Lily pulled up in front of a dingy looking building. The neon over the door declared they had reached Fangtasia. Rowan's eyes widened, and she glanced between the nightclub and Lily's smirking face. Lily said, "Well, you did say that that dude you work with said this place was cool. I thought maybe you'd want to find out first hand."

Rowan sat silently for a moment, glancing once again at the club, then at Lily, and recognized the slight challenge in Lily's gaze. Rowan smirked herself, then opened the door, throwing back "Are you coming or not?" over her shoulder as she exited the car. Lily laughed and followed her friend to the front door.

A tall, lovely blonde woman greeted them, asking for their identification. They gave their cards to the woman and she waved them inside.

Immediately they were captivated by the sight that greeted them. It seemed that every body was clad in black, and more than half in leather or vinyl. Red christmas lights illuminated the place, and at one end of the room there was a small stage with a large wooden chair. Some walls were draped in red velvet, and there was a t-shirt booth in one corner. They walked to the bar that took up one whole wall, taking in their surroundings. They ordered a drink from the frightening tattooed vampire behind the bar, and made their way to an empty table.

Eric grinned after he saw the girls' destination. He sauntered up to Pam, who was currently turning two giggling underage girls away from the door. "How's business?" He asked.

Pam looked him up and down, taking in his blue jeans and black silk dress shirt. "Fine. How was recon?"

"It was more even fruitful than I had hoped." He ignored her raised eyebrow and entered his club. He stood a moment in the doorway, glancing over the crowd. As soon as he had entered, the crowd had quieted for a split second, every vampire in the place glancing at the huge Norseman. He saw the girls he had been following, and was pleased at their proximity to his stage. He began moving toward his stage, and the noise level and activity resumed. He looked at no one on his way. When he reached his throne and lowered himself into it gracefully, he was satisfied to notice that the two women he had been following were watching him. He did not return their gaze yet, however.

Pam had followed him across the bar, and now took up her place at his right. He motioned her down with a finger, and she bent so that her head was level with his face, her hair shielding their faces from the crowd.

"Do you see the two human women at the table to our right?"

"Yes, Eric."

"Make sure they are not harmed by any vampires tonight. I may have...plans for them later. I am going to my office. Please be sure they do not leave before I return."

Pam nodded her understanding, smirking as she stood. "Any particular ideas on detaining them?"

Eric stood and turned to her. His lips turned up at one corner. "I'm sure you can think of something. You always have been...inventive." With that he turned away and walked to his office.

He closed the door behind him and fell heavily to the black leather couch against one wall. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes. His thoughts raced. What was it about the girls, the brunette in particular, that had so captured him? The blonde, while attractive, and certainly his type physically, did not interest him nearly as much as the tiny one. The way she danced...God the way she danced! It was as though she were possessed by a spirit of nature. A knot developed in his belly as he remembered her hair swirling around her body, the way her hips had undulated to the rhythm. He was annoyed by his fascination with this tiny human, but at the same time intrigued by it. What was it about this girl that would cause him to react this way? He shook his head, causing his long blond hair to fly like a golden cloud. He leaned forward, propping his arms on his knees, and stared at the floor between his feet.

He knew that he wanted this girl. He knew this. But what he did not know was why. He reviewed the night in his mind. He had seen her blonde friend first, and had admired her body, and then suddenly caught sight of the tiny woman, and immediately his interest had been peaked. She was much smaller than the women he was normally with; both in height and body type. While the blonde was curvy, with wide hips and large breasts (the type he normally was attracted to), the other girl was very slender, almost boyish. Her hips were slim, her waist was tiny, and her breasts were like unripe apples. But there was something about her...a gleam in her eye, the way her mass of hair shifted when she walked...and again, the way she danced! He kept coming back to that in his mind, unable to think of her for more than a few seconds without an image of her body rippling on the dance floor. He sat for a good half hour, pondering the girl and his attraction to her. At last he sent for Pam.

Due to his being her Maker, they had a constant bond. It was not quite telepathy, neither of them could tell exactly what the other was thinking. It was more like they had access to an emotional wavelength that only the two of them shared. While unable to hear the other's thoughts, each of them was able to judge the emotional temperature of the other. This enabled them to call to one another merely by wanting it. If Eric simply wished for Pam hard enough, she sensed it and came to him if she was able. Tonight, she was there seconds after Eric sent for her.

She shut the door behind her and turned precisely on one Manolo clad heel. "Yes, Eric?"

"They are still here?" He asked, standing.

"Yes. I had Longshadow buy them a drink. They are dancing now." Here she paused, and Eric raised an eyebrow in question. "The small one, she...there is something..." Pam was uncharacteristically flustered, and Eric's mind again raced. It was not just him then! There was something about this girl.

"Yes, I saw her earlier. She was at several of the bars that I patronized tonight." He decided not to tell her of how he had followed them. Not just yet.

"She is something special, Eric. I don't know why, but...she is different."

"Yes, I know, Pam. I believe I will grant the two of them an audience tonight. Please, ask them to come." He turned away from Pam, glancing around his office. The door closed behind her as she went to do his bidding. He decided he would greet them from in front of his desk. He would use his size to his advantage.

He took up a stance against the desk, leaning against it and crossing his arms over his chest. He stood waiting for only a few minutes, but as the moments ticked by, he realized he was nervous.

"I can't believe someone bought us drinks! Who do you think it was? Oh my God, do you think it was a vamp? I bet it was a vamp. We must look good tonight!" Lily laughed and sipped on her drink, scanning the crowd, wondering who had bought their drinks.

"Good enough to eat, maybe." Rowan said pointedly. "And I don't think it's nice to call them vamps. I'm pretty sure that's kinda like their version of the n-word."

"Oh gosh, I didn't even think of that! Do you think any of them heard me?" Lily looked around sheepishly, then sat quietly sipping her drink.

Rowan took advantage of the lull in conversation to consider the past few minutes. After sitting at their table, a gorgeous blond mountain of a man had strode commandingly across the floor, taking a seat with utter grace on the throne at one end of the room. From the moment she saw him, her heart had been beating frighteningly fast. Upon seeing him, her breath had frozen in her lungs, and she had only been able to stare. And suddenly she had had an insight.

Rowan sometimes found herself...knowing things about people. She would be eating dinner in a restaurant with friends, and suddenly she would know that their waiter was cheating on his wife with a busboy, and he was worried she was suspicious. Or she would be walking down the street, and would suddenly know that she needed to avoid a certain area because there was a man hiding in an alley with a knife in his hand. She had known 2 weeks before her mother finally told her that her parents were getting divorced after 21 years of marriage. She was not able to read minds, and she was certainly not attempting to find out these things about the people around her. It simply happened to her.

She had always had this ability, and had accepted it a long time ago. Accepted? Hell, she embraced her ability! She was not a religious person, she adhered to no established faith. Instead she had studied metaphysical areas that she found herself interested in. She had learned to read tarot, and often gave readings to friends for pocket money; she was also familiar with rune stones and the I Ching. She meditated with Buddhist mantras. She dabbled in witchcraft, celebrating the phases of the moon and the changing of the seasons. She attempted to be as open to the universe as possible, and had come to believe that the universe was basically good. And so she knew that this talent she had was hers for a reason, and her greatest hope was to someday find out why she had it.

So Rowan accepted that she suddenly knew that the stern giant stalking across the bar was a vampire. But she was shocked by the depth of her sudden knowledge. She knew that he had been a Viking in life. That he had been a great warrior, and still was. She knew that he had spent centuries to witness the blossoming of the modern world, and she envied that experience. And she knew that he was a vampire. A very old, very powerful vampire. And she knew that he was interested in her. She knew, and she was thrumming with curiosity and fear.