"Jane."

I rolled over, away from the noise, squeezing my eyes shut.

"Jane," Benedikt repeated. I hunched my shoulders.

Suddenly, cold iron pincers dug into the back of my neck and pulled me up. It took me a moment to realize they were Benedikt's fingers.

His red eyes bored into mine.

"Get up," he said. "Or you're going to the party naked."

I stopped my half-hearted squirms, straightening up. He smirked.

"I see we understand each other. Find a dress. Nathan will bring you down to the party. I'll be waiting for you."

He waited for me to speak. I opened my mouth, but no sound came out for a few tries. Finally I had enough control to say in a soft voice, "It's a date."

He raised an eyebrow, then let me go, slipping with disturbing speed out the door.

I took advantage of the huge, many spouted shower, then stood, wrapped in a fluffy green towel, in front of the dresses. I suppose they were all beautiful. A myriad of colors in every shape.

I hated them all.

There were too many colors. Why would I want all these silly, flouncy things? Who in their right mind would want them? Where was the basic black?

I finally, after tearing all the other ostentatious things away, found a black floor-length gown with a slit up the thigh and flowing, steel gray sleeves. It was off the shoulder, so more of my translucent skin was showing, but I really couldn't care. I dumped all the other dresses on the floor and kicked them under the bed. Let happen what may to them.

Nathan laughed at my choice when I stepped out of my room.

"No, I like it," he said, in response to my stare. "I had a feeling you would choose that one."

"Gee. Thanks." I was proud of myself that I remembered sarcasm after all these years.

Nathan lead me down the marble staircase, keeping a careful distance between us. At the foot of the staircase, he said in a clear voice, "Master, Jane is here."

Benedikt appeared, as if out of no where, beside the small boy. He looked at my dress and smiled thinly.

"Millecent thought you would pick one of the red numbers," he said glibly. "I suppose Nathan has a better eye for these things."

I was silent, but Nathan chuckled warmly.

"Come, child," Benedikt said, holding his hand out to me. I took it, letting him lead me through the throng of vampires that had appeared to watch me with curious eyes.

"Ben, who is this?" one young woman asked, her rusty red eyes appraising me.

"Cassandra, this is Jane. Jane, this is my friend Cassandra," Benedikt said, gesturing absently between Cassandra and me. I figured out how to work my muscles into a shy smile. Cassandra smiled back, tossing her flaming orange hair over her shoulder. Then she took a deep breath.

"You are the lucky one, Ben. She smells simply delectable," she said, laughing heartily. Her skin was snow white, with a slight flush to her cheeks. I assumed she wouldn't be thirsty for a while.

"Aren't I?" Benedikt asked, smiling. "She used to be with Rider and Vanessa. Come, child."

He pulled me over to the wall. The stone had been chiseled away to form a bench, which he sat down upon before pulling me into his lap.

"Sit, child," he ordered, a smile in his voice. I leaned back into his cold chest, watching the dreamy figures dance.

Nathan was right about their incredible speed. They weren't invisible with it, like when they were running, but they seemed to blur into each other, like ethereal fog. There was laughing and chatting at a normal pace, which clashed strangely with the unnaturally quick dancers. One couple, a small Asian woman and a tall red haired man, glided towards us as they danced.

"Ben," the woman greeted warmly. "Introduce me?"

She was staring at me with copper eyes, her ultrawhite teeth bared in a cheerful smile.

"Benedikt," the man acknowledged, nodding at Benedikt.

"Jordan, Ashton, this is Jane. Jane, this is Jordan," he gestured to the woman, who's smile got impossibly wider, "And this is Ashton."

"Lovely to meet you, Jane," Ashton said, his face expressionless. Jordan glided forward to give me pecks on both cheeks.

"I hope you enjoy your stay here," she said in her friendly voice, not acknowledging that the only way I was leaving this place was in a box. She gave Benedikt a radiant smile before gliding back to Ashton's side. She bounced up on her toes and kissed his jaw, then lead him back into the crowd of dancers.

Their dynamic struck me as curious. They were clearly mates, just as Rider and Vanessa had been mates, but it was totally different between them. Jordan seemed just as comfortable holding Ashton close to her as she would if she were merely breathing. And Ashton, his large hands wrapped around her waist, was curved protectively over her, not watching anything but her eyes.

"They love each other," Benedikt said simply, watching me watch them. "It's very rare to find someone you need beyond instant gratification. Jordan found Ashton in 1856. Ashton had been suffering from depression, wondering where the point was to his life. He found the point in Jordan."

He smiled, as if some aspect of the story was funny. "It was fall, and she was dancing in the rain. He couldn't understand how someone could be so excited about water from the sky, but she just smiled at him and said, 'Did you know this day will never happen again? This is the last time I see this drop falling on that blade of grass.' She seemed so purely delighted by it, and as you can see, when Jordan gets excited, she can spread it to everyone."

I felt something come up in my chest and was shocked with a laugh. When was the last time I had laughed?

Benedikt chuckled as well, smiling at Jordan's back as she mimed shredding guitar. All the vampires around her laughed, some of the men clapping Ashton on the shoulder and some of the women propping each other up to keep from falling down with laughter. Then the dancing restarted, with Jordan and Ashton in the middle of it.

"She's lovely," I breathed as Jordan twirled elegantly, her dress swirling. It was a strange mix of Spanish and Japanese. There was the fabric attached to the sides of her dress that strung onto her ring fingers, which made me think of traditional Spanish dresses. Then there was the dragon embroidery and high neck, which made me think of kimonos.

"Yes," Benedikt agreed. "She's quite the spectacle when she wants to be."

I watched the dancers all through the night, never leaving the confines of Benedikt's lap. I was so small compared to him that he could stroke my hair like I was a pet. By five o'clock in the morning, the dancers began to leave, wishing Benedikt a good day in muted voices before gliding out the door. Jordan and Ashton were the last to leave. Jordan gave me another kiss on the cheek and danced away, pulling her brooding mate along with her. He sent a thin, heart-stopping smile my way before he disappeared through the door.

Benedikt stood, but instead of sending me to my room, he sat me back down on the bench. He knelt down beside me and took my right hand between his cool, strong fingers. He fiddled with it, tracing my life-line before looking up at me with his burning red eyes.

"Jane," he murmured. "I have something to ask you."

I stared impassively at him. "What?"

Benedikt pushed my sleeve up and stroked one of the crescent shaped bite marks on my arms. His cold fingers raised goosebumps on my skin. "Did they really just... bite you? A thousand times?"

"Yes," I said, staring sightlessly at a ring on his middle finger. It was silver, with an onyx stone and emerald inlays.

"They could have just cut you," he murmured, tracing a blue vein from my wrist to my elbow. "Bled you from there. It would have only hurt for a second." He lapsed into a musing silence, rubbing my skin with his thumb. I tipped my head to one side, watching the light shine blue on his inky black hair. Suddenly there was a shiny silver triangle in his hand.

He held the blade up to show me, his crimson eyes unreadable. My body reacted with fear, even if my mind didn't care. My heart skittered, broke into a sprint. My pupils dilated, and my hair stood on end.

He seemed to find something unsettling in my face. His eyes smoldered with confusion and thirst. I held my hand up a bit closer to his face, distant and removed from myself. The blade came down.

There was a pinching sensation, then warmth. Benedikt dropped his head to my bleeding wrist. His tongue traced a blood trail, and his sigh was cool against my skin. His lips shaped themselves around the cut, and he groaned deep in his chest. There was a pulling feeling that was only marginally uncomfortable. His left hand was gripped around my elbow, keeping my sleeve up out of the way, and his right hand was squeezing my fingers, holding my arm in place. I started to feel light headed, but instead of squirming away, I curved over him, pressing my face into his thick hair and inhaling. He smelled so wonderful to me, but that might have just been my reaction to the blood loss. Like oranges and brown sugar. I was seeing spots on the insides of my eyelids. He moaned against my skin.

"Master Benedikt, sir, stop," came a panicked voice across the room. Benedikt snarled into my wound, which hurt, but then he resumed drinking my blood. I opened my eyes and turned my head to look at the speaker, my would-be savior.

Nathan had darted back over, and he was wringing his slender hands and bouncing on his toes.

"Master Benedikt, please stop. You'll kill her," he pleaded. I wanted to thank him, to reach out and comfort the little vampire who was worried about me, but my limbs were as heavy as lead. I could just close my weary eyes and press my cheek against Benedikt's hair. He was sucking greedily, dragging his cool tongue across my skin.

"Wouldn't it be embarrassing, Master," came James' low, deep voice, "If Rider found out that you killed her the first night you had her."

Benedikt's lips and tongue froze against my arm, and I almost moaned. I was so delightfully lightheaded...

He pulled away, looking up at my face. I could only stare back dizzily.

My blood was smeared across his lips and chin. I sucked in a ragged breath.

He wrapped his left hand slowly around my cut to stop what bleeding was left, then used his right hand to palm the blood off his face. I was shivering uncontrollably.

He stood, my arm still clutched in his hand. I went up with him, my lips trembling and my knees weak.

"Nathan, take Jane to her room and have Millecent clean her up," he said in an inflectionless voice.

"Yes, Master," Nathan murmured, appearing at my side. I couldn't pull my gaze from Benedikt's face; his wild eyes, his flushed cheeks, his thin lips. Everything seemed to be simultaneously stretching and narrowing. I blinked a few times, trying to keep myself from passing out.

Nathan had a strip of gauze, from where I had no idea, and he wrapped it quickly and tightly around my arm. I let him lead me, staggering, to my room. I collapsed onto my bed, and as the world spiraled down into a pinpoint, I thought of how lucky I was that Nathan was strong enough to drag me under the covers, because my fingers were too weak to do it themselves.