I'm really sorry about how long this took, I feel pretty bad about it. But I had a lot of stuff going on and a lot of personal family things. Also, I was putting off a bit too, towards the end... But I got it up now! I'll try to get the next chapter up this Friday, if my studies will permit it. I'll really try to get back on schedule here.

I really want to thank everyone that's reviewed, followed, and favorited the story so far! It really means a lot to me! Just thinking about everyone that likes the story so much really keeps me going, it does.

If you ever have any sort of art or anything like that about the story, I would love to see it! I don't mind if you make any and all that. I had a anon ask for permission, but I dunno if they'll ever see this. Just make sure to tell me about it and send me a link so I can see it! Keep in mind to put spaces in your link so that Fanfiction doesn't completely butcher it so that I can't use it. Much love you guys, and enjoy!

Part Two

The Senate hearings were scheduled to start Monday, but I drove into D.C. proper Saturday evening. I had reservations at a hotel close to the Capitol, and within walking distance of many of the tourist attractions. I'd never been to the city. I saw no reason not to make a vacation out of this, despite Mattie's somewhat feeble objections. I wanted to see the Smithsonian, dammit!

It was hard to drive and keep my eyes on the road, not craning my neck to catch a glimpse of the Lincoln Memorial. I'd checked the map; it had to be close. Mattie had already shouted at me more than once when the car started veering into the next lane while I was distracted. I didn't even know if I was looking in the right place. The sun was setting, casting a smog-tinted orange glow over the city. Sightseeing would have to wait until tomorrow it seemed. Unfortunately.

Traffic ahead slowed. One of Chun-Yan's notorious jams, on a Saturday no less. I was impressed. Then I spotted the flashing red and blue lights. Accident, maybe. The cars ahead crept to a stop. The trick was not to be impatient. I wasn't in a hurry. I hit the scan button on the radio, hoping to find something catchy. I could play drums on the steering wheel while I waited.

Orange reflective cones squeezed three lanes of cars into one. Up ahead, barricades blocked the road. A pair of police cars were parked on the shoulder. Four cops, flashing lights in hand, were checking cars and license plates, asking the drivers questions, looking over passengers. A security checkpoint. Not surprising in these parts, I supposed. I hadn't heard anything about a terror alert or heightened security. Trust the powers-that-be not to tell anyone about a real threat.

My turn came to get waved through the checkpoint. A couple of uniformed cops approached the car from each side, shining their lights on the license plates, the interior, and finally at me and Mattie. I rolled down the window. Mattie did his best 'innocent bystander' look. It was practically his signature move.

"Can I see some ID?"

I had to dig in my backpack for a minute, then I showed him my driver's license. I smiled politely. I hoped it looked polite.

"Sir, could you pull over to the side of the road here?" He pointed to a spot on the shoulder beyond the barricade. He didn't give me back my license.

My stomach lurched. I supposed everyone's does when they get pulled over by the cops, no matter how innocent they are. I was pretty sure I was innocent. Mattie was giving me suspicious glances, as well as the cops behind us. Why does he always have so little faith in me when it comes to these things? I half expected him to whisper to me asking what I'd done; like I had an answer for that.

"Um. What seems to be the problem, Officer?" That may have been the most cliché thing to ever come out of my mouth. In the movies, only guilty people said that.

"Just pull over and we'll get to you in a minute."

While I watched, the cops removed the barricades, cleared the cones, and worked to get traffic flowing normally again. The roadblock had served its purpose. Apparently, they'd gotten what they were looking for: me. Mattie gave me even more super suspicious looks. I shrugged at him.

I refused to believe this was all for me. I really didn't consider myself a terrorist threat. Hell, I probably loved America too much. There was something else going on.

I found my cell phone and brought up Natalya's number. My finger poised on the call button, I watched.

A dark sedan, coming from the other direction, did a U-turn over the median, zipped across the three lanes to this side of the road, and pulled over in front of me. The driver was so smooth the move only took a minute, and the tires never squealed.

Two men climbed out, one on each side. They wore dark suits, conservative ties, and looked clean-cut and unremarkable. They seemed big, though, broad through the shoulders, and confident.

Holy cow. Genuine, honest-to-God Men In Black. I half expected Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones to come bouncing out. That pug, Frank, too. This had to be a joke.

The cop handed the driver of the sedan my license and pointed at me. Unconsciously, I shrank down in my seat, like I could melt through the floorboards. Mattie was even getting nervous.

I should have called Natalya then and there, but I waited, wanting to see where this was going to go. Surely this was all a misunderstanding.

The two Men In Black stalked toward me. Actually, they probably walked perfectly calmly and normally. To me, though, they stalked. Wolf wanted to growl. And he wanted to get the hell out of here. I was still in the car, I could still drive- and so could the cops. I waited. Had to listen to the human half, this time.

Thinking before acting. That's what Mattie always said. He looked about ready to bolt too. The fact he was here with me, and suffering, made me feel just a little better.

They stopped by my window, peered in, and looked me and Mattie over. My nostrils widened; I took a breath. Human, they were normal human beings. Warm blood coursing through live veins, so they couldn't be vampires. No hint of lycanthropy about them, either. Lycanthropes had a sort of musky, wild scent that couldn't be covered up. They had fur just under the surface and it always showed, if you knew what to look for. I could almost hear Mattie relax a little beside me.

But there was something about them, something cold. They made my shoulders bunch up, and the hairs on my neck stand up- hackles rising. I gripped the steering wheel, white-knuckled. I met the driver's gaze. Couldn't show weakness.

His gaze dropped first.

He offered my license back to me. "Mr. Jones? Francine, the Mistress of the City, wishes to extend her hospitality. If you'll step out of the car, please?"

I stared in disbelief, and a wave of spent adrenaline washed through me, making my muscles feel like rubber. The fear left with that wave, but now I was annoyed. Severely annoyed.

"Mistress of the City? As in vampire?" I said, and I realized what I'd sensed about them. They weren't vampires, but they had a little of the scent on them. Human servants, who spent far too much time with vampires than was healthy. They were too pale.

"Yes. She's pleased that you're visiting her city and is anxious to meet you."

"Her city? The U.S. capital and she's calling it her city?" But then, what did I expect from a vampire?

The MIB pursed his lips and took a deep breath, as if collecting himself. He was probably under orders to be polite. "Will you accept Francine's hospitality?"

"Why should I?"

"She fears for you…" he cast a cursory glance at Mattie, "and your companion's safety. You don't know the situation among your kind here. You lack protection. She wants to keep you safe."

"How did she know I was coming?" From the looks of it, they seemed a bit caught off guard that I had company, but tried to play it off. I didn't bother asking them about how they knew about Mattie, because I could smell their nervousness on them in the way they sweated. They weren't expecting two.

"It's her city."

I wondered what she thought she'd get out of keeping me safe, because she surely wouldn't offer me protection out of the kindness of her undead heart. I also wondered what exactly the situation was that would put a lone wolf like me in danger. It meant there as an alpha here who didn't like intruders on his territory.

Right now, and alpha werewolf out for blood was a lot less appealing than a vampire.

"All right," I said.

"If you and your companion would please come with me, I'll drive you to meet her."

"What about my car?" I loved my car. Mattie and I have been across the country together with that thing. We had memories. It was practically our child. "And my hotel reservation?"

"We took the liberty of canceling your reservation. Tom will drive your car to the building. We'll keep it safe for you while you're here. Free parking in D.C., Mr. Jones. Not something to refuse lightly."

Actually, this sounded like one of those offers you weren't allowed to refuse at all. I could hear Mattie sigh from beside me. Probably lamenting at how much being with me seemed to pull him into all sorts of weird situations.

I put my phone away and got out of the car, Mattie mirroring my actions.

The other MIB, Tom, slipped into the driver's seat as soon as I was out of the way. I looked longingly at my reliable little hatchback, like I was never going to see her again. Mattie patted my shoulder to comfort me.

The first guy escorted us to the sedan.

I said, "Just so we're clear: the city's vampire Mistress has the D.C. cops in her pocket, or at least enough of them in her pocket that she can order a roadblock on one of the major arteries, just to find one person?"

"It would appear so," he said. Mattie whistled.

"She could have just called me, you know."

He glanced sidelong at me. I looked at Mattie and he looked at me. We rolled our eyes. "Vampires," we said together. It was all about theatrics with them.

At least as a passenger I could look for recognizable landmarks a little more safely. After making sure Tom was following us with my car, I leaned over the dashboard and peered out the windshield, searching.

"The other guy's Tom. What's your name?" I asked.

After a pause he said, "Bradley."

Tom and Bradley. Didn't sound very sinister and Men In Black-ish.

"So, Bradley, where's the Washington Monument?"

"We're going the wrong way to see it."

I sat back and sighed, not bothering to contain my disappointment. How frustrating, to be so close to a major national landmark and not see anything.

Bradley glanced at me. Sounding amused, he said, "Give me a couple minutes and I'll swing back that way."

He flicked on the blinker and made a sharp right turn. I grinned and fist pumped. I heard Mattie sigh from behind me in the backseat.

Back in Colorado, I could see. The sky was big, and I could look west and always see the mountains. I always knew where they were, where I was. I needed landmarks. Here, and pretty much everywhere I'd been back East, I felt vaguely claustrophobic. Thick trees grew everywhere and blocked the horizon. Even in autumn, with their leaves dried and falling, they formed walls and I could only see the sky by looking up, not out.

We turned a corner, and Bradley said amiably, in tour-guide fashion, "We now approach the famous Washington Mall. And on your right, the Washington Monument."

I pressed my face to the window. My gut gave a little jump, like it did when I saw someone famous. It was just like the pictures, but bigger. The towering obelisk was all lit up, and the lights gave it an orange cast. In the center of the vast swath of lawn that was the Mall, it stood alone in the dark.

"Wow." I watched it until we turned another corner and left it behind.

I kept track of our route. We ended up driving the opposite direction, back toward the freeway, but we veered off and continued farther west until we came to a quiet row of townhomes in the area Bradley said was Georgetown. Even in the dark I could tell it was nice, and old.

Tree-lined streets held rows of brick houses, with slatted shutters and window planters, painted doors, and fancy wrought-iron fences out front. Georgetown University was nearby. Bradley turned into an alley, then into a cobbled driveway wide enough to hold several cars. My car was already there. I breathed a sigh of relief.

I didn't get much of a sense of what I'd gotten myself, and Mattie, into until we entered the town house, up a set of steps and through a back door.

That surprised me. Most vampires, even the heads of Families and cities, made their homes underground. It reduced the chance of them or any of their retainers suffering sunshine-related accidents. But Bradley and Tom led me into the house, through a hall, and to a parlor. This vampire held court in a room with windows- covered with heavy brocade drapes, but windows nonetheless.

The place managed to look cluttered and opulent at the same time: crammed with furniture, chaise lounges and wingback chairs, mahogany sideboard tables, end tables, and coffee tables, some with lace runners, others with lamps, both electric and oil. Curio cabinets held china collections, and a silver tea service was on display on the mantel above the fireplace. Persian rugs softened the hardwood floor. All the lamps were lit, but softly, so the room had a warm, honey-like glow. Scattered among the other decorations were pictures, small portraits, a few black and white photographs. Faces stared out of them all. I wondered who they were.

The décor didn't surprise me. Vampires lived for hundreds of years; they tended to carry their valuable collections with them. If the room reminded me of a Victorian parlor, it was probably because it was the real deal. As was its occupant.

A woman set a book down on a table and stood from an armchair that sat nearly hidden toward the back of the parlor, near a set of bookshelves. She was pale, cold, dead. No heartbeat. I couldn't guess her actual age, of course. She looked about thirty, in her prime and haughty. Her blonde hair was wrapped in a loose bun and wavy bangs hung down to frame her face in a messy but elegant sort of way. Her face was angular but feminine, the lines of her red lips hard, her blue-eyed gaze dark and steady. She wore a wine-colored mermaid dress with a long white knit shawl and black sparkling stilettos. She was modern and refined, a mesh of her long life and current trends.

I decided she wasn't Victorian. She was older, much older. She had a gaze that looked across centuries with disdain. The present was only ever a stepping-off point for the really old ones. The oldest vampire I'd ever met was probably around three hundred years old. I couldn't be sure- it was rude to ask- but I bet this woman was older.

I had planned on being brazen. If she could disrupt my life, I could be snotty about it, against Mattie's better judgement. But for once, I kept my mouth shut. I could smell Mattie sweating about as much as I was from beside me.

"Alfred Franklin Jones?" she said, an inquiring tilt to her head, eyes flickering between Mattie and I. She had a wonderfully melodic voice, carefully devoid of accent, a talent she must have cultivated from her long un-life, where I'm sure she had plenty of time to practice.

"Um, Alfred. Yeah, that's me," I said sort of sheepishly, stepping slightly forward and in front of Mattie in a semi-protective way.

"I am Francine. Welcome to my city." It was then that a genuine smile spread across her face, making her look much younger than before, but her gaze was still sharp.

I still wanted to argue the my thing a bit, but this woman had me cowed into silence. I didn't like the feeling.

"Bradley, Tom, any problems?"

"None, ma'am," Bradley said.

"Thank you, that will be all."

The two men actually bowed- smartly, from the waist, like trained butlers or footmen in a fairy tale. I stared after them as they left through the doorway to another part of the house.

"I do hope they treated you well."

"Yeah. Well, except for the whole getting stopped at a police roadblock thing. That was a little nerve-wracking." And this wasn't? I didn't think I could escape from her even with my claws out and Mattie by my side. What did she want with us, really?

"I won't apologize for that. It was necessary."

"Why?" I said. "I host a call-in radio show- my phone number is public knowledge. You could have called."

"I couldn't let you say no."

I started pacing, which required maneuvering around an expensive-looking armchair to find a straight, clear path along the edge of a rug. Francine and Mattie watched me, and I could tell Mattie was itching to just about do the same thing. Francine was elegant and regal, and I couldn't help but feel like she was indulging me this little outburst.

"You know if you try to keep us here against our wills, I've got people I can call, I don't have to put up with this."

"Alfred. If you and your friend could please have a seat, we might discuss this in a civilized manner. I fear you're currently in danger of reverting to your other nature."

Pacing was a wolf thing. I'd been stalking back and forth, my gaze locked on her, like an animal in a cage. Obediently, Mattie took a place on the sofa she indicated, and I followed a bit more agitatedly. I took a deep breath and settled down. She sat nearby, at the edge of an armchair.

"I have a little better control of myself than that," I said sullenly.

"No doubt. But I am aware that I've placed you in strange surroundings and a possibly dangerous situation. I'd best not aggravate you, hmm?"

With a carefully maintained calm that Mattie had cultivated over years of experience with dealing with me, he asked, "Why did you bring us here?"

Sitting with her ankles crossed, one hand resting on the arm of her chair, she was no less poised and dignified than standing. She might have been a duchess or something, or one of those proud noblewomen in a Gainsborough portrait, draped in silk and diamonds, calmly superior.

She gave a small, annoyed frown. "The werewolves here are wild and ungoverned. They might see you as easy prey, or an easy target to challenge and dominate. There is no alpha to control them. You'll have enough on your mind while you're here, I didn't think you'd want to worry about that as well."

Got that right. But I was betting there was more to it. From what I gathered from stories, throughout history werewolves had either been vampires' servants or rivals. At best they came to uneasy truces when they lived near each other.

I had never seen what it looked like when there wasn't a truce. Sometimes I felt so ignorant. My old pack, my old alpha, hadn't taught me much about the wider world. With them, I'd learned how to cower. Then, with Mattie's help, I'd learned how to take care of myself. Mattie had seen a bit more of the world than me, having originally been from Canada. He didn't talk much about his life before he'd joined Arthur's pack, and I guess I didn't really blame him. From what I'd gathered, he'd had a really bad break with his family after he'd chosen to confide in them. I didn't want to force him to tell me those bad memories. Some things were best to be left alone and forgotten.

"What else?" Mattie said evenly, "What else do you get out of it?"

She smiled again, just like the first time, a slight quirk of her lips, a carefully crafted and maintained image. "My dears, this Senate hearing will be the first time in centuries that one of our kind- vampire or lycanthrope- has been summoned before a nation's government in any official capacity. Alfred, you seem to have made yourself an authority on the subject."

Attention back on me, I shook my head, wanting to laugh. "I've never claimed to be an authority-"

"Nevertheless, many people turn to you. And now, so is the government. And when you speak before the Senate you will, however indirectly, be speaking on my behalf as well."

I didn't want this kind of authority. I didn't want that responsibility. Before I could deny it, she continued.

"I've brought you here to take the measure of you. To learn whose interests you serve. Whose interests you will be serving when you speak before the Senate committee."

Which web of political entanglements was I caught up in, she meant. She wanted to know who was pulling my strings, because in her world, everybody had strings.

She wasn't going to believe me when I told her.

"I serve my own interests," I said. "I left my pack, and so did Mattie. I don't have any other associations. I'm not sure I have friends anymore, besides Mattie. There's just us. And my show. Ratings and the bottom line. That's it." I refrained from mentioning my old ties with my original radio crew. I didn't want them to be associated with any of this, they were harmless and human. They didn't deserve any trouble. Natalya was, for anyone outside of Mattie and I, a business partner to us, and our lawyer. She didn't have to be any more than that. And as for Ivan… I really didn't know what to say about him, so it was better just to leave that alone.

I was sure she didn't believe me. She narrowed her gaze, maintaining a vaguely amused demeanor. Like she didn't care what I said, because she'd figure out the truth eventually. She had time.

"I suppose," she said finally, "that makes you less corruptible than many. True capitalists are extraordinarily predictable. But I've listened to your show, and there's more to you than that."

"If you've listened to my show, then you know me. Because that's all it is. I parlayed my big mouth into a career. That's all."

"You may very well be right."

I looked away, because her gaze was on me, searching, looking for layers to peel back. Legends said vampires could entrance you with the power of their gazes. That was how they lured their prey to them, and why some people were all too happy to bare their necks and veins to them.

I wasn't tied to anyone but Mattie. Our own little pack, brothers, side by side. I wanted to keep it that way.

She said, "if you are right, and there is nothing more to you and your friend than what I see before me, then I would be honored if you would accept my hospitality, which is, if I may be so bold, some of the finest in the city."

I would. I knew I would, probably the whole time I'd be here. maybe because the room was nice and comfortable, and as intimidating as she was, she didn't make my hairs stand on end. Her use of the word hospitality seemed to have an Old World meaning behind it: it was more than offering a meal and a bed for the night. It was a mark of pride and honor. It was an insult to refuse.

"Thank you," Mattie and I practically said in unison. Striving for politeness, even as I felt tired and ragged beside her.

Francine stood. Automatically, Mattie and I stood with her. I smoothed out my jeans and started wondering if I should buy some nicer clothes while I was here.

"Welcome to Washington," she said and offered her hand, which I shook, a normal gesture that I accepted gratefully, even if her skin was too cold. She repeated the motion with Mattie. "I've set aside a room on the second floor for you. I do hope you like it. I thought better of preparing two, I had guessed that you and your friend would have preferred to room together. I understand lycanthropes' need for contact between pack members. Peter will show you to it. The kitchen is also entirely at your disposal. Tell Peter anything you need and he'll take care of it." A young boy, Peter I presumed, had appeared, called by some signal known only to him and Francine. He was fully human, bright-eyed and eager. Old World hospitality indeed. Francine had butlers and maids.

"My only request is that you tell me if either of you plan to leave the house for any reason. I have offered you my protection and I will see the offer through."

That almost sounded like a challenge: could we get out of here without her knowing? What would she do if we tried?

And what if there really were ravening werewolves waiting to find us alone? That was a tough call.

"All right," I said noncommittally, and Francine gave me a skeptical look as Mattie shifted beside me slightly.

"If you'll excuse me, I have other business. Good evening to you."

She left Peter with us at the foot of a set of narrow, curving stairs outside the parlor.

"This way," Peter said, smiling, and gestured up.

Sometimes human servants were vampires in training, waiting for their masters to initiate them into true Undeadness. Sometimes they were simply servants, although their brand of service usually involved a bit more than dusting the furniture. I looked around the collar of Peter's button-up shirt for telltale scars, signs of old bite marks. I didn't see any, but that didn't mean they weren't there, somewhere.

We reached the top of the stairs and entered a narrow hallway. More framed photographs and portraits decorated the walls. They represented different times, different eras; the hair, clothing, and demeanors of the people changed from portrait to portrait as we continued. Did Francine have some kind of obsession with collecting these images?

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure," Peter said. He was probably about nineteen. Hell, he might have been working his way through college.

I had to ask. "Do you know what she is?" Mattie sighed a little beside me, faintly murmuring, "You don't just ask people these things. No tact at all." I dutifully ignored him.

He smiled wryly and ducked his gaze. "My family's worked for her for generations. We followed her here from England two hundred years ago. She's been good to us." He opened a door at the end of the hall, then looked at me. "You know better than anybody, they aren't all bad."

I couldn't argue.

"One last question…" I hesitated. Peter looked at me expectantly. His eyes were bright and blue, almost the same as his master's. His hair was a dirty blond shade that pierced me in a familiar way. His eyebrows, his physical appearance, reminded me keenly of my last alpha.

"Do you know anyone by the name of Arthur Kirkland?" My sharp gaze detected a stiffening of his posture, even if he hid it very well. His gazed moved down to the floor, and he stayed silent for a minute or two. I was about to just tell him that it was ok, he didn't have to answer when he finally spoke up.

"Arthur…" he chuckled, but it wasn't a happy sound. It was almost a growl, "He's a traitor. He's been with us a long time, being a werewolf almost as long as Master has been a vampire." Peter's fists balled tightly. "At one time, I almost thought of him as a father figure. Master… has always been like a mother to me, as good to me as my own mother would have been, if she'd survived giving birth to me. But then he left. He abandoned us when I was still really young. Well, good riddance. I never want to see him again."

With that, Peter abandoned all sense of formality, pouted, and stormed away angrily. To say I was shocked was about the least of it. Mattie had a similar look of incredulousness beside me. I'd been a werewolf for three years, and Mattie had about five or six. Arthur had been a werewolf for that long? I didn't even know that werewolves had the ability to live as long as that. Werewolves were much more likely to be hunted or found out than vampires were, and I'd never really put much thought into our lifespan. Apparently, Mattie hadn't either.

"Wow, this is… this is way too weird," Mattie said stutteringly beside me. I nodded in agreement. Knowing that Arthur had some sort of life before the pack, a very long one at that, was nothing less that groundbreaking. I could see such a resemblance to him in Peter that made me think that what was left of Arthur's human family had stuck with Francine for all this time. But that brought me to another point.

"Just what was Arthur's relation to Francine anyways?" I wondered aloud. Mattie could only shrug in response. I sighed tiredly. Arthur was in my past now, and I really didn't care to go digging around for info on him when I didn't really ever plan on seeing him anytime soon. It was all too much for me.

"Let's just move past this, eh?" I said, and Mattie agreed enthusiastically.

Our things from inside our car, like packed clothes in suitcases and other items, were already neatly placed in the bedroom. The suite included a full bathroom, with brass handles on the sink and shower. Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea. I might even get spoiled. Mattie noticed an intercom by the door, a modern amenity in the antique house.

"I guess we have room service, too." That sounded awesome. Room service. I was hungry, and Mattie sheepishly admitted the same. We ordered sandwiches and then decided to get some shut eye. Sleep was good. Sleeping meant I wasn't wondering where the rest of Francine's vampire clan was hanging out, because human minions could only do so much and I was pretty sure she didn't rule her empire all by herself.

"Yo, Mattie! Mattie! Get up, get up! We gotta go! I want to leave as early as possible so that I can see everything!"

In surprisingly early hours of the morning for me, I was jumping enthusiastically on Mattie's prone and sleepy form, willing him to get up and dressed.

"Ugh," Mattie groaned, "You're insufferable in the mornings. How can anyone be this energetic and happy when they first wake up, for God's sake?"

"Because! We have places to go! Things to see! I'm in Washington, and I'm going to go see a museum, dammit!"

"Fine, fine! I'm up!" Mattie threw me off of him bodily and skulked off to shower and dress. I landed on the floor harmlessly, bouncing back up almost immediately and pacing about the room in excitement.

Francine wanted us to tell her if we planned on going out. Well, of course I was planning on going out! But by the time I'd woken up, it was full daylight, even if it was morning, which meant she probably wasn't around.

So, I was planning on leaving a note. I'd already scribbled out a nice letter on a piece of notebook paper, and I was going to stash it somewhere noticeable before we left.

It wasn't completely honest of me. Tom and Bradley were probably on call. Francine probably meant for me to tell one of them. I could have gotten a private chauffeured tour of the city- nice, protected, safe. But when was that any fun? Besides, Mattie was going with me anyways, and I felt better having it be just us two. We stuffed ourselves with leftover sandwiches from the night before, at my insistence that we didn't have time to waste, much to Mattie's disappointment.

I practically leaped down the stairs, ready to bounce out the front door. I'd put my hand on the knob when I heard footsteps trotting down the stairs behind me and Mattie.

"Alfred! Matthew!" It was Peter, wearing jeans and an oversized sweatshirt, a far cry from his formal butler attire yesterday. The clothes made him appear more boyish and normal. "You two leaving?"

I took a guilty step away from the door, the note I'd scribbled in my hand. "Uh, yeah. I, ah, wanted to take a look outside, you know. See the weather." Peter wasn't going to buy that, not with the backpack I had hitched over my shoulder and Mattie rolling his eyes beside me. Traitor. He could at least be a little more convincing. I rushed to Peter and all but shoved the note in his hands.

"So, uh, Francine puts you to work on Sunday, does she?"

"Oh, no. She lets me use the library upstairs to study. It's my last day to catch up on homework before class tomorrow. I was just heading to the kitchen for a snack."

Wow, he really was working his way through college.

"You go to Georgetown?"

"George Washington," he said. He stayed there, leaning on the base of the banister, smiling helpfully, but a mischievous glint in his eyes. The kid was a devil.

"You had any breakfast yet? Or you too excited to get out and see the 'weather'?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact, we have had breakfast, thank you," I retorted huffily. I wanted to leave. No offense or anything. "Yeah, a breakfast of sandwiches," Mattie mumbled behind me. I fidgeted.

The awkward pause continued. I wasn't fooling anyone. I'd even convinced myself that if we left the car in the driveway out back and used public transportation, they'd just think we were sleeping in late or something.

Finally, Peter sighed and said, "I can't stop you from leaving. But Francine won't be happy about it when she finds out you two went out alone."

Now that didn't make me feel guilty at all. "Are you going to get in trouble if we run out?"

"No. Francine doesn't get angry, not like that. But she'll be disappointed."

And no one liked to disappoint Francine.

"It won't be long. I just wanted to look around. I'll drag Mattie around and be back before she even wakes up for the evening."

"Have a good time," Peter said. The statement was perfunctory rather than sincere. He swung around the corner, disappearing through the door to the kitchen in the back of the house.

I felt a little like a heel. I dragged Mattie out anyways.

D.C.'s famous Metro subway didn't run this far out, but a shuttle bus made stops between Georgetown and the nearest Metro stations. In half an hour I was in the middle of the Mall.

Then I totally, unabashedly played tourist, Mattie trailing behind me. I couldn't see it all in a day. I probably couldn't see it all in a week, if I factored in museums. Fortunately, there were plenty of companies willing to take my money and drive me around on their tour busses and give me the spiel. The buses even dropped us off in front of just about every museum I could hope to visit. I saw the White House!

All morning and part of the afternoon, I ran around like a maniac seeing the highlights. As I did, Mattie and I kept our eyes open, looking at the faces around us, wondering. But they were all tourists, round-eyed and cranky. I wasn't going to find any lycanthropes among them. Not that I could scent one across the Mall anyway. They had to me somewhere, though, and I would have liked to have spotted a friendly-looking one to buy a cup of coffee for and ask what was really going on.

I was leaving the American History Museum when my cell phone rang. I just about jumped out of my skin, Mattie looking worried, as usual. I'd shoved the thing in my jeans pocket and forgotten all about it.

I answered it, "Yo."

"Alfred?"

"Oh, Nat? Where are you?" Mattie looked instantly relieved as the pet name rolled out of my mouth.

Natalya sighed, not even bothering to comment on it anymore, "I'm at the hotel. You know, the one we planned on meeting at? That one?" She sounded peeved. She'd flown into town this morning on a red-eye. We'd reserved rooms at the same hotel- the place I hadn't checked into yesterday.

"Uh, it's a long story," I was sensing her about to demand for Mattie on the phone to explain, but I jumped in first, "Why don't we meet up together."

"I'm having a late lunch in my room. Can you get over here? Preferably soon?"

"Don't worry, we'll be there in a few minutes. See you."

After a few hours of walking, I fancied I knew my way around well enough that I could find the hotel by myself, and I was pleased to no end by proving myself right. Mattie would have never let me take a wrong turn anyways, so I wasn't too worried.

It pays to have all the escape routes mapped out ahead of time.

The hotel was a few blocks from the Capitol, within easy reach of the office complex where the committee hearing was scheduled to take place. Natalya had given me her room number, so I went right up and knocked on the door. She opened it and went back to the table, where she had a room-service tray spread out, and sat to finish her lunch.

"I suppose that's going on the expense account," I said, Mattie closing the door behind us. She just smiled toothily.

The thing about Natalya was she didn't meet a lot of my expectations when it came to fashion. My first impression of her was that she wore pant suits all day, even on her off days, or something equally frightening, but she was surprisingly… feminine? She was far from lazy with her appearance, even on casual occasions such as this. She wore an outfit of soft pastels, with ribbons weaved through her braided hair. Some leggings with a surprisingly cute pattern over a sheer, light skirt that fell in waves to her knees, and a tank-top with a thin off-the-shoulder-sweater paired. The flats she wore accentuated her small feet. She was practically as old as Alfred was (well, when he was human) but already had much success as something of a genius lawyer. I didn't doubt her skill.

On the hotel bed, a briefcase sat open, a storm of papers and legal publications strewn around it. She didn't look like much at first glance, with such a petite build, but her glare could easily make even the most hardened judges sweat. In her current outfit she looked even less like a threat, but that only made her stern expressions all the more terrifying. I thanked whatever powers at work that she was both on our side, and human. She'd probably give older vampires a run for their money with her practicality, sharp mind and modern thinking. And such a hard and dedicated worker to boot.

"Nice flight?" Mattie asked with a good-natured smile. She returned a rare one of her own. Mattie always seemed to know how to calm her down, which was nice because with the way the two of them talked about me, she seemed to need it.

"Yeah. Great. You two look like you've been running all over town."

I probably didn't look too fresh, blonde hair plastered to my face with sweat, and Mattie not fairing too much better. It wasn't summer, but the city was having a balmy fall. A sticky humidity dampened the autumn air.

I hadn't even thought about the distances involved. Most tourists would probably think it was crazy, trying to cram as much as I had into that little time. But I wasn't even tired. It was one of those times when being a werewolf had its advantages. I could run for miles.

"Alfred has been dragging me everywhere," Mattie said with a sigh. I pretended not to hear him.

"This place is incredible," I said. "I ran to the Air and Space Museum to see the Wright Flyer, the Natural History Museum to see the Hope Diamond and the dinosaurs, and the American History Museum to see the Star Spangled Banner. They also have Mr. Rogers' sweater, did you know that? One of them, at least, the guy must have had like a hundred. This has got to be the most culturally valuable square mile in the U.S." I'd hit the highlights in the big museums, making a sprint out of it. I didn't know when I was going to get another chance to sightsee this week.

She raised her eyebrow at Mattie, who gave her a shrug and a 'what can you do?' expression, and then fixed me with a mocking smirk.

"What?" I said with a whine, a little put-out.

"You actually got teary-eyed when you saw the Star Spangled Banner, didn't you? You been to Arlington Cemetery yet? You see Kennedy's grave?"

I had teared up. I wasn't going to admit it, but unfortunately, Mattie did that for me.

"He totally did."

"I was going to go to the Cemetery after tomorrow's hearings," I continued like Mattie hadn't spoke. Natalya only chuckled silently.

"That'll push you over the edge, I bet. Bring Kleenex."

"I put some in my backpack just in case," Mattie answered her. Traitors, the both of them. No patriotic spirit at all.

I pouted. "You don't have to make fun of me." I just had a healthy case of patriotism, was all.

"Why not? You're a sentimentalist. I didn't know that before."

"So I'm a sentimentalist. So what? What does that make you two?" I scoffed, throwing my hands in the air.

"Canadian."

"A lawyer." They didn't even bat an eyelash before answering. Natalya continued straight to business.

"You know who's chairing this committee you're testifying for?"

I didn't. I'd been busy with the show, the chance to interview Steilsson, and traveling. I had Natalya and Mattie to worry about the rest, right? "Uh… no?"

"Well, you aren't going to like it."

How bad could it be? "So who is it?"

"Joseph Duke."

I groaned. There was me getting kicked in the ass for having the optimistic point of view. Mattie's face scrunched up in a slight snarl. Senator Joseph Duke was a witch-hunting reactionary. Literally. As in, in a world when such things were still mostly considered myth and fairy-tale, Duke ardently believed in witches, vampires, werewolves, all of it, and felt it was his God-given duty to warn the world of their dangers. An earnestly religious constituency kept him in office. I'd had him on the sow a few weeks ago. He'd promised to pray for my soul. It shouldn't have surprised me. He probably saw these hearings as vindication, his chance to declare to the world he was right.

"Well, it could be worse?" I said hopefully.

"Yeah. You could be a communist werewolf." She said the statement with no humor, as she herself was Belarusian. It vaguely reminded me of Ivan, and how, once upon a time, I'd commented about communist supernatural forces as he tried to off me in my DJ booth. Good times.

She gestured to her spread of room service food and steaks, offering us if we wanted any of it. Neither Mattie nor I felt much like eating.

"So, what kept you two from the hotel anyways?" She asked as she gave me a pointed look, as if fully expecting it to be my fault. It wasn't! Well… sort of. I guess?

I told her. I tried to make it sound not quite so dangerous. But she still have me that frowning, are you crazy? look anyways.

She huffed. "The Master vampire of the city decided to make you two her personal houseguests? I don't have to tell you that's creepy, do I?"

"I know! But she isn't all that bad…" Mattie rolled his eyes at me.

"Alfred. She's a vampire." I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Yeah, and I'm a slavering werewolf. I get it."

"Listen, they've cobbled these hearings together at the last minute. I couldn't get the staff to give me a schedule of when witnesses are testifying. They're probably not going to call you tomorrow. I'm thinking they'll spend a couple days grilling Steilsson. We should go and sit in, to see what kind of tone they set. Get a feel for the room, that sort of thing."

And it wouldn't hurt hearing what Steilsson had to say. See if his answers to the senators were any less evasive than the ones he gave me.

"What do we know about Steilsson?" I asked Natalya.

"Whatever's been in the news. He's a doctor, he's been on the fringes of some pretty whacked-out research. You probably know more than I do."

"I know about his research, about his work with the Center. But I don't know anything about him. He said he did a residency in New York. Think you could track down a little history on him?"

"I'll see what I can do." She reached over to one of the piles of paper on the bed, scooped it up, and handed it to me. "Here's your mail from the last couple weeks. There's a couple of local invitations you might look at. Word seems to have got out that you were coming. You apparently got put on some media-related mailing lists."

That was it. Everybody knew I was here. Even people I didn't know about knew I was here. I supposed I ought to enjoy the attention. Instead I felt a little nauseous. Mattie was giving the mail a weary glace and sniff.

"Why would people send me invitations?"

"Apparently, you have cachet," she said dryly. "You're hip." Cue a snicker from Mattie.

Gah! That was almost worse than being an authority.

The invitations he mentioned were three pieces of mail that came in thick, stationary-type envelopes, cream colored and pearl-gray. I cracked them open while I nibbled on one of her steaks. One was an invitation for a cocktail party at the Washington town house of the Colorado representative from my district. Vote-pandering. I set it aside. The second was for the next installment of a lecture series sponsored by the League of Women Voters. I raised an eyebrow at Natalya and she shrugged. Latent college feminist tendencies almost got the better of me on that one.

The third was a reception for the opening of a new exhibit at the Hirshhorn, the museum of modern art that was part of the Smithsonian. Attire: formal. Cultural, flashy. Swanky. An interesting crowd showed up to these things, I bet. It would sure beat hanging out at Francine's for the evening. I couldn't remember the last time I'd been to a real party.

I was going to have to buy a suit. And shoes. Mattie, too. And I only had a couple of hours to do it in.

"I gotta run." I stuffed the mail in my backpack, brushing aside a box of Kleenex with mild irritation. I handed Mattie the reception invitation as I corralled him to the door. He looked at it with some curiosity and mild amusement at my childish antics. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Alfred." She stopped me, caught my gaze. She'd looked mostly at her plate until then, finishing off the last of her meal. She startled me into staring back. "I don't have to tell you to be careful, do I?"

I was a little dumbstruck. "Wow. I might start to think you really care. Don't worry about me, honest. I have Mattie with me!"

"Have to protect my revenue stream," she said, quirking a smile. She turned to Mattie, telling him, "Good luck." in an almost somber way. I sneered at them both slightly, rolling my eyes.

"Please, you two really lay it on thick. Lay off, will you? What could possibly go wrong?"

I'd never owned a nice suit before. But every guy should own at least one suit. Now I had mine.

Mattie and I had returned to Francine's place just after dark, with an hour to spare before the reception. Francine met us in the foyer, like she'd been watching for us. My assurances to Peter that Francine wouldn't know I'd been gone scattered like dust.

She crossed her hands before her. "I would have preferred that you take Bradley or Tom with you on your outing."

Despite my best efforts, I stood there like a guilty teenager out past curfew, my backpack over one shoulder and the plastic garment bag from the department store over the other. Mattie stood fidgeting beside me, with his own garment bag.

I shrugged, trying to turn a wince into a smile. "I didn't want to bother anyone."

Her glare told me what a poor excuse that was for flouting her hospitality.

"You've been shopping?" she said, indicating our bags. She wasn't going to want me to go to the museum reception. She'd want me to stay all tucked up and safe, with her. But I'd been all over town today. I hadn't sensed any lycanthropes. What was more, no super-territorial werewolves had found me. That whole explanation was becoming increasingly lame.

Sneaking out while she was up and about would be a lot harder than sneaking out during daylight hours.

I wasn't going to make excuses. I'm free range! I want to get out, so I'll get out. "Yeah. I got a nice suit. I have an invitation for a reception at the Hirshhorn." Earnestly, I dug in my backpack, found the invitation, and handed it to her. As if I had to prove something like that.

"It sounds like fun, and it starts in an hour. Mattie and I would really like to go."

This was ridiculous. I hadn't had to beg to go out since high school. Well, that wasn't true. I'd had to beg Arthur, the alpha male of my old pack, to go out. he liked keeping his cubs under his paw, and he especially didn't want me having fun without him. I thought I'd finished with all that when I left. When he kicked me out. I squared my shoulders and tried to seem a little bit dignified.

She examined the invitation, then me. "This suit, may I see it?"

I peeled off the plastic and held the hanger up to my shoulders. It was a standard black suit, with a silk tie and vest that quite nearly matched my eyes, as well as some nice white suspenders. I was planning on leaving the coat off to show off the nice pattern on the vest, a sort of nice, swirling thing that reminded me of waves in the ocean. It was hard matching it to the shade, but I prided myself in that I'd gotten pretty close. Mattie's was about the same, except his vest was a nice sweater pull-over, and it and the tie both were lavender in color. I thought we both looked spiffy, if I did say so myself. The best I'd looked in a long while. I had even contemplated getting Mattie a little hair trim, but then, if he got his hair too short then people would start mistaking us as twins again. Plus, it was always hard to get him to cut it, his hair was nice and wavy, and it looked good long.

Francine rubbed the fabric between her fingers, stepping back to take in the whole piece. "Hm. Understated. Good lines. It will do, I suppose."

Like I needed her permission. "I'm going to get changed," I said, creeping toward the stairs. Matthew was already gone, he had a gift for sneaking out of rooms and conversations unnoticed. I almost envied him sometimes. Almost.

She didn't stop me. After the first couple of steps, I ran the rest of the way.

I'd just closed the door to our room with my cell phone rang. I dug it out of my pocket, read the display- it was my mother. I'd forgotten, today was Sunday. She called every Sunday.

"Hi, Mom."

"Hi, Alfie. Where are you this week?" Her tone was laden with unspoken reprimands. She'd asked me to call her when I stopped in a new place, to let her know where I was. Since I was someplace different nearly every week, and on the road most of the time in between, it seemed kind of, well, futile to try to keep her updated on my whereabouts. I forgot, usually.

"Washington, D.C."

Her tone changed to sounding genuinely interested.

"Really? That's exciting. Have you done any sightseeing?"

Thankfully, I was able to tell her yes, and we could talk about that for a minute or two. She sounded put out when I told her I hadn't been taking pictures.

"I'll send you a postcard." I said. "Look, Mom? I'm really sorry to cut you off, but I don't have time to talk right now. I've got someplace to be."

"Oh?" That unmistakable Mom question.

I relented. I felt bad for ditching her so quickly. "There's a reception at one of the art museums here. It sounds like fun."

"Are you going by yourself?"

I had no idea how she managed it, how she could ask one question and convince me she meant something entirely different. It scared me a little that we knew each other well enough that I knew exactly what she was really asking.

"I'm going with Mattie, but he's more of my guest," I said with a sigh. "I haven't been here long enough to get asked out on any dates."

"Well, you know so many people all over the place, I can't keep track of it unless I ask. I worry about you, and your friend, travelling alone all the time." Mom had really grown to coddle Mattie, she got along with him well. They were both the nurturing types, and of course, they also had the commonality of dealing with me, which apparently was supposed to be some big deal, from the way Mattie and Natalya talked about me with each other. They used to have a competition whether looking out for Ivan was more of a handful that I was, but they seemed to have come to an agreement that I was the worst. For some reason. I didn't really get it. It's not like I tried to get myself in these situations!

"I'm doing fine, Mom. I promise. Mattie, too."

"All right. I believe you. Call me before you leave town, okay?"

Mental note, mental note. "I'll try to remember."

"I love you."

"Love you, too, Mom."

Mattie was leaning on the doorframe to the bathroom when I looked up after hanging up on her.

"You really have good parents." His eyes were soft. I was reminded sharply of his own familial hardships.

"You're practically one of us with the way Mom worries about you," I joked, but I really did mean it. I could tell it meant a lot to him. He smiled at me.

"You better hurry up if we're gonna make it on time." I quickly fumbled for my things and showered and dressed. Mattie and I both scrutinized our appearances just to make sure everything fitted right, and we even practiced some movements in the suits so we knew how to move right in them. It paid to know exactly how our movement was affected by our new clothes. Just in case. We were ready to head downstairs.

Francine waited in the foyer at the base of the stairs. She might not have moved since I last saw her. She appraised the both of us, gliding over to give us both a once over, scrutinizing us from every angle. She came back to stand in front of us, glanced over one last time, before letting a sly smile stretch across her face.

"You both look lovely. Cleaned up much better than I thought you would." For werewolves was the unspoken part. I put my hands on my hips and cocked an eyebrow.

"Luckily for Alfred, I have a bit of fashion sense," Matthew spoke up. I turned my face to him and huffed. Even if it was true and he picked out everything, he didn't have to put it like that.

"For what it's worth, I do hope you two have a good time." She showed a rare smile, and her face seemed to light up. She looked almost human then, and suddenly I liked her. I worried a little that she was working some wily vampire trick. But I could feel her honest delight, and I couldn't seem to bring myself to find a fault this time.

Francine saw us off at the door like we were a couple of kids going to the prom. Bradley chauffeured us in the sedan, which was waiting at the curb. He stood by the open door to the backseat, and this was all getting ridiculous. Continuing on with the formal atmosphere, Mattie assisted me to my seat and made a little bow before walking around to the other side of the car, like I was some lady. I rolled my eyes, but couldn't help but feel a little giddy, we were going out to a party! Well, not a party technically, but I was ready to enjoy myself. Mattie was excited too, I could tell. I was torn between feeling like an actor on his way to the Oscars, and a cheap date to a high school prom, but we didn't really care. Nothing could spoil the mood.

Did you guys all like the newest chapter? Tell me what you thought about it! I really, really am gonna try to get the next one out this Friday. So look out for it, either then, or during the following week. See you all next time!