Notes:

- Sequel to the fics For You, In The Daylight and Without You. You can read all of them here.
- Sorry, I couldn't resist using the garden plot 😍
- In case anyone is wondering the song I picked for their wedding dance is More Than Anyone by Gavin DeGraw. I just thought it fits them really well.


Kamilah

A couple of days had passed since the failure of the debut party. Amy couldn't be more distant and hurt, even if all the misfortunes of that night weren't Kamilah's fault directly.

When she arrived home from work that night, the girl was still on the couch wearing an oversized t-shirt and watching a TV show. Empty ice cream containers and Cheetos packages were lying on the coffee table. An antique and rare coffee table Kamilah bought decades ago in an auction. That was a major red flag that she needed to do something urgently to fix the situation her wife.

After a quick shower, Kamilah went to the kitchen and prepared dinner. Mac n' Cheese. With all the food in the world, Amy seemed to enjoy that above anything. Not even the fanciest restaurants she visited could change her mind. Respecting that, Kamilah prepared a more refined version of that dish.

Amy was quite surprised to see her in the kitchen.

"You're cooking," she pointed. "Aren't we ordering?"

"Not tonight," Kamilah told.

The girl sat at one of the counters to watch her add the final touches to the dish.

"Mac n' Cheese?! You find it distasteful."

"But you love it, don't you? I'm learning from your tastes I guess."

Amy silenced and look at her in disbelief.

"Wow, we have been ordering for weeks. We never have time to cook something nice. Are you sure you're alright?"

"Absolutely, Amy. I was just thinking, we have all the time in the world. We should make the best of it. That's why we need to start changing some habits."

"Like what?" Amy asked.

"Let me see," Kamilah took her cell phone from her pocket and handed to her wife. "This is my schedule from now. I'm not working over 8 hours a day or traveling so often. I need to spend more time with you."

A smile finally lighted up Amy's pretty face. Her green eyes sparkled with joy.

"I... I'd like that."

"And so do I," Kamilah placed a kiss on her lips. "There's something else."

"What is it?"

"I'll show you tomorrow."

As she predicted, Amy was curious for the rest of the night, trying to guess what other change Kamilah could be planning for their lives.

"Are we... buying a boat?" She attempted a guess.

"No," Kamilah furrowed her brows confused. "Why? Would you like that?"

"I don't know, I'm just guessing."

She turned off the lamps, but she still could sense her wife awake and intrigued, even in the dark.

"Are you finally letting me adopt a cat?" Amy grinned. She had been begging for that in months. Kamilah always postponed with the excuse they spent too much time away from home.

"Uh... no," Kamilah sighed. "But I'll think about that too. I promise."

She kept it a surprise until lunch time, when she texted Amy requesting her presence at their house in Hamptons.

"Meet you there," she added.


Amy

Everything about Amy's debut party had gone terribly wrong. Especially the hangover, that felt way worse now she was a vampire, when she woke up in the morning. And also the flashbacks of her arguments with Kamilah.

"God, I should've waited until the Awakening Ball just like everyone else."

She still couldn't sit down and talk things out with her wife for the following couple days. Not until she was able to fully calm down and process her feelings. Maybe she acted too harsh. Kamilah always hated being away from home for too long. She made sure of calling all the time to check how she was doing. She'd also surprise her with gifts from all her trips. That realization made Amy suddenly feel extremely guilty.

"I'm a horrible wife," Amy lamented drowning herself in ice cream.

Kamilah was the one to raise the peace flag. She cooked them dinner. Her favorite meal. Her own version of it, at least. She always wondered how Mac n' Cheese could be Amy's all-time favorite dish. In the end, she apologized and promised she'd be spend less time working and traveling, dedicating herself more to their marriage. That was enough to soften Amy's heart, but Kamilah still had another surprise.

It was about lunch time when she texted her asking her to go to their Hamptons' house. Amy quickly grabbed her car and started driving, wondering what she could be planning.

"Okay," Amy said when she arrived, "I'm here but... what's the matter?"

"Follow me," Kamilah ordered. She walked to a green area they had outside the house, surrounded by trees but rather empty. "Isn't it a perfect place for a garden?"

Amy opened a huge grin. Kamilah always dreamed of having a garden on her own and now she was able to walk in the sun, she finally could.

"That's right! It has always been your dream."

"I was thinking we should dedicate more time doing things we love."

For a few minutes, she heard as her wife gladly explained her plans for the space. Then, she had something else to show her inside the house.

"Kamilah," Amy's eyes went wide in surprise. "You really bought... a piano?!"

"You said you've always wanted to learn," Kamilah sat down at the piano by her side. "I'd be more than glad to teach you."

"You never told me you could play!"

"Well, it has been a few centuries."

She started playing the first notes of the song they picked for the first dance as a married couple. The way her fingers moved graciously, hitting every note with perfection and her sweet low voice, singing along with the melody, made Amy's eyes fill with tears.

"That was not supposed to make you cry," Kamilah stopped.

"I know," Amy smiled and wiped off the tears from her face. "But it was just... wonderful."

"Enough for you to forgive me for the last few days?"

"Kamilah, I... I should be the one to apologize for the way I acted. It wasn't your fault."

"Amy, I'm truly sorry," Kamilah sighed. "You died in my arms, I can't bear the thought of losing you again. This is why I want to protect you and make sure you're safe all the time."

"I understand," Amy spoke. "But I'm no longer frail and vulnerable as before, you know. I need to learn from my new powers and instincts."

"I won't lie to you, Amy. Being a vampire can be amazing, but it also can be a disgrace. It can change and destroy you. It can turn you into your worst self. I don't want you to go through the same experiences I did."

"I won't, trust me. Now regarding the darkness…"

Amy finally revealed the two occasions where she saw a dark version of herself, capable of killing her own wife.

"I told Lysimachus and we both believe they're unreal and could be produced by…"

"The First Vampire," Kamilah completed.

Amy had tears in her eyes again when she finished her story.

"I would never do anything to hurt you. You know that, right?"

"Of course," Kamilah pulled her closer to her body, embracing her tightly. "Whatever that bitch is up to, we'll fight together."

With her face buried on Kamilah's shoulder, Amy let out a muffled laugh.

"What?"

"You said 'bitch'."

"Yes," Kamilah laughed too, caressing her hair, "I did."


Lysimachus

After waking up in the morning after the party, Lysimachus locked himself alone inside his apartment, ashamed of his own actions. Not only he got very drunk, but he ended up in bed with two women, one of them being Priya.

He'd check his answering machine and his messages at every thirty minutes, waiting for an answer from Ivy. Or a text from Katherine. But there was nothing.

Loneliness had never been a problem for him, but he truly desired to have someone who he could share his theories and suspicions.

"Hey," Adrian said as he entered the office. "I was starting to wonder what the hell you were. I barely saw you at the party."

"Oh well," Lysimachus sighed, "let's not talk about the party."

"So why are you here for?"

"I've been training with Amy and she has shared some of her latest visions with me. Together with the stuff I heard from Balthazar... I think the First may be back."

"What?" Adrian sat in front of him, reading carefully all his notes. "When the sap of the tree rests in the blessed chalice... the First shall walk again... Oh my god."

"I tried to make sense of these words but..." Lysimachus told, "nothing comes to my mind."

"What if the 'blessed chalice' is actually Amy, this generation's Bloodkeeper, and the 'sap of the tree' is any vampire's blood? Kamilah's blood when she Turned her?"

"Makes sense. But did we ever find her tomb?"

"I had some clues," Adrian told. "With the help of Serafine, I came to the conclusion she was there all along, inside the tree."

"And assuming she's free, where she could be right now?" Lysimachus wondered. "I mean, she spent over two millennia inside that damn tree. It's not like she'd know how to catch a plane or even speak our language!"

"We need to pay attention to all vampires, all over the world."

"How do we do that?"

They called the most appropriate person who could help them with that task, Lily Spencer. Most of the vampires from all over the world were part of the Fangbook, her social network. Including from Europe and the Five from Japan.

"Lily, send them a warning," Adrian ordered. "Any unknown vampires sightings must be reported to us. We need to be aware."

Then, he went to his desk to make a call.

"According to my friend Elias, no one has been seen around Mydea since we destroyed the Order's compound. Only my researchers when they extracted those samples."

"Guys..." Lily was pensive for a second. "If she has this connection with Amy, her first impulse would be to come to find her, right? What if she's already headed here somehow?"

"We have to pay attention. Any new vampires in New York must be carefully studied by The Council."

Lysimachus quickly had two people in mind. Rheya, Kamilah's new employee, and Nadine, the female vampire he slept with. He'd be investigating them by himself before taking extreme measures.

He set a dinner with Rheya first, with the excuse he'd like to interview her before the voting process with The Council. She showed up just in time, wearing a business suit. That woman was extremely gorgeous. She radiated confidence and kindness. He wasn't able to notice that so well at the party.

"How were you Turned?" Was his first question.

"I lived with my husband and daughter at a small village in Greece," she told. "A king was willing to take possession of our lands. Most of our people got slaughtered, including my family. Gaius Augustine found me and Turned me."

Rheya wouldn't break eye contact for a single moment, or exhibit any signs that suggested she could be lying.

"Gaius... what did you think of him?"

"A real maniac. I deeply despise that man for not letting me join my family in death. Only to use my pain to turn me into my worst self, but... when I noticed what I was getting into, I resisted. I escaped."

She couldn't help letting her emotions show telling this last part of her story.

"And then you spent centuries in Europe, until the Order caught you?"

"Exactly. I was tortured, humiliated and..." she broke down in tears. Lysimachus sighed, feeling bad for submitting that poor woman to those questions.

He apologized and offered her a tour around New York. She was mesmerized by the buildings and attractions the city had to offer.

"The Phantom Of The Opera," Rheya said, reading a flyer about the current attractions playing at Broadway.

"Are you a fan?" Lysimachus asked.

"I find it amusing and strangely familiar. A mysterious creature, living in the shadows, who mentors a young artist he becomes fascinated with."

"Fascinated? The man develops an obsession."

"That's a way to see it. Maybe he believed they could've accomplish something greater together. A real masterpiece."

"A real tragedy, you mean."

Rheya stared at him serious for a second. That very same look that brought him chills at the party. Then, she grinned playfully.

"Hey," she patted him on the shoulder. "I was just toying with you, you're always so tense. He sorta reminds me of Gaius himself, don't you think?"

"Yeah," Lysimachus relaxed and smiled too, "the obsession he had with my sister. It was very similar."

They spent the next hour joking and chatting about their favorite books and movies. Nothing about Rheya indicated danger.

There was only one option. Priya's friend.


Kamilah

They had barely started to enjoy their timing together when Kamilah had to stop and answer her cell phone that was ringing insistently, even thought she told at the company she didn't want to be contacted. For her surprise, it was Amy's mother. She was headed to New York to meet them.

With everything that was happening recently, Kamilah had forgotten about that one detail. The detail Mrs. Parker was familiar with her nature.

"What?!" Amy asked when she told. "How does she know?! I mean, I never told her anything!"

"I don't know," Kamilah was focused on the road back home. "Didn't you let any details slip?"

"No, I'm pretty sure. She'd be deadly worried if I told. You know how paranoid and overprotective my parents can be."

Kamilah was pensive for a moment. She remembered the papers Serafine gave her. The Bloodkeeper abilities could be passed from mothers to their daughters. Now it all started to make sense. Now she knew why Mrs. Parker hated her from the beginning.

"It explains a lot of things," Amy said. "When I was a child she had those moments were she'd become distant. Sometimes she'd spend hours locked in the bedroom."

"I'm surprised how she allowed this marriage to happen. I mean, she probably saw... things about me. Things I've done in the past."

Amy cracked into laughs.

"Hey, this isn't funny!" Kamilah frowned, quickly blushing and trying to hide an embarrassed smile. "Okay, maybe it is. But not in a good way."

They arrived shortly after Mrs. Parker. Kamilah invited her to the penthouse and prepared some tea. That conversation promised to be intense. In the living room, Amy was sitting on the couch in front of her mother, showing some discomfort.

"So Mrs. Parker," Kamilah decided to break the tension, "what brings you here?"

"Amy hasn't been really answering my calls or properly replying my texts," the woman accepted the cup of tea Kamilah offered. "I came here to check how she's doing."

"I'm sorry," Amy said. "I just have a lot going on right now. There's my job at the company and I've been focused on... my training."

"You're a vampire now."

"Y-Yes. How do you feel about it?"

Kamilah decided to leave mother and daughter alone. That conversation should be private between them. She locked herself in her home office, remembering her own mother. She wondered how she'd feel about the path both of her children followed in life. Would she ever forgive them for everything they had done? For what they had became?

One thing she was sure, her mother would have loved Amy. No one could dislike that girl. She had something magical in her personality and in that bright smile. She was able to gain the affection of everyone she met.

"Kamilah?" Mrs. Parker knocked at her door some time later. Her eyes suggested the conversation with Amy was full of emotions. "Can we talk for a moment?"

"Sure," Kamilah pointed at the chair in front of her desk. The woman sat down and sighed, thinking of her words.

"First of all, I'd like to thank you for saving my daughter's life. Even though you had to Turn her."

"I... I would give my life to protect her. I apologize for not noticing earlier she was in trouble. Trust me, Turning her was the last of my options."

"I know."

There was an awkward moment of silence. Looking into Amy's mother eyes, Kamilah wasn't sure of her perceptions about her anymore. The fact she had access to her entire past made her feel very vulnerable.

"So, you're a Bloodkeeper," she spoke. "Like Amy."

"I wasn't familiar with the term until now," Mrs. Parker told. "But yes, I've had these visions since early and so did my daughter. This is why I was concerned for her safety."

"Especially when she got involved with me."

"Exactly."

Kamilah closed her eyes, remembering Amy's mother reaction since the very first moment they met. She had all the reasons in the world to fear her, to feel disgusted and wish for a different future for her daughter.

"I'm not proud of who I used to be, or the things I've done in the past. However, I can't change it. Everyday I have to face the guilt. I hope you know, Mrs. Parker, I'm an entirely different person now. And Amy did help me. She makes me want to be better everyday."

The corners of the woman's mouth curled up in a small smile. She placed her hand on Kamilah's in reassurance.

"I can't say I accept it, but I'm not judging you. Not anymore. I can see that. I can see how Amy has grown with you, Kamilah. I can see how happy you make her. This is why I'm willing to give you a chance."

"I appreciate that."


Amy

"How do you feel about it?"

That was probably the hardest question Amy had to ask her mom. She never had a good relationship with her. Since she was little, Mrs. Parker was a distant and closed parent. Sometimes she felt unloved, rejected by the woman who brought her to life.

The conflicts between them intensified when Amy became a teenager. Her mother was excessively protective and mistrusted her actions. One of the reasons why she wanted to leave their small town and explore the world. She wanted to escape the suffocating environment of her home. And she wanted to prove her wrong. She wanted Mrs. Parker to know she was capable of living on her own, doing what she loved.

"I can't say I'm happy," her mother said. "But otherwise, you'd be dead. I couldn't lose you, Amy. You're the most important thing in my life."

A small spark of anger appeared in Amy's heart. Somehow she felt betrayed. If she had been told about the visions, about what they were since early, she'd be prepared. She'd be stronger.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked, grinding her teeth. "Y-You always knew it! You had visions and you hid it from me. Instead, you... you pushed me away. You made me feel unloved. How could you?"

At this point, she was already standing up with tears in her eyes and clenched fists.

"Amy..." her mother grabbed her shoulders, looking deeply into her eyes. "I wanted to protect you. When I noticed you were faded to experience those visions too, I... I was scared for you."

"What about dad? Does he know?"

"Yes, he does. For years he supported me, helping me to find all kinds of treatments, medication, therapy... Needless to say it was useless."

Amy stopped for a moment, trying to process what she was hearing. Most of her life, her father was all she had. During her mother's crisis moments he'd do his best to comfort her and keep her distracted. He'd assure her that her mom was experiencing a strong headache or stress due to work. He was also a liar.

She let out a small ironic laugh.

"Great," Amy shook her head in denial. "My whole life is a lie."

"It doesn't have to be," Mrs. Parker grabbed both of her hands, "not anymore."

In silence, she heard her mother's stories about her dreams and visions. It all started with a cave and a tree, the mysterious woman and her two soldiers. Long before Amy moved to New York, Mrs. Parker already knew Adrian Raines and Kamilah Sayeed, without even knowing her daughter would accidentally become so close to them.

"Sometimes I wonder if it's fate," she finished. "If all of this has a bigger purpose. For me and especially for you."

"I wonder about that too," Amy agreed. "Especially now my abilities have... expanded."

After telling her about The First Vampire, she closed her eyes and she could hear her mother's thoughts. She was hurt, traumatized by those visions. She carried an immense guilty and regret for keeping them a secret, wondering how different Amy's life could have been. There was only one thing she desired in that moment... forgiveness.

"I'm sorry, Amy. For all I've done. I love you more than anything in this world and I only intended to keep you safe. And I'm sorry for being so intolerant about your relationship with Kamilah in the beginning. Once I got to know her, I figured out she's not the monster from my visions."

"That's okay, mom. I'd have probably done the same in your place. Most of the time I kept my visions a secret too. I understand why you did it."

Amy embraced her mother tightly, catching a glimpse of a memory from when she was pregnant with her. How she chose her name, meaning 'beloved' and how she'd sing for her. A tear ran down across her cheek. For the first time, she felt so connected to her mom as most of the daughters were.

"Is it..." her mother started sobbing too, "is too late to make it up for our lost time?"

"Not at all, mom," Amy smiled.

"Good, I'm going home and I'll be sending you some journals and drawings I kept from my visions."

"Thank you so much, it'll be a great help."

After Mrs. Parker left, all Amy wished for was to cuddle with her wife in bed. Kamilah patiently listened while she told her everything about her conversation with her mom.

"I feel better know, you know?" She said. "All my life I felt so unloved and rejected, but now I know I was wrong. She loves me, Kamilah. And I guess she's starting to like you too."

"Really?" Kamilah sighed. "Yet, I don't feel any less embarrassed to know your mother can look at me and access my memories. It's still intimidating."

She couldn't help but laughing again. Her wife eventually stop fighting against her own smile too.

"I feel like a weight has been removed from my chest now I've forgiven her and I was thinking..." she paused, raising her head and facing Kamilah. "I'd like to start a family on my own someday."

"Oh. Someday?"

"Soon?"

"Soon as...?"

"As in the next couple years? Like when we solve things regarding the First Vampire or when I'm completely adjusted to my powers?"

Kamilah took a moment to respond. Then, she kissed her forehead and pulled her closer to her chest again.

"It think I'd love that," she finally said.


Lysimachus

After solving things with her wife, Kamilah had finally decided to make it up to her brother too. Amy had told her about the visions and hearing his version of the facts, she agreed with his suspicions.

"How do we find her?" She asked. "She could be anywhere."

"This is what I'm trying to figure out," he answered.

The meeting with Nadine was nothing but a disaster. She was just a young foreign vampire, lost and confused, who was being quite mentored by Priya, what wouldn't probably go well. There wasn't a single part of her that indicated she could be a vampire goddess. Lysimachus took her to the Shadow Den, Jax would probably provide her the guidance she needed.

Kamilah followed him to the warehouse he turned into a personal training center. It was time for another combat lesson with Amy.

"Kamilah," the girl smiled in excitement to see her, "you decided to join us?"

"Yes," she cracked her knuckles, "my twin brother's technique has some weak spots. You don't want to get them for yourself."

"Teach me your ways," Lysimachus mocked her, master."

They had just started training with daggers. He taught Amy some basic moves, but she would easily become bored and beg for more complex stunts.

"Okay then, Kamilah and I will be doing a little demonstration for you. Then, we can discuss together the moves you should learn."

"Hell yeah, that will be awesome!"

Amy pulled a chair and sat down to watch as Lysimachus and Kamilah positioned themselves for a small, harmless combat.

Lysimachus waited. He wouldn't strike first. He knew how Kamilah would easily deflect that blow and counter-attack.

"Well, brother," she teased, "afraid much?"

"No, just being honorable. Ladies first."

They continued to move in circle, facing each other. His sister's gaze was deep and intimidating. Though he was a psychic and a skilled fighter, he could never predict what she was up to.

Lysimachus made the mention of a move, what triggered a reaction from Kamilah. As she placed herself in a defense position, he drew his daggers and attempted to strike.

"Too close," she smirked, ducking and sweeping his legs out from under him.

As he fell on his back, Kamilah's daggers were already pointed to his neck.

"Witchcraft," Lysimachus complained. "It's the only explanation for this abnormal speed of yours."

"Don't be a cry baby," Kamilah continued to brag. "It's called practice and discipline."

None of them saw Amy coming from behind, locking her arm around Kamilah's neck. Though she was caught by surprise, she had no difficult to free herself.

"Nice one, Amy," she complimented. "You must analyze and take advantage of the situation. I'm proud, but now... disarm me."

Amy tried all the techniques she learned from both Kamilah and Lysimachus, but her wife wasn't make it easy for her.

"Get creative," Kamilah suggested. "Just like you've done. Sometimes technique isn't enough."

The girl was focused on Kamilah's hands. On her daggers. Dodging her attacks but with no clue how to disarm her.

Kamilah moved forward to strike one more time, but this time her daggers flew away from her hands, hitting the nearest wall.

"W-What... How did you..."

"I didn't do anything," Amy said.

"Of course you..."

Lysimachus entered the fight, lunging forward for a surprise attack at his sister in law and test her reflexes. He couldn't get any close. Intense balls of energy that came out from her hands, sent him and Kamilah flying across the warehouse.

"Oh my god," Amy covered her mouth in shock. "Are you guys okay? What have I done?!'

Stunned, Lysimachus and his sister exchanged a concerned look. Never in his 2065 years of life he had seen a vampire with those powers. Especially a newly-Turned.