly losing my balance and falling. Raven caught me with his arm, his eyes gazing down at the rock in what seemed to be agitation.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

Regaining my composure, I flashed Raven a smile. "I'm fine."

My head felt suddenly thick with the scent of the forest. I almost fell again as I grew slightly dizzy, my stomach churning at the movement. Giggling, I tripped again. 'What is this?' I wondered, half amused in my mind. 'I can't stop laughing.'

Raven steadied me, forcing my head up to look into his blazing eyes. "Melanie…" I smiled dreamily at him, my mind swirling with giddiness. Raven picked me up, grumbling under his breath.

I heard pieces of his conversation. "…too much…makes even the strongest…shouldn't be allowed…the King will hear…"

My world suddenly tilted. "Let me down!" I yelled, struggling to be released from his arms.

"Stop it, Melanie!" He said over my cries. Raven dropped my feet to the ground, pulling me to him in an effort to still my flailing arms. "Sleep!" He commanded.

His words, however, had no effect on me. I pushed him away, Raven struggling to hold my arm.

"Don't let go, Melanie!" I heard him roar somewhere in the depths of my mind. The world tilted again and I threw myself backwards. My arm broke from Raven's grasp and my mind swiftly cleared, all confusion gone. For one terrifying moment, I looked up at Raven stunned.

Angrily, he cried, "I told you not to let-"

Abruptly he wasn't there anymore, his image flickering out like a flame being snuffed out. I frantically searched the surrounding forest around me.

"Raven!" I called. "Where are you?!"

'What have I done?' I wondered.

I whirled around at the sound of a small 'snap.' From somewhere behind me a small twig had shattered beneath a being's foot. 'Is it Raven?'

"I know you're there, Raven! This isn't funny!" I could barely speak, a small tremble creeping into my voice. Whisking out my bow, I notched a thin wooden arrow into it, my hands trembling. Pulling the string taut, I slowly circled around, my ears straining to hear the barest of noises. I blinked suddenly in realization. There was no sound. Not a single bird trilled it's song, not a creature stirred. It was quiet. Deathly quiet.

That's when I heard it. A faint rushing sound as if…as if-

I moved just in time when it reached me. I let loose my arrow, but it missed him and instead lodged itself deep into the trunk of a tree. He kicked my bow out of my hands, grabbed me around the neck and slammed me to the ground.

"So, Hunter, what are you doing on Our Land?" He hissed.

I hysterically kicked at the vampire's knees, clawed at his hands, trying everything, anything to breath in at least one little gasp of air.

'Help me Jesus!' I cried in my mind, squeezing my eyes shut in agony.

"I smelled you a mile away." He breathed in my ear. "You should really do something about your scent."

The vampire let go of my neck abruptly. I gasped in air, choking on it, and then gasped for more. Slowly, I reached down into my boot, still wheezing in air. The moment I had my fingers around the hilt, my eyes lit up. He immediately knew what I had. Before I could raise it to aim for his heart, he had grasped my wrist, trying to pry it from my fingers. I hung on for dear life, wrenching it towards me.

Bad move. Really bad move. The vampire suddenly switched tactics, forcing his entire weight down on the knife, skillfully moving it until the knife hovered over my neck. Panting, I struggled against his strong grip. It wasn't enough, however. The vampire smirked, forcing the blade to cut a thin line across my neck. Blood trickled down from the wound. Licking his lips, the vampire leaned down toward my neck, lowering his defenses.

"In the name of Jesus, I command you to…to get off!"

The vampire's eyes widened in shock for one moment, in the next, he was flung away from me as if a giant hand had grabbed a hold of him and torn him off me. My knife went flying.

"You-You're-!"

"A Believer."

I scrambled to sit up and face the speaker. I almost sighed in relief, but then I realized who I'd be sighing for, what I'd be sighing for.

"Raven." The vampire spat. "She's mine! I drew her blood. Nothing can keep me from her but death."

Raven smiled maliciously. "And death it shall be."

He moved swiftly, so swiftly I had but blinked and he had moved. Raven slammed my own silver dagger into the vampire's heart. "Besides," He whispered. "She drew mine. We've been bonded by blood and it is her blood that calls to me."

Violently, he twisted the knife in the vampire's cold, dead heart. Blood gushed out of his mouth and when Raven stepped away, he fell to his knees.

"You'll…pay…" With his last words, the vampire fell, his body collapsing in on itself and turning to dust.

"Dust to dust," I murmured, enthralled.

Slowly, Raven turned toward me, anger blazing in his, otherwise, ice-cold eyes. "You let go, Melanie." He gritted out. "Lucky for you, a weak vampire smelled you, and only one."

I rose my gaze to his, flinching at the anger seething from his scarlet eyes. Those eyes suddenly reminded me of a verse I had once heard when I was younger. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are as red as crimson, they shall be like wool." It took me a moment before I was able to speak. "What happened back there?"

Raven hesitated slightly before saying, "The magic I told you about earlier, it disrupted your thoughts, confused you. It ordinarily lures humans into it, it becomes a feeding place for us. But I think," He paused, continuing softly. "Because you've killed our kind before, it didn't lure you in, but made you confused. Holding my arm was the only way to safely walk across these hunting grounds."

I pondered his words, wondering why he would explain as much as he was to me. Me, a mere mortal. A human. A Hunter. "Why did you disappear?" I asked.

He shrugged. "The magic in the forest distorts things. And since we're bonded by blood-"

I recoiled in revulsion. "How are we bonded by blood?" I inquired angrily.

"Oh come now, Melanie. You've forgotten how we first met?" Raven, with one step it seemed, swiftly moved to my side. His fingertips grazed over my waist as he drew me to him. Eyes wide with abrupt fear, I tried to wrench out of his grip, but he anticipated my move and slid his hand behind my head, his arm around my waist. Raven's teeth brushed over my neck.

Strangling a cry that welled up within my throat, I whispered, "I'll ask you nicely to let go of me. Otherwise, you'll regret it, I can promise you."

Resting his forehead against the pulse in my neck, I heard Raven sigh. Gradually, he released me, stepping back a ways, as if stepping away from temptation. His eyes locked with mine. I nearly shuddered at what I saw in his eyes. Lust. But whether for blood or my body I did not care to know.

I was the first to break eye contact, looking instead to the mud on my black boots. "What does it mean, then?" I wondered aloud. "What am I to you?"

Raven, again, hesitated. "Most vampires will sense the blood bond between us. The smarter ones will stay away from you, the others…they might intimidate you just to see my reaction. But a vampire would be a fool to harm you while being blood bonded with me."

"So what your saying is-" I began, raising my gaze to his.

Raven smirked, "Only I can kill you."

I resisted a shiver. "How comforting," I said sarcastically.

Raven turned his back to me, still grinning. "Come. We'd best be going. I want to get out of this forest by nightfall."

Having no other choice, I followed Raven through the God-forsaken forest.

"How much longer?" I asked, a whine intertwined with my words, although I did the best I could to mask it. Panting, I leaned against a tree and tried desperately to catch my breath.

Raven glanced up at the darkening sky though the branches, stopping to wait for me to catch up. "Just a little farther," he answered.

I groaned. "And what happens when we get to wherever we're going?"

We'd been walking for hours, stopping only to eat and rest, which was for my sake more than his. Now, shadows encased each tree in darkness, a light fog just beginning to swirl around my feet. This forest was utterly eerie at night. Not a cricket sounded, not a nightingale trilled.

"I'm not at liberty to discuss that with you," was his infuriating answer. "Come on."

I stared daggers at his back. If looks could kill, he'd have died a thousand times over. Limping behind him, I tried not to irritate the blisters that I knew were forming on my feet. 'I'm sure I have blisters on top of blisters!' I thought furiously.

"Just a few more minutes and we'll reach the edge." He called over his shoulder.

'Great. Just great!' I thought. 'Really, what could be more wonderful than walking through a haunted forest at night with a treacherous vampire?'

"Less thinking and more walking!" He barked, not even bothering to look behind him.

'I can't do this. I just can't! I'll never make it. Alex will die and it will be all my fault!' I blinked away the tears at the thought of Alex.

Softly, I whispered, "God give me strength."

Filled with a new resolve, I ignored my screaming feet and aching muscles, intent on catching up with Raven. When I did catch up with him, finally I might add, he stopped abruptly. I ran straight into his back.

Rubbing my nose, I scoffed, "Thanks for the warning."

"Melanie…" he started, but suddenly broke off, staring into the distance.

I moved to see around him. "That's where we're headed?" I gestured to the dark blob that sprang into my vision.

Raven nodded.

The more I took in, the more my eyes felt like they were going to pop out. A silver moon hung in the sky above us, the edge of a jagged mountain looming far within the distance. Before us spread a green pasture that nearly stretched out on all sides. I could just barely make out a body of water far off to the right. The forest we were currently standing in ended right there. It just…ended. As if this oasis of beauty were plopped down in the middle of another oasis of beauty.

Raven sighed. "Well," He said, neither in exhaustion or fatigue. "Here we are. This is where we'll rest."

I'm sure my jaw dropped ten feet. At least, that's what it felt like.

"A-Are you joking?!" I sputtered. "Please tell me your joking! We can't stop here! I don't even know where here is!"

Raven's burning eyes met mine. "We'll sleep here." He said, this time firm and rigid. As if to prove his point, he settled himself on the ground, and lying on his side, he closed his eyes.

Muttering under my breath, I sat down heavily on the ground. I sat like that for a few moments, until I realized Raven wasn't going to get up. Looking off into the distance, the dark spot on the horizon momentarily became sharper and clearer.

'Maybe…maybe I could get a head start and get away from Raven. Maybe I could go back through the forest.' I shivered at that thought. 'I can do something, anything other than just sitting here…couldn't I?'

Slowly, ever so slowly, I stood, careful not to make a single sound. As soon as I took a step, I heard Raven's voice.

"Sit down, Melanie. You're not going anywhere."

I sat down angrily, mad at myself for getting caught up in this situation.

As time wore on, I became steadily drowsy, exhaustion and weariness overtaking any other senses I had functioning at the time. Finally, I succumbed to my sleepiness, eventually lying down and shivering from the coldness.

It was still dark when I awoke. Rubbing my eyes, I looked at my watch. '3:00?! What could have possibly awoken me?'

I shivered, clutching my body for warmth. That's when I realized my teeth were chattering. Rolling into a fetal position, I tried to keep warm. My arms grew tired after a few minutes of holding my legs to my chest. I couldn't restrain from trembling, the coldness seeping into my bones, numbing my fingers, my legs, and my feet. If I had realized it would have been this cold, I would have chosen to wear my black pants instead of my shorts.

"Melanie."

I started, quaking at the sound of his voice in the night.

"Melanie, come here."

I'm not sure if he could see me, but I shook my head anyway, the freezing air keeping me from uttering a word.

"Swallow your pride and come here. You're no use to Alex dead." Raven's voice was soft like silk. I almost obeyed him without even thinking.

But I had to think. 'Should I?' I wondered. 'If I do, he might try something…'

By the time he called my name again, I had decided to move, even if my humiliation upped a notch. I scooted closer to him, shivering with an intense ferocity at the exposure to open air against my skin.

"Take off your coat." He ordered.

Not having the strength to argue, I did as he asked. "W-what sh-should I-"

"Lay it down right here."

I moved it to where he indicated on the frozen ground. When he told me to lie down on it, I obeyed without hesitation. My hearing perked up when I heard him move. I shrunk back when I felt his hand on my arm.

"It's alright, Melanie. I'm not going to do anything other than warm you. I promise."

'What good is a vampire's promise?' I wondered.

I attempted not to jerk away when I felt his body slide over me. His own long coat covered both of us. That alone warmed me up, it being a thicker fabric. Raven nuzzled his face in the crook of my neck, pulling my body closer to his. Although his body didn't warm naturally, I could feel my own body heat warm both our bodies.

A soft voice whispered through my mind. "I always keep my promises."

With Raven stroking my hair delicately and with those words echoing gently through my mind, I fell asleep once again.

I awoke gently, awoke softly. The incessant heat remained, making me sigh in content. Opening my eyes, I realized that heat, hotter than the rest of my body, was moving steadily upwards from my stomach. When I realized what it was, I frowned, staying the hand that crawled up under my shirt.

"Remove your hand and I won't kill you." I growled.

Raven chuckled softly. "Is that a threat, human?"

I clenched my teeth together in fury. "Move your hand!" I gritted out.

Smirking disdainfully, Raven deliberately shoved his hand higher, right onto my chest.

I kneed him in the gut, rolling him underneath me. Drawing my silver knife from my belt, I rose it over my head, aiming for his heart. Raven caught both my wrists, pulling me off him and moving over me. He twisted my wrist violently, grinning down at me when my knife dropped to the ground.

"Don't call Him." He commanded in that same smooth voice I had heard last night.

I opened my mouth and tried to anyway, but found I couldn't.

Raven shook his head, his gaze warning me, daring me to try something else. "Kill me, Melanie. If you can."

Biting my tongue, I looked away from him, fuming.

"I didn't think so," he cooed. "Never underestimate me, human. Isn't that what you told me?"

A rhetorical question. Of course he knew the answer.

Leisurely, Raven bent down toward my ear. "Give up, human. You're mine. Whether the king decrees it or not." His lips grazed over my neck. "You're blood is mine."

I couldn't call God for help this time, and I had tons of weapons I couldn't reach. What the heck could I do?! I shivered when Raven's sharp teeth brushed over my neck.

"Mmm," Raven breathed. "Your blood is the sweetest, human. I can taste the death of our kind in it. I can taste the power of God in your blood. Maybe I should take a bite of you, just enough to keep you living."

'How about not?' I thought angrily. Feeling I had no other choice, I jerked my feet from underneath him, thrashing him away with all my might. Not the smartest of choices, I must admit.

Raven's body collapsed on top of mine, his teeth slamming into my neck. 'Oh crap!' I thought. 'Ow! Ow! Ow!!'

Pulling abruptly away, Raven stared at me in horror. I watched as his gaze slowly shifted to the marks on my neck that I'm sure were beginning to pool with blood. I could feel the blood trickle slowly down my neck. He suddenly sprang to his feet, backing away from me.

Sitting up, I wondered, 'What is he doing? Isn't this what he wanted?' Unsure of what to say, I finally vocalized his name. "Raven?" I questioned.

He stepped closer to me, his eyes filling with a blood lust so intense, I thought he was going to lunge at me. I struggled to stand. "Raven!" I snarled.

Blinking, he cleared his eyes of his desire. He turned towards the forest, stalking into it.

"Where are you going?" I cried.

I moved to follow him, but he swiftly turned around. "I need to feed! It's been a full day since I've tasted blood. And tasting yours-" He gritted his teeth together. "Stay away from me!"

"I thought you wanted my blood!"

Raven looked away from me. "I wanted to scare you," he admitted. "I had no intention of feeding on you. Your blood-" Raven paused, shaking his head. "Just stay away from me for now."

He moved to turn, but my voice stopped him. "And what am I supposed to do while you're out feeding?!" I exclaimed. "Sit here and play cat's cradle? I can't let you kill another human! I won't let you!"

With his back to me, Raven said through clenched teeth, "Now is not the time to argue, Melanie. I can't hold in my yearning for blood. And right now, yours is calling to me! Stay away!" He emphasized each word.

"Take my blood then. It's better than killing another innocent being!"

Furiously, Raven turned, stalking toward me. When he came close to me, it looked like he was going to strike me. Hurriedly, I swept my thumb across my neck, and when he came close enough for me to touch him, I pressed my finger to his lips. Raven halted.

"Take mine!" I snapped.

He gazed into my eyes, and as he did, I could see his blood lust increase at my offering. A small war waged within his mind. It flashed across his eyes, flaring when he reached his decision. Raising his hand to capture mine, Raven's lips captured my thumb into his mouth. Although I kept my expression serious, I could feel my face heat as his tongue flicked over my finger. Drawing me closer, Raven clutched my body close to his.

"Should I be gentle?" He whispered.

"Do whatever you want!" I gritted out irately.

Sliding his hand up behind my head for support, Raven lowered his mouth to my neck, none too gently, I might add. He held my waist tighter as he began to feed.

It hurt. A lot. But I would suffer, I had to. It was me or another human. Closing my eyes, I prayed that God gave me strength to endure this.

I don't know how long it was that we stood that way, but I began to feel dizzy and lightheaded. My knees shook from exhaustion and lack of strength. The weaker I grew, the more my hands tightened on his jacket, trying to stay standing. I could feel the darkness creeping over my vision. Blinking, I gasped in air, desperately trying to shake the shadows from my eyes. Instead of receding, like I had hoped, darkness completely overtook my senses. And I wondered, 'Is this how I'm going to die? By willingly giving my blood to a vampire to spare another's life?'