When Creed first woke he felt well rested but all he wanted to do was go back to sleep. There was a brief moment where he just lay there, the sweet euphoria of sleep slowly fading away. It was dark when he opened his eyes, heavy curtains shut out the early morning light. Memories of The previous night ran back to him.

At first he felt happy, then guilty, then when he realized Mary wasn't there on the couch with him he felt worried and somewhat anxious. Why did she just leave him there when she left? Where had she gone? Should he wait here for her to come back? Explore? Leave? Meh. Creed was disappointed she was gone. He got dressed and decided to try and find his way out of the mansion.

The hallway looked the same as the room he had left, dark. Both in lighting and in color. There were plenty of lavish artworks on the wall, and plants adorning the pathway. The air smelled of some sort of tropical fruit, pineapples or mangoes perhaps. Creed wondered if every room in the house shared the same scent. He turned a corner which seemed to lead to another hallway which lead to a large room and some ascending stairs. He didn't remember this room, and Creed cursed himself for not paying attention last night and getting lost.

Creed spotted someone at the bottom of the stairs, scrubbing away at a stain on the wooden floor. "Excuse me" he said, his voice raised. The somewhat elderly man stopped scrubbing and looked up at Creed as he approached. "I seem to be lost"

The man raised an eyebrow before he spoke. "Back the way you came" he gave the floor another scrub. "Go the other direction, find the room with the other set of stairs" his voice was soft and quiet. "Make a right. Follow that pathway"

Creed mentally rolled his eyes, but thanked the man and followed his directions. Who the hell gets lost in a house? And for that matter, who the hell owns a house big enough to get lost in?

Once out, Creed had to find himself back to the motel, which wasn't very hard really. Just follow the sand to the boardwalk then the boardwalk to temporary home. He felt bad, for leaving without telling Mary goodbye, but she seemed to have vanished before he was even awake. The sand squished under his feet as he began his short trip to the motel. In the end though, he saw Kira as he passed by the comic shop, and decided to spend some time with his sister.

"Remember when you leaned on the side of the shed and it fell?" Kira sat in the comic shop giggling at the stories she and Creed started to tell the frogs.

"Or when you choked on a grain of rice?" Creed laughed happily.

"Did not!" Kira argued, holding back a couple more giggles.

"Did to! We had Chinese takeout and you started coughing up a lung! I remember it!" Creed argued back.

"I don't remember" Kira pretended to pout but was given away when she shook with laughter. "I missed you" she said after catching her breath. "I hope we take care of this soon."

Creed sighed, slightly upset their afternoon of fun had dwindled down and would soon be over. "We will. You'll be fine. I promise."

Kira started to feel water swell in her eyes. "Creed... I don't know how long I can make it. What are we waiting for? We could do it now"

"We want to make sure to have all the information we need" Edgar spoke up. He and Allan had listened in and shared some laughs in between customers all afternoon.

Kira glared at the boy. "Creed and I could have done this with our eyes closed. I don't know why we thought we needed help" she snapped at him. Allan looked stung, but Edgar's expression remained unchanged. Immediately after the words left her mouth she felt bad. "I'm sorry. I don't know why I-"

"Its fine" Edgar cut her off and went to the cash register. Allan gave her a forgiving smile but followed his brother. Creed looked concerned, but before he could speak there was a thunderous procession of motorcycles and hollers. The group looked up and noticed the sun had set. Any color Kira had left drained from her face.

"Hey Kir, watcha doin with these squares." Kira recognized Paul's voice almost instantly. He didn't come in; he just stood in the doorway. Kira guessed the other three were behind him. Their presence made the comic shop tense and cold.

Kira tried to think up an excuse. "I... Erm.. I came to get some books"

Paul raises his eyebrow in disbelief. "I see your bros not killing you. Or vice versa"

Kira opened her mouth to talk but David spoke first. "Come on Kira. Places to be" his eyes shifted to the Frogs and Creed then he turned to leave, the others following.

'How do I explain this' Kira looked at her brother and hopped from her seat, trailing after the vampires. "He was there when I went to get books"

"Uh huh." David nodded slowly. "Marko, take her home"

Kira looked at him. "What? Why?" She exclaimed.

David glared at her for a moment and Marko grabbed her hand. "Let's just go" The two got on Markos bike and rode to the cave. Once there, Kira watched Marko glide down into the cave gracefully before descending the stone walkway herself. "Why do I get babysitting duty" Marko mumbled as she walked in. "Not that I don't wanna hang or nothing" he corrected himself.

"David's mad isn't he?" Kira asked quietly. "Is he gonna hurt Creed? Is that why he sent me away?"

Marko gave her a perplexed looked and then shook his head. "Nah. That's the joy of being a vampire, you can do what you want damn near anytime you want. He's probably just pissy you went and didn't say anything" they knew Creed was a slayer to right? Kira was sure she may have let that slip. "He's also not sure if you'll really commit. You've been dodging feedings for a while now"

"Well it's my choice to feed if I want to isn't it?" Kira flopped down onto a bean bag the boys had sitting in a corner. Marko shrugged and didn't answer her. She sighed.

Marko watched her for a minute, his eyes not hungry for once, but observant. "Hey. I don't know why you were turned. I don't know everything that goes through David's mind. I know you don't want to die. But that could happen if you don't drink. I'm sure David's told you that, he told me." He paused for a moment. "You were a slayer right? That's why you came here? To kill us?"

Kira nodded and her light blue eyes looked into his.

"Well I don't want to die either. We can all be alive, and be a family, if you just feed already." He continued watching her and then twisted a strand of his hair around his fingers. "And David would stop being a grouch. Remember how much fun we had that first night or two you met us?" She nodded again. "If you fully turn, it'll never have to end"

Kira's gaze shifted to the cave entrance, and Marko took that as a sign that she was done with this conversation. The two sat in silence for a few minutes, until Marko decided he couldn't sit still any longer. Kira watched him look around the cave till he found a little plastic container and a pipe and then joined her on the bean bag pile. He loaded the pipe with what she thought was bud and then held it out to her. "I don't smoke" she shook her head and he shrugged, taking a hit for himself.

"I packed this for two, if you don't take at least one I'm gonna feel bad" he talked while holding his breath, his words semi muffled.

Kira rolled her eyes. "I wouldn't even know how. I'd probably waste it. More for you"

Marko sighed and smoke left his lungs. "Fine" he said sadly. "So. How do we pass the night then, spoil sport"

Kira shrugged. "I'm not the one who banished us to the cave." She paused. "How deep is this thing anyway?"

"Hmmm" he thought for a moment. "A ways. You haven't been back there yet have you?" Kira shook her head. "It's like a little tunnel kinda thing. Not really high enough to walk through. Then a little ways down it opens up into a big room."

"Are there..." Kira wasn't sure if she wanted to continue and offend him.

"Coffins?" Marko laughed. It was cute, his smile. At least Kira thought so. "Nah. We hang. Literally. Thought you were like a vamp expert or some shit" he chewed on his thumb fingernail, still grinning like the sun.

"Well I wouldn't say expert..." It was true the siblings knew some things, but compared to their uncle they were novices. "You're all different. Your habits, how you die" Marko's smile twitched "One group I met didn't sleep at all"

He raised his eyebrows. "I'd be so bored during the day. Fucking weirdos" Kira laughed at him.

"I think you're a weirdo" she looked at him playfully and giggled when he pulled a face at her.

"Am not"

"Are too" their argument went on for a bit, each one throwing different fake insults at the other. Kira had to admit, the vampires were fun.