Thank you all who are putting this story on Alert. I'm glad you like it so much. Sorry this one is kinda short btw...

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Autumn woke up on a soft bed, thick comforter pulled up to her chin. Sitting up, it only took a single glance to find that she was alone in the underground chamber. Mentally she reached for Dominic. He was flying; she could feel the wind rushing over feathers. She found the intent of hunting in his mind.

As she got out of the bed she let the connection slip away. She found a blouse and black skirt at the foot of the bed and quickly put them on. Dominic really did seem to like black skirts, he always gave them to her to wear.

After getting dressed she wandered out of the chamber and up through a wine cellar until she reached the main level of her parents' house. She heard strange sounds filtering through the rooms and her curiosity was peaked. Autumn followed them until she reached a room with a large couch and TV. William was sitting on the couch but instantly looked up when she came in. "Hey sis. Just wake up?"

Autumn of course didn't answer as she walked up to where he was sitting. A small device was in his hands and something brightly colored and rather cartoonish was on the screen of the TV. "I guess Dominic's out hunting, huh? Dad is too." William continued turning his attention back to the screen.

The small creatures started moving, jumping and spinning in an almost insane fashion. Autumn tilted her head in confusion. She'd never seen anything like what she was watching right then.

After a few minutes, she walked around the couch and knelt down on the floor to watch more avidly. She followed a thin cable from a box under the TV to the device in her brother's hand. William noticed her eyes moving from one to the other. "You wanna try?" He asked holding it out to her.

Slowly, she took it from him and examined it more closely. Small sticks stuck up from the top and brightly colored buttons decorated its surface. She turned it over in her hands, finding a few more buttons but nothing else of any note. Suddenly, something happened on the TV and her head shot up to look. William stifled a laugh. "Here…I can show you if you wanna sit up here with me."

Autumn contemplated for a minute before moving to sit on the couch with him. William reached over and changed how she held it between her hands. "That makes it easier to hit all the buttons." He explained. "This joystick here lets you move the character…he's the one with the hat."

Autumn glanced up at the screen to identify the one he was talking about. Almost as quickly, she looked back down at the controller. "This button here makes him jump. If you make him jump and move the stick he'll go forward or back but if you just press it by itself he'll go straight up." William said pointing to the red button under Autumn's thumb.

William continued explaining how to use the controller for several minutes. Autumn listened carefully. "What's going on in here?" Raven asked from the doorway, unable to stop from letting a few laughs get past her lips.

"I'm teaching Autumn how to play, Mom." William supplied.

Raven smiled "I see that but why?"

William shrugged. "She seemed interested. Besides, everyone should play Mario at least once in their lives…it's a classic."

Raven sighed and shook her head. "Honestly…you know your father hates those games."

"Yeah, I know but he's so old you said so yourself." William justified. Raven laughed again. "And I'm bonding with my baby sister…that can't be a bad thing right?" He asked as he patted Autumn on the shoulder. She barely seemed to notice, too intent on Mario who was stuck behind a large wall.

"Of course, I'm glad you two are getting along." Raven said instantly. "But still…already you play those games too much. You don't need to be giving your sister your bad habits, young man." She said hands on her hips

William rolled his eyes. "I'm thirty mom and Autumn's twenty…I think we can handle a few video games."

"Still, you could choose to teach your sister something useful instead of filling her mind with video games." She said as she left the room. It was fifteen minutes later that Autumn got tired of the game and got up from her seat. She followed the path her mother had taken but as she passed the kitchen was sidetracked.

The shiny appliances reflected the slightly orange light. The tile floor was cold under her bare feet but she found that easy to ignore. The kitchen was made up of browns and tans, not counting the silver appliances. She took her time with exploring the room. As she pressed a button on the front of one of the shiny behemoths the sound of machinery kicking in made her jump. Soon the sound of water rushing behind the metal door reached her ears.

She found a latch in the door and pulled. The water instantly stopped as the door opened and steam drifted up into the room. Autumn looked inside, everything was dripping water. Two white racks on wheels filled up the box but nothing was in the racks. After a minute she closed the door again. She frowned when the sound of water echoed out again.

After the mysterious water noises Autumn avoided any more buttons. They were just a bit too disconcerting for her to deal with. She was just investigating the smallest of the machines when Dominic formed behind her. "Need some help, Cistri?" He asked with a smile.

She sent him a distinctly haughty look over her shoulder before turning back to her careful examination. Unable to see as much as she wanted to she quickly moved to sit on the counter and peered inside the small box. There wasn't much inside but a flat glass circle on wheels.

Dominic chuckled a little; she was so innocent. She would never know just how utterly adorable he found her, especially when she was so consumed with curiosity like this. "Do not worry, Cistri, we do not have a need for such things." He said as she pulled out the glass plate and turned it over in her hands.

She looked up at him for a moment before turning back to the plate, which she slowly put back in its place. She slid off the counter to stand on the floor again. He reached out and pulled her to him, savoring the feel of her in his arms. "I wish to take you to my home this night…unless you wish to stay here longer?"

She took her time to think about it, burying her face in his chest. Green filtered through his mind. "You wish to stay here?" He asked uncertain. He hadn't phrased the question as clear as he thought. Red flickered through his mind at that.

Dominic found himself smiling down at her. "Then we shall go." He said kissing the top of her head.


I promise things will start getting very interesting in the next few chapters. This one was more for the humor factor of it.