The gentle tap of heels on the wood of the Academy caught my attention. The woman appeared as she rounded the corner. Beautiful cinnamon and fire hair was pinned up into a braided bun, a long skirt of flowing rose colored silk and a diaphanous sleeved blouse covered her tiny body. She carried books in her arms, her large grey eyes were stressed. "Miss Barker" I said softly "may I carry your books for you?" "no thank you, Dr. Jekyll" I was surprised to see her here at the Academy, after she had been recommunicated within the church, I had not seen her around. Her companion, Samael, had said she preferred to keep her devotions in solitude now. Yet she was here. "I have not seen you for quite some time, Evalina" those once warm silver eyes were hard and cold "Henry, I-" "are your classes done for the day? It is obvious Blood has summoned you to teach" "they are" that cultured voice of her lacked the false British accent she used for mortal ears, she spoke with a mix of Old English, Germanic, and French-Burgundy accent. It was strange to hear even now, after so long of not seeing her. "would you like to join me for tea?" "it is unwise for unwed ladies to be alone with a gentleman" "tea here, then, it would be acceptable then, yes?" "with all the people around, yes" a tight smile came to her lips and I offered her my arm "I was pleased to hear of your return to England, Evalina, I hope you are doing better" the last time I had seen her she'd been delirious with fever, Consumption had wasted her body away to nothing and blood had tinted her lips. It had taken months of constant care and plenty of worrying nights where I thought we'd lose her. "I am doing much better, thanks in part to your diligent care, Henry" her smooth, gentle voice had a touch of thankfulness to it. "it was Samael who sent for me" "yes but you suggested we go to the seaside to heal" I smiled at her earning one of her rare, true smiles. She was a beautiful woman but a smile like this could make even a stoic beam. I placed my hand over hers "Evalina, since the last night I saw you I-" I almost could not form the words "you what?" her hand was cool and as a pleasant bubbling stream "I realized that I care for you. I know our match during Lupercalia went nowhere, but I wonder if perhaps we could see where life could take us if we combined our strength" her large silver eyes gleamed with surprise "I beg your pardon? Henry, you cannot honestly be asking such a thing" I guided her to sit on a bench in the garden "I remember how you always remind us the old ways are dying, Lady, and I realized that your place has been shrinking. You were used to the power of life and death, marriage and births. You controlled so much and had it slowly stripped from you. How terrible that must be, to watch our once powerful communities shrink so" "yes" her voice was breathless as she listened and I heard the barest shudder there "Evalina, what I am offering is your freedom. I know Samael keeps you shut away, I know he chains your strength and your power up, not to be seen. I want you to realize your full potential and the only way I can do this is with you by my side" I heard my true Castilian accent come out as I spoke with her. "Henry- I have sworn never to marry" "you swore when you were bound to an oath that has since broken" "broken?" "the moment they disdained you, tried to sacrifice you, it was over. You hold no vows to them" she looked down at her hands "Henry, I am not certain if I am for you. I have lived with Samael for such a long time and he-" "Samael is an old fashioned, prudish fool. You want love and passion in your life, Evalina, the freedom to do as you wish. Is that not what you desire most, dear lady?" she looked away "they never see what you want, do they? Only seeing their desires, using you as a pawn to get there" I took her hand "but I will not chain you down, my dear, I will help you soar" she looked up at me through her dark lashes "speak the words, Evalina, and I will speak to Samael about us" her rosebud mouth tightened but I saw she was contemplating it "I do not know if I can love you, Henry" "do you already have a gentleman?" "I am not certain, but- I do have feelings for him" "how long?" "excuse me?" "how long have you been seeing him?" "off and on for many years" I rubbed my thumb across her knuckles "Evalina, a man who has been seeing you off and on through the years, never staying constant, never giving you the support you need is not a man who is worth your time. He does not deserve your heart. Dear one, what you want and what you need are two things that are joined. How long has it been since someone held you in love?" "a few days ago." "him?" "yes, Henry, him." "who is he? A mortal? You know they fade too quickly for us" "not a mortal" "a warlock?" "Strigoi" I looked at her in surprise "Evalina, Strigoi are never stationary, they move around so much. You need to release anything other than desire for him. You need not to be with a Strigoi, they will only take from you. They are powerless to help you" she scooted away from me "Henry-" "please, Evalina, speak the words and I will do what is required" "what do you get out of this? If I say yes, what do you get?" "I get the love of the most beautiful witch I have ever seen" I brushed her jaw gently "I get to see her every day and know that she is mine to hold and to love. I am a lonely man, Evalina, for too long I have been without a partner. I want a partner in this life, one who is strong enough to take up the mantle I need from her" "was your Georgianna not strong enough?" "she was not, in all honesty. You are" "how can you tell?" "you went through the crucible most of our women would have perished to even look at. Yet you came out unscathed, how many can say the same?" I watched her contemplate my offer "you may speak with Samael, on one condition" "speak it, lady" "I set the terms, they are written down and signed in blood. Yours and mine. We hold each other to our vows" "that is acceptable, lady" I brought her hand to my lips and pressed a gentle kiss to it "I will call on Samael tomorrow morning" "early, Henry, he is oft working earlier than one thinks is possible" "and you know this-" "I do mostly night work coming in at the rise of dawn" I smirked "an industrious lady you are. Very well, I shall see you at dawn, Miss Barker" I brushed a kiss across her knuckle before I rose, leaving the lady in the gardens.

Author's note: I do not own any character that may pop up here, I only own my Evalina and the other OC characters which appear in her story