Mr Crepsley's POV

Sitting in the small rowing boat with Darren strewn across my lap still unconscious I looked at the small man rowing. His expression was very uneasy as was mine, the swamp around us seemed to move with us as if following us so we would never escape. I looked down at Darren's still features and watched as they winced occasionally from the pain in his arm. I glanced at the wound on his forearm, it was still bleeding profusely and I was quickly running out of shirt to give him. Clenching my fists tightly I looked back at Darren's face.

'Dammit Darren what made you do something this rash?' I thought as he winced once more. I again looked at the small man who was also looking at Darren, his features thick with worry as he also seen Darren wince. I couldn't help but cock an eyebrow at him, Why did he seem to care so much about Darren?

I sat up and tensed slightly as the small man cleared his throat, then relaxed when he only asked for my name.

"Larten Crepsley" I replied my voice monotonous "And what is your name may I ask?"

"Joshamee Gibbs" He stated smiling slightly though anxiety still clear on his features "But you can just call me Gibbs"

I lightly nodded at him and looked down at Darren again as he whimpered in pain. The sound of him in such pain made my blood boil and I couldn't help but snarl at the thought of that scab of a man having the audacity to hurt him. Gibbs, having heard my snarl, jumped back and began to row faster as if trying to row away from me even though we were in the same boat. My features softened at his frightened state, as angry as I was he did not deserve it and if it had not been for him I wouldn't have found Darren.

"I apologise for my sudden outburst" I said calmly locking eyes with him "I am only angry at the one who did this to Darren, You have no need to be afraid as I will not hurt you".

He relaxed slightly and slowed down his rowing but it was clear that he was still nervous of my presence.

"Of course" He replied quietly "It's just when I saw you fight those three men..." He trailed off looking down at his feet nervously. My mind then drifted to the three men I had defeated in the small village.

"Well" He continued "I can tell that you've fought many times before, that scar on your cheek proves that".

I blushed slightly when he mentioned my scar and thanked the vampire gods that Darren was not awake at that moment. He would have had a field day telling him where that scar really came from. I wonder how Evanna is coping with her children. I nodded at Gibbs statement before I asked him the question that had been plaguing my mind since we had left the port of that small village.

"How is it that you know Darren?" I asked as I wrapped my cape around said shivering boy.

"Oh" Gibbs replied surprised by my question "I just met him today in the tavern".

I could barely conceal my surprise on my face at his answer.

'They only met today?, Then why is he helping him?' I thought, my mind not truly taking in the answer.

"Why do you help him?" I asked him hoping to get an explanation "If you only met today?".

This time Gibbs was slow to answer my question and when he did so he stuttered.

"W-well h-he's a nice young lad" he answered his eyes shifting at his surroundings "A-a-and I-I would've hated t-to see him get hurt"

My eyes slitted at him, he was hiding something. I could tell by the way he continuously shifted his eyes avoiding my gaze. However before I could interrogate him any further he quickly blurted out

"So you're Darren's father eh?". I looked at him a little shocked before I looked at Darren and smiled "I suppose you could say that".

Gibbs nodded "He says you're travellers" he stated.

"This is true" I replied to him before slitting my eyes again, He was trying to avoid my questions, I was desperate to find out what he was hiding.

"It's not much longer" Gibbs said rowing harder as he eyed Darren's still bleeding wound. As I ripped off another scrap of shirt and wrapped it around his arm I cursed that the wound was too large to be healed by my saliva. If it was not I could have healed it and would not be stuck in a small boat in the middle of a swamp with a man who was hiding a potentially deadly secret. It sounded like a plot from one of the many idiotic horror films that Darren used to watch and end up giving himself nightmares.

"So this healer..." I started "What kind of sorceress is she?".

Gibbs appeared a little too pleased at the change of subject which made me all the more wary of him.

"Aye" He grinned "She is a woman of many powers, she'll fix up that wound easily".

"Her name?" I questioned rubbing my scar and thinking of Evanna again.

"Ah!" he said slapping his forehead "I forgot to tell you that, Her name is Tia Dalma".

"Tia Dalma?" I repeated her name, what a strange name it was but then again so was Joshamee Gibbs.

"Oh but I must warn you that she can be a bit..." He started having trouble finding the right word.

"A bit what?" I asked hoping she wasn't too much like Evanna.

"Eccentric" He said smiling. Probably proud of himself that he actually knew a word more than two syllables long. I nodded at him and took his warning, taking a look around the swamp. I heard a shifting in the water but ignored it thinking it was a fish until I heard it get louder and louder. Whatever it was it was a lot bigger than a common fish and it was heading straight for us.

"Gibbs!" I yelled at him and he stared at me in shock "There's something underwater you need to-"

I could not finish my cry as I felt something slam against the bottom of the boat and was tipped over board. The water was thick and dark and I could barely move, the only thing I could understand was that there was weight no longer on my lap.

'Darren!" the name screamed in my head practically vibrating through my skull. I looked around trying to find him in the dark depths. I was running out of air and the already dark waters were getting darker. I quickly swam up to the surface and took in a gulp of air.

"Larten!" I heard Gibbs scream "Get out of the water!".

I searched around until I saw him on a nearby bank with Darren by his side. He was still unconscious but alive at least. I relaxed. At least he was safe.

"Didn't you hear me!" Gibbs screamed again "Get out of the water now!".

The danger of the situation descended upon me when I remembered that the reason I was in the water was that something had pushed us out of the boat. Gibbs kept screaming at me while I swam as fast as I could towards the bank. Each stroke I swam I felt the water behind me shift as the large creature grew closer towards me at great speed.

My hands reached the banks and Gibbs grabbed me and began to pull me up. Darren was safe, Gibbs was safe, I was safe. We were all safe. I looked at Gibbs shocked expression and began laughing. Slowly his shocked expression dissipated and he began laughing as well.

"That was clo-" I started, then began to roar in pain as I felt a sharp pain in my leg. I looked back and screamed again in pain when the alligator bit down harder upon my leg.

"Larten!" Gibbs yelled and reached for my hand.

However, he was not fast enough as the alligator pulled upon my leg and I was dragged back into the watery depths. The pain was intense as I tried to pull away, my flesh was being torn and I was aware of a red mist in my vision. I screamed in agony, losing all the air I had left in my lungs. I was sure to die. The world around me slowly began to disappear and I was vaguely aware of a scream and a bright light. Then. Nothing.