I was sitting in my study drinking a blood smoothie and looking through my photo album. It was hard to believe it had been eight months since the night Iskander saved me from the drainers. So much had happened.

You know, when I was human, it always struck me as odd that on the rare occasion I was out and about I would inevitably see people having a cocktail and snapping a picture. Presumably it was to record some special occasion for perpetuity, but I suspected it was so they could post it on MyFace, the internet social networking site, to prove they had a social life. The average person had become expert in camera angles and lighting, and taking pictures of themselves at arms length. If that failed to yield the desired results there was always photo fix, the software program that enabled anyone to craft their own version of "perfect me" or " subtly enhanced me" out of "real me".

It was one of my existence's great ironies that I had more of a life since I ceased to have a heartbeat than before. And lest anyone doubt this fact, I had the pictures to prove it. I had become one of "those people" who never left home without their trusted camera. I didn't post mine online, preferring to print them out and put them in a photo album instead.

There were at least five pages in my album from the opening night at CODA-L. It was the night my dream of owning a coffee shop finally came true. The opening had been perfect. The place was packed and filled with excitement. It's amazing what a coupon in the paper for a free latte will do. We had Karaoke, open mic poetry and chess all going on in the same evening. There was a picture of me and Obachan, cutting the ribbon. There were also a bunch of Iskander. He had a worked a double but insisted on being there to help. In so many ways he was too good to be true. My favorite picture was of him serving a piece of blueberry pie to our first customer Cosmo. Cosmo is about 85 years old and usually wears a Khaki windbreaker and paper boy hat, he can have free coffee and pie for as long as CODA-L has its doors open. We even have a special stool for him with his name on it. Everyone loves Cosmo.

There were also pictures of Eric that night. I thought he was going to sit back and collect profits but he takes an active interest in any venture that translates into cold hard cash in his pocket. I didn't mind though, he is a shrewd businessman and his "suggestions" were always good ones. Never one to miss an opportunity to promote his business , he wore his Fangtasia T-shirt to my opening night and handed out "admit one free" coupons to everyone. There was an attractive brunette named Janelle in a couple of the pictures with him. He brought her especially for me, kind of like a celebratory bottle of wine. Obachan had snapped a photo just as Eric introduced her to me as such (well he didn't call her a bottle of wine, but you can imagine how he put it). Iskander was in that one, and the expression on his face was priceless. There had been some fall out over it, Iskander thought I was living strictly on the bottle and his reaction had "let the cat out of the bag" to Eric that I wasn't feeding on "my human" . I caught grief from both sides, but in the end it all worked out. I turned the page.

The next few pages were of the trip Obachan, Iskander and I took to New york a few months later. Then there were pictures of me and Iskander just tooling around town. The album wouldn't have been complete without photos of the Louisiana vamps. There were some of Pam giving us fight lessons, Clancy eating lunch, the gang hanging out at Fangtasia, Eric on his cell phone, Thalia being Thalia. They really weren't a bad bunch once you got to know them.

Existence had settled into a comfortable a routine for me. I had a life here, and it was a good one. I was happy. I added two more photographs to the album. They were from our "anniversary celebration" a couple of days ago. Iskander had given me a promise ring that night. Then I put the ablum away and began to think of a recent mystery.

For the past two nights, I had risen from my coffin with a distinct memory of an alternate reality. If I were capable of sleeping and dreaming, that's how I would have characterized these experiences. However, Vampires don't dream because they don't sleep. No one really knows where we go, if anywhere, during the day. So if these things were not dreams what were they? Aside from being disturbing, that is.

The first time it happened I was having a "dream" that Iskander was running his mouth up my legs. It was very erotic until he looked up suddenly. Then it was just awful. His eyes were black and he was flashing fang. I swear I "woke up" in a cold sweat, which is saying something since vampires don't perspire. The second one was equally disturbing albeit in a different way. I "dreamt" that I was being chased through the woods by a rabbit with fiery eyes. The best way to describe it would be a demonic rabbit. It was all very strange.

I considered asking Obachan if she had ever heard of something like this before. But although she and Iskander had hit it off great when she was visiting, she wasn't a big fan of humans dating vampires. I decided not to bother her , it would only lead to a conversation I was getting tired of having. She was definitely on team Sato. For about a split second I entertained asking Eric what it could all mean. He was really old and had seen a lot over the years. I was pretty sure I couldn't be the first Vampire this happened to. But the thought of having to fess up to being disturbed by a rabbit chasing me made me reconsider. I was on my own with this one. There had to be someone who could help me. What I needed was the impartial expertise of a professional. I looked in the Vampire yellow pages under counseling services, there was one entry. It was for Dr. Bolton, and "existence coach".

Dr. Bolton's waiting room was not unlike any waiting room for any doctor in any town in America. The air was stale, the magazines that covered the coffee table were out of date and well worn, and the walls were drab. I went up to the receptionist who handed me the customary clip board with the little stack of heath history forms, disclosures, assurances of privacy, and requests for assurances they would get their payment. When it was my turn to go into the office, I handed the clip board to Bolton . I was the only one there so I barely had time to complete it before it was my turn.

" Maeve, its nice to meet you" a vampire with an extremely broad chest wearing a white button down shirt and a red tie nodded at me. I could tell he hadn't been a vampire very long, and his diploma told me when he was human he had been a psychologist. It was also pretty obvious that when was human he had worked out. I nodded in acknowledgement. " Dr. Bolton, thank you for seeing me on such short notice" I had called about twenty minutes ago. I guess vampires weren't exactly knocking down doors to seek mental health services.

" Have a seat please" I sat down, and he reviewed that my paper work was in order. " So what brings you to see me today?" he asked, his tone safely neutral.

" Um, well I am here because I think I am dreaming" I said. He checked the life status box on the form again before he said" Vampires don't dream"

" Yeah, that's why I am here. Vampires don't dream, but I am starting my nights with a distinct impression that I have been dreaming. It's the only way I can describe some pretty disturbing memories of things that never happened"

" What is it that you find disturbing about these memories?" he asked.

" You mean beside the fact they never happened? I think that is disturbing enough. I was hoping you could tell me what it means " I answered.

" Well what do you think it means?" He asked.

" I think it means something doesn't add up. I can't be dreaming, and I can't remember things that didn't happen, so clearly there is a problem. Do you know of anything that could be causing this?" I asked.

" Tell me about them" his voice was still neutral, but I could see his AU and it was doodling on a sheet of paper. I told him about the rabbit.

" you know what I think Maeve, I think that there is something else going on here" I was encouraged by that remark.

"really? What do you think it is?" I asked, literally on the edge of my seat. I hate things that don't make sense, and I was here seeking a professional opinion after all.

" Why don't you tell me? What is this really all about?" he asked and we sat there in silence.

During the silence I was thinking to myself that this was a total waste of time and $250. For obvious reasons, vampires don't carry health insurance, so this was all out of pocket expense for me. After a few more minutes of sitting there watching his AU doodle again I got up.

" Well, this has been helpful" I said sarcastically.

" I am sensing hostility, Maeve. Why are you getting upset? lets explore this anger" his AU was still doodling.

" That's ok, I'll explore it on my own time. Thanks again", I said as I handed him the money and left.

As I drove home, I developed my own theory about what was going on. Clearly, the stress of running the coffee shop, acquiring a construction company, running errands for Eric, hanging out at fangtasia, and the demands of a personal relationship were just catching up with me. This must just be some vampire reaction to over doing things. The equivalent of an anxiety attack. It was obvious I was making a mountain out of a molehill and just needed to slow down a little. It meant nothing, I told myself.

The whole matter would have ended there if I hadn't pulled into my drive way and seen a rabbit caught in my headlights. Weird. Animals and insects tended to avoid us as a general rule. It wasn't to bad really, now I could go hiking without bothering with insect repellent and worrying about bear attacks. Maybe the little guy was just having an off night. Once I got out of the car it would bolt.

I got out of my car and the rabbit just stayed there. I took a step towards it . It didn't budge. It was just sitting there, as if it owned my driveway, staring me down. It didn't have fiery eyes, but it was creeping me out. Just when I was about to charge at it, it narrowed its little eyes into slits wiggled its nose and took off.

It couldn't just be a coincidence and it definitely was not a dream.

I went inside and thought about it some more. I had tried to seek rational expertise, perhaps it was time to seek expertise of a different kind. When you are faced with an impossible situation, its best to explore all options. I picked up the regular yellow pages. There wasn't a section called "wiccans" so I looked under the sections marked "psychics" and "Spiritual Advisor". I decided to go with the pychics. There were pages of them and I had no idea what to look for so closed my eyes and put my finger on the page. C. Williams. I picked up the phone and called.

" Hi, you must be Maeve" a thirty five year old woman in jeans and a white button down with extra thin navy blue pins stripes, and blond bobbed hair answered the door.

" Yes, and you must be Cassandra, I am here for my appointment" I said.

" Come on in" she said, and I crossed the threshold.

" So what can I do for you?" She asked.

I explained the situation.

" Well, I have to be honest with you, Maeve. I don't know a lot about vampires. For instance, I didn't realize you can't dream, but I can tell you that there is something very strange going on here. I sense your magic, your life force. That is why I didn't realize at first, that you are dead."

"Take off your jewelry, maybe I am reading a residual energy" She instructed me.

When she held my snake necklace she started talking again.

" You were avoiding life. All that you desired was there for your taking, but you wouldn't extend your hand to take it. You had a strong magic within you, but you let your disappointment and disillusionment get the better of you. You had almost given up. " She said.

I looked away. The way she put it made me feel like I had been pretty pathetic.

" You were a young soul. You would have conquered it. It was only a temporary set back. You had a strong heart and a free spirit. The journey had only been half traveled, and you would have reached your destination. It was a journey interrupted" She set the necklace down and moved on to the ring Iskander had given me. It was a Fede Gimmel ring. He told me it had been in his family a long time.

" This is an extraordinary ring" She said.

" Yes it is" I agreed" here, pull the little hands apart and it will reveal a heart"

" Very interesting" she was rubbing her thumb over the heart. " There is a curse tied to this ring"

" Hmm, a cursed ring that is making me dream of rabbits. That sounds likely" I started to pull sixty dollars out of my wallet. Guess I was on my own .

" Give me a moment….." She said, ignoring my lack of confidence. She began to rub the ring between her palms with her eyes closed. I was getting a little restless, so I started shuffling the Tarot cards that were sitting on the table.

" I am getting something, it was so long ago the images are barely discernable. He was a warrior and the only thing that matched his courage was his ambition. Dissatisfied with what he had already accomplished he desired more and saw the druid's bargain as the means to reach his end. He wanted to learn magic from him. The druid was trying to protect his daughter. He had seen that she was to die a death which was barbaric even by the standards of the time. He married her to the warrior because the warrior was the strongest and bravest opf his kind. In exchange for learning magic the warrior swore to protect his wife, who was the Druid's daughter. If he broke the outh his soul would be forfeit. He did not keep his end of the bargain. One night, when he was making love to his mistress, his wife was taken and she kept her appointment with fate. In fact, it was the woman's marriage to him that brought about her demise. His enemies hoped to weaken him by destroying her. All that was left now was the son she had borne him. The Druid was distraught and would have destroyed the warrior but the child prevented him from doing so, entirely. Instead he cursed him and sealed his soul in the heart of this ring. THe warrior was destined to spend eternity protecting the women that were to be its bearer and their descendants who would all be men, and only one per generation. "

"The Druids believed in animal spirits, I believe that by appearing to you as a Hare, the warrior is trying to communicate with you. He is using magic. That is why you are dreaming"

She took the deck of cards out of my hand and said" I don't know if this will work, Vampires are an imbalance, a wild card if you will. They have no fate except to scavenge. They are not bound by the forces that bind the rest of us, so I can not be sure that this reading will be valid"

She turned the first card.

" The fool" It figured.

She flipped a few more cards.

" The world, the hermit"

I wasn't very familiar with Tarot. I wondered if there was a card in there that showed a vampire.

" death" ok, maybe that covered it.

" These cards all pertain to the past. You were on a journey and you withdrew" She didn't bother explaining the death card.

Then she flipped the last card, it was the Tower.

" Things are going to start now. Here, don't forget your jewelry. If the rabbit appears to you again, try talking to it" I handed her the sixty dollars but she wouldn't take it, she gave my hand a squeeze and told me to be strong.

As I drove home I thought about everything that had just transpired. For some reason the only thing my brain would focus on was an image of a rabbit chasing after Iskander's patrol car.

When I pulled into my drive way, Eric was waiting for me. Something wasn't right. I wasn't out of the car, when he grabbed me, slammed the door and we were in the air.

" why didn't you pick up?" he sounded irritated. We legs bumped into a tree top.

" will you please watch where you are going, and wouldn't this be easier if I were on top? It can't be easy for you to navigate with my legs dangling like this" I replied.

" Raise your hips and wrap your legs around mine, you still haven't answered my question" he said. I really think the flight would have been easier if he just had me on his back.

" I guess I forgot to take my phone off vibe. What is this all about?" I asked.

" Iskander's in trouble" he said.

" what? What kind of trouble? How do you know this? You guys have been getting awfully chummy lately. I hope you do realize he is mine." I said.

" We are here" we landed on a tree. Below us a grissly scene was unfolding. There was a swat vehicle, about 5 patrol cars with their lights flashing, a slew of media vans and T.V. reporters. I also noticed there was a rabbit. They were all surrounding a split ranch.

"fucking rabbit" I said. Now that the mystery was solved, I hated that thing. I was sure it was trying to separate me from Iskander.

" What?" Eric asked.

"Nothing" I started listening to the conversations that were going on.

" Domestic situation. Man holding wife hostage" I said.

" The responding officer was Iskander, he was bludgeoned with a blunt object and is being held hostage. His wound is serious Maeve. He wont last two hours if he doesn't get medical attention. There could be permanent damage if he doesn't get help within the next one" Eric said.

" Lets go end this, then" I started to move but he pulled me back.

" THINK. To many people." he said.

" Then why did you bring me here?" I countered " I am going in" he grabbed me again.

" No, we are not going to be reckless. You are always finding ways around things" He said this sardonically. I guess it was understandable since he was usually the thing I was finding a way around these days. " think of something"

I thought. What we needed was a diversion. We called fangtasia and set our little plan in motion.

Clancy brought my car, and for once I was grateful Eric seemed to think that what was mine was his and had spare keys made to everything I owned. I wondered if he even had spare keys to my riding mower. Thalia was with Clancy. Pam and Jorge, the bar back at fangtasia were in his car. We decided Thalia was the best Vamp for this job because she already had a bit of a reputation for being a beatch. The fang bangers loved it, they even had a website that chronicled her exploits. I would have been happy to do it, but the publicity wouldn't have been good for my coffee shop.

The plan was basically to stage a traffic accident and enact some road rage at the four way intersection. The 4th way of the intersection led to the raised ranch so it was blocked off, but the other three roads weren't blocked off there. The road blocks for those had been set closer to the main road. Only emergency vehicles and the media were allowed to pass, but Clancy and Pam did a little glamoring and got through. Once they delivered Jorge and Thalia, Pam and Clancy went back to Fangtasia.

Jorge and Thalia got to work. They had themselves a minor head on collision at the intersection, right in front of the patrol car that was blocking the road. No sooner had their bumpers collided they each jumped out of their car.

" Why don't you watch where you are going, stupid Puta!" Jorge yelled.

" Who you calling Puta, you fang-banging maricon! " she yelled back, crouched and flashed some fang.

It had the desired effect. The patrol man was radioing for back up, and the ensuing commotion caused everyone to shift their attention up the road for a second . It was all that Eric and I needed. We got in position at the back door and waited for phase two to start. We couldn't physically get in the building unless we were invited in. Just as everyone started to relax, phase 2 kicked in, Thalia came running down the street holding Jorge over her head and threw him into the front door. It broke down, " Come in" he yelled and then Thalia grabbed him again and ran him back up the street.

We had to move fast. We got inside, incapacitated the man and his wife. " Quick, there isn't much time left, give him your blood" Eric said.

That's when the missing piece of the puzzle fell into place. Eric had given Iskander some of his blood, that's how he knew about this.

" You bastard! " If it hadn't been for the fact Iskander needed me I would have fought Eric right then and there. Oh, I would have lost, but that wouldn't have stopped me. I ripped open my wrist and grabbed Iskander's head. He was unconscious but I reached into his mind and willed him to open his eyes, suck and swallow.

" You have to drink this honey, I am sorry" he grabbed my wrist and drank. When the blood had taken effect, Eric glamored him so he wouldn't remember what happened. This all takes longer to tell than it did to take place. We were out the back window just as the S.W.A.T. team was coming up the stairs. They arrived at the scene to find Iskander putting the unconscious man in flexi cuffs and reading him his Miranda rights. Iskander was going to be a Hero.

When Eric and I landed in his back yard, I came out and confronted him " Why did you do it? " I asked.

" Do what?" he answered.

" Don't be coy, why did you give him your blood?" I asked.

He didn't bother to deny it. He knew I knew. I could feel him floating around in Iskander.

" leverage" he answered. Obachan and I had been getting good at our little "chess matches" with Eric. I could see where he needed something to keep in check. I hate to admit it but I ws getting a little big for my breeches these days.

" How did you even get him to drink it? He would never drink it willingly" I was pissed. Of course Eric had just glamored him.

"Why did you help him?" I demanded. Eric didn't do this out of the goodness of his heart.

" Not much leverage if he is dead, now is there? Besides, you are going to thank me for my assistance by giving me an equal share in your construction company. "

I nodded, it was the least I could I do. He had helped Iskander after all. I know when to fold my cards.

"I am going to get changed, then we have to go bail Thalia and Jorge out" he said. Then he called over his shoulder "if you can feel me, you can feel the rest of it, can't you?"

" I will wait out here" I looked up at the starless sky and felt the appearance of a new sign on on the road of my existence. I'd seen this sign at other pivotal moments. It read " You are now leaving Before, welcome to After".