Lestat

The moment we entered New Orleans I sensed their presence. They were all here, something was definitely not right. I looked over at Buffy, she was looking around unconcerned. I could tell that she had not felt them.

Before we left I had arranged for a large amount of money to be given to Dawn. Also, using one of my many connections, I made it so she would no longer be harassed by social services. Buffy had not mentioned her sister so I took care of all this on my own accord.

I owned several properties in New Orleans so before we left I had arranged for one of them to be cleaned and redecorated quickly for our arrival. I picked a small flat that I have actually never been to before. It was far away from where Louis, Claudia, and I had spent our few happy years together. I wanted to ensure that no one would find us.

I was worried about Buffy. She seemed to have withdrawn into a shell. She had taken to simply staring out the window for hours, she reminded me slightly of Louis. I laughed silently at that thought. If you had asked me that a week ago I would have said that they were the most different two people could ever be. I think that she is still trying to come to grasps with her own metamorphosis, and sometimes I fear what she will become when she does.

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It was just as I had remembered. This city. It was two in the morning and the streets were still bustling, people hurrying too and fro. Strange sites everywhere assailed your eyes. Huge, ancient buildings loomed over of us, that along with the faint fog hovering just above the ground, created an almost eerie atmosphere. Perfect for such creatures of the night as us.

The car pulled to a stop. I had chosen this method of transportation so as not to overwhelm my newest fledgling. She had been turned over two weeks ago, and still had yet to drink the blood of a human. I had tried many times, but she refused each and every time, until she was so mad she refused almost every type of communication with me. The only thing she remained steady with her was, her wish to leave Sunnydale.

The driver opened the door, we stepped out. I took her by the arm and slowly led her into our home. The decorators had really out done themselves this time, it was amazing. A cross between a medieval castle, and modern times.

The colors of the place astounded my eyes. Reds, purples, greens, and blues. I looked over at her and she was spinning around slowly taking everything in.

"It's beautiful, she murmured." I simply smiled, maybe she was going to be all right I thought.

"Pick a room, I told her. Any one just say the word and it's yours." She looked at me wearing a huge smile, then took off. She ran quickly through the apartment opening every door and peering in ever closet, squealing whenever she made a new discovery. At around the third door she stopped dead in her tracks.

"This one, was all she said." I moved up behind her and looked in. I was a perfect choice, if a little strange for her. In the center of the room there was a large canopy bed. The room was shaped in the form of an octagon, instead of the usual square design. There was no furniture simply the bed.

"I feel like a princess, she told me as she walked around the room. Thank you, she told me after she had finished inspecting it. This isn't like me at all, she murmured, almost to herself." Before I could respond she wrapped her arms around me and buried her face in my chest.

As I looked down at her I realized how small she was, almost childlike. That was just a guise, I knew what she was capable of. However if you didn't know her you could mistake her for a young helpless girl.

I told her to get settled in, though that was almost laughable considering that we had no baggage, and she had just seen the entire house. I had given her a credit card, so now she mentioned to me that she would like to go shopping. I told her she could call our driver to take her down, since she was in a new town. With that I gave my good-byes and went off to find the others.

I was worried, it was not usual for us to gather in such large numbers, something must be happening. That had me very worried, very worried indeed.

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