*Rewritten

I still leaned with my back against the wall trying to get my breathing regulated again. The fight didn't as much wear me out as it did excite me. Adrenaline rushed through my veins and it felt amazing. He was a match for me, finally after all these centuries. I saw him drift off in his own mind before he started answering my question.

"Who I am..". he said. His voice was unsteady, giving away that he was hesitating.

I blinked my eyes at him, confused by his answer.

"Did you forget who you are?" I snapped back at him, for an immortal I was still young and I sometimes let the young impulsive part get the better of me.

"I never had to explain myself. This situation never came up, most of my opponents die, leaving very little room for questions". He replied. The answer confused me, I didn't have any clue what he was trying to say. Fortunately, he didn't had a clue either so I accepted it.

"Alright, you're special, I can accept that. Now, just start talking". I snapped at him. He clearly wasn't a normal human being so I was going to get answers from him. One way or another.

"Why the 20 questions all of a sudden? I like to be alone, I'm quite content with myself, gives me the opportunity to disappear when needed. You must be able to relate to that, seeing as you appeared from thin air". He clearly got agitated by the fact that I was asking personal questions. He has clearly been alone for a long time. Why does he have the need to disappear in the dark. He's not Lycan, nor is he a Vampire. His smell was more that of a mortal. I couldn't help but feel drawn to him. He was strange, unique, maybe dangerous, maybe damaged.

"I don't know what you are, you're not a Lycan, and you're not one of us either. Although your strength does not seem human" I said hoping to get a response from him that would lead me more to what the nature of his being might be.

"What's a Lycan, and who is us? There's more of you?" He replied, looking sincerely surprised. This threw me for a second, he really didn't know.

"My name is Nathalka, you seem like a stranger in these lands" I said as I started checking my wounds seeing that most of them had already healed completely.

"I am, I am just wandering around". he said, then pausing for a few minutes and continuing "Nathalka, sounds Russian" he continued.

"That's exactly what everybody else thinks" I replied a little annoyed heck, I'm not even going to begin to explain that my name isn't even from this world let alone Russian.

"I'm sorry" he apologized "I've been alone as long as I can remember, I think I have lost some of my 'people skills" His comment made me laugh inside, because despite of what he might think he wasn't really dealing with 'people'. I snapped out of the moment. I needed to focus on business that laid ahead. I couldn't leave him be, it was too dangerous he was obviously not one of her kind but he wasn't Lycan either. I need to bring him back to the Mansion, he could be a powerful ally, if not we could always kill him along the way.

"You need to come with me" I said. He needed to trust me he needed to come with me to Olavinlinna so I could explain.. so he could explain..

"I don't know if I should, like I said, I work best on my own" He said, clearly not yet willing to trust me. How could I blame him as I myself was still contemplating how to kill him if things didn't work out. But him being part of some greater plan, I couldn't leave him on the streets. First, because Lycans would tear him into little shreds the moment they would lay eyes on him. Lycans smell his non mortal smell from 1000 meters away. And second, because we could use him, and he could use us.

"Look, it's a frakkin' miracle that you survived it on your own for so long" I snapped at him. He needs to understand. But not here, not now. "You can choose, either I kill you because you know too much, or you join me". This wasn't an invite this was a pure thread.

The alarm of my watch bleeped, I ran up my sleeve to check it. Frak only 2 hours till daylight and I still need to get back to the Mansion. I knew there were safe houses around Helsingfors but I didn't look forward being locked up with a complete stranger in a small, smelly ,but daylight free, container.

"Okay we need to hurry here, daylight is on it's way" I said as I cleared my leather coat from any street dirt or blood stains that might have gotten on, cracked my neck and was ready to go.

"Where are you taking me?" he asked in a futile attempt to keep some grip over the situation.

"Our Mansion. It's located to the north east about an hour drive from here" I answered not sure if I could trust him enough to give him the full coordinates, ever since Ördögház burned down our kind has been more and more protective over our homes.

I started walking out of the alley, I knew I had parked my car near the Tuomiokirkko. I watched as he picked himself up from the floor, clearly not yet as healed as I was. I looked at him, I was intrigued by this creature. What is he? The idea that I didn't know what, or who he was made me feel uneasy but also very intrigued.

We took a left turn and I noticed the snow started to fall. Winter has started. I thought to myself. And it's always a long winter up here. With only little sunlight… just the way I like it. I laughed in myself. After another block I got sight of my car, a black Ferrari Scaglietti, my favorite, it moved quick and swift through the night as all death dealers were supposed to. I opened the doors.

"Get in" I urged my stranger. Olavinlinna was still quite a drive and the sun was coming up in less than two hours. Lucky for me he did as I told him to and got into the car with me.

I started the car and made way out of the city. As we were driving along the highway at a high speed I noticed he still hadn't spoken to me. He had not asked me any questions on where I was from. I liked it this way, I was used to be on my own talking about myself wasn't one of the things that I loved to do so for him being quiet was a total blessing. Perhaps he was just thinking, like I was. It was a lot of information to process all at once.

As I was thinking I noticed he was staring at me. It made me feel uncomfortable. Stop staring or I'm going to hurt you. I thought to myself. As if he could read my mind he turned his face away to stare out of the window once again. It wasn't long until the big black gates of Olavinlinna appeared in the distance. I reached for a sensor on my dashboard, pressed it which opened the gate. I pulled the car up front of the building, I so have the best parking spot, I laughed to myself.

"We're here" I said as I unbuckled my seatbelt. I heard him do the same and got out of the car. My stranger stood there clearly moved by the magnitude of this building. I had lived in it for centuries but it continued to impressed me still every time I came home from a night of work.

I pushed the big oak doors open home sweet home I thought.

The reception was a big round room with two big oak wooden staircases on both sides of the room. The two staircases led up to a renaissance styled balcony which held passage to the rooms of the inhabitants of the great fortress. The rest of the reception was filled with big sofa like chairs all in crimson red color, tapestries hung from the walls and one of the walls was decorated with coats, mantels and the matching shoes beneath them. Even though we are immortal and got all the time in the world we would like to spend it otherwise than cleaning snow stained shoe prints from the floor. I remembered explaining the weird phenomenal to a newcomer once.

In the reception hall we were greeted by the lord of the Mansion himself. He was tall, about 1.90 had long grey hair soft green eyes and he wore a dark purple gown. If you looked into his eyes you could see he was old, and not just by mortal standards. He was the eldest of the Northern Vampire clan and ruler of this house.

"Terve Miika, Mittä kuuluu?" I asked in an as innocent voice as I possibly could. I knew he would be mad, the rest of my squad would have made it back 2 hours ago. I bet he was worried.

"Olen myöhässä!" Miika interrupted me in his deep and intimidating voice.

"I know, I know I'm late" I replied to him in a language also understandable to my strange guest. That and even after a long time, Finnish just wasn't a language I was very good at.

"The rest of the dealers have returned about 2 hours ago! What took you so long!" Miika continued his rant until he noticed my guest. "And who is he?!" his voice thundered.

"Miika calm down" I tried to sooth him. I knew the only reason he was so upset with me was because he cared deeply about me. Ever since my family died he had been there taking care of me, he was like a father figure to me and me. And his daughter being home late of course didn't please him at all.

"I think we need a place to sit and .. talk" ….