AN: Eek! So sorry that this took so long to get out. Life calls I guess. Well, that and the new Elizabeth Peters book. Has anyone ever read her? I wish someone would write fanfiction for her Amelia Peabody series but I'm too lazy to. Ah well. On to the thanks.

~Thank you to these fantastic, fabulous people who reviewed the story: Kitty_kat(short but infinitely sweet. Thanks hon!), Dark Princess (I'm glad you love it!), Empress Jade(Wow! Thanks! I'll write you a nicer thank you letter in a moment), Kris(Yipee! I'm looking forward to posting more!), ~Keller~( I love Cliffhangers so I'm afraid you'll have to deal with them quite a bit. To make up for them though, here:********, lots of stars!), and Keya(A three toed sloth? Eep! I think I'll just post this instead!)

Thank you all you sweet people! As always, Reviews are looked upon as the best possible things in the world, well, next to a really good book. I'll keep my plea short because I want to write some more before I get out of my writing spree! See ya.

Luvs,
Kael



Chapter 5:

"Lei, you realize that if this were to come from anyone other than you I would already be on the phone with a mental hospital. I'm still not sure I'm not going to." Lei raised an eyebrow at his friend and she threw her arms up in a gesture that said 'you can't blame me'. "I mean come on. How do I know that you and your brother aren't demented or something and just pretend you're vampires? I've heard there's a disease that makes people think that," she continued. Lei grinned at her, purposely exposing his canine teeth. He saw her eyes widen as he felt the changes come over him.

He knew exactly what she was seeing. Already strangely colored eyes becoming unearthly, the slight differences in his skin color and how his lips seemed to become fuller, redder in anticipation. Not to mention canine teeth which had been fairly normal, perhaps only a little sharper than usual, sharpen into needle points. She laughed nervously.

"Wow Lei, the monster look becomes you," she remarked. He laughed as well but his mind was on other things at the moment. Like how he hadn't fed since last night. And how with his senses heightened as they were, Avalon was looking more tempting than she had any right to be. **This is getting dangerous** he thought wildly, trying to reverse the effects. Only with difficulty could he force himself to change back, and even then his gums were tingling violently, almost to the point of hurting. His jaw ached horribly. He was going to have to feed really soon.

Lei sighed. "I'm going to have to blank you now. I can't allow you to know this," he said, just wanting to get it over with. He was about two inches from losing control. Two inches which Avalon was rapidly closing at the moment. He forced himself not to flinch away as she drew closer, her breath warm on his cheek as she studied him.

"So exactly how do these work?" she asked curiously, completely ignoring what he had said before. When he didn't speak she brought a finger up to his mouth. Alarmed, he pressed his lips together tightly. She looked coyly up at him through her eyelashes, tracing his bottom lip. "Do they need...stimulus or can you just do it any old time?" she questioned.

**Oh Gods,** he thought frantically. **Does she even realize what she's doing?** His breath was coming quicker now, and his heart was pounding. The tingling in his gums had turned into a roar.

"Don't play with me," he whispered. She leaned in closer, her mouth a bare inch from his.

"Why not?" she whispered back, staring into his eyes, a strange expression on her face.

"Because you might get hurt," he said. He hadn't realized that he was slowly leaning away until his elbows pressing against the bedcovers were the only thing keeping him upright. Scared at what he might do if this didn't stop soon, he added "Please," pleading with her, aware that desperation and something more was choking up his voice.

She sighed, long and slow like flower petals uncurling in the sun. Something flashed in her eyes and she pulled away to the end of the bed. Gratefully, Lei flopped back on the bed, taking a few seconds to calm himself down,listening to his heart pound. Carefully, he pushed himself back into a sitting position. Avalon refused to look at him, instead concentrating on a piece of abstract art that hung on the opposite wall. Aware that **something** had happened between them but not able to figure out what, Lei was silent for several minutes.

"I...I had better wipe you now," he said tentatively. She nodded, still watching the picture. Suddenly she turned to him, tears turning her eyes a luminous green that glowed like a cat's eyes in the dark. Guilty but not knowing why, he reached a hand out to her. He caressed her cheek, dimly aware of the fuzzy peach feel and look of it. He could almost smell the fruit ripening in the sun.

He pulled her to him, comforting her. A few seconds later she reached up with a hand to pull her thick dark hair away from her neck, baring it just a few inches from his face.

"You can do it if you want," she said, voice muffled by his shoulder. "I wouldn't mind. I want you to. And then you can block me or whatever." Lei hesitated, fighting the ache in his jaw that had returned full blast. She continued quietly. "It won't kill me will it?" He shook his head, unable to speak but knowing she would be able to feel the movement. "Then do it. I can tell that you want to."

He paused for a moment more, then lowered his head to her shoulder. Tentatively, he touched his lips to her neck, feeling her pulse beating under the fragile skin. Still uncertain, he cupped the back of her neck with one hand and kissed her again, in the hollow between her shoulder and neck. She sighed softly, resting her head on his shoulder. Her pulse had quickened suddenly under his touch.

Carefully, he trailed a line of kisses up to her jaw, then back down to where her pulse was strongest, aware that this would mean more than just a meal. But by now he had teased himself more than he could handle and felt his teeth sharpening once more. Giving in to instincts, he opened his mouth and pierced the skin over her pulse.

He felt her slender body stiffen in her arms, aware that it probably stung. He stroked her back gently to relax her. ~It will hurt more if you struggle~ he sent to her, aware that they were linked and so she could hear him. He felt almost a little disappointed, as if he had expected something to be there, some other connection, but it was missing. **What were you expecting Lei? The soulmate principle?** he sneered at himself. Everyone knew that that was just a load of crap Daybreakers made up to justify what they did with humans.

Avalon seemed to catch his thoughts and dreamily asked him ~What's the soulmate principle?~ She had relaxed completely in his arms now and her blood flowed sweetly inside him.

~It's this legend in the Nightworld. Supposedly everyone has one person in the world whose soul makes them whole. A load of rubbish if you ask me.~ She seemed to be thinking about this. He could sense her mind in bursts of color, thoughts racing through it like silver mermaids under leagues of water. Perhaps not soulmates, but something, he thought fuzzily. He knew she could sense his mind as well, which was definitely unusual.

~I don't think it's rubbish, just wishful thinking. I have to admit, I'd like to have a connection like that with someone~

Before he had time to register the underlying meaning of that statement, their peaceful world was interrupted by a loud "Ahem." He could see annoyance coloring her mind orange and knew that was probably what she was seeing in his mind as well. Reluctantly he pulled away, biting his tongue on all the scathing remarks that were burning to slip out.

"Am I interrupting something?" Ashyr asked from where he was leaning casually against the doorstop. Avalon backed away from Lei, straightening her clothes and flipping her hair over the two little bite marks that marred her neck.

"Yes, you are," Lei growled, licking his lips. Ashyr laughed musically and stepped into the room. Avalon shrank away from him slightly. She obviously was still a little afraid of him. But then, Lei thought with a sigh, she had always been rather uncomfortable around him.

"It seems to me that you should be mind wiping her instead of having a little midnight snack, little brother." Lei narrowed his eyes, knowing that for once his brother was right. That didn't mean he would admit it however.

"Shove it 'Shyr, I was getting to it." Ashyr shrugged.

"Whatever Lei. I don't believe you'll object however, if I stay to be sure. I know you at least would love it if your best friend knew about us."

"I don't see why she can't. There are no elders around to bother about it. No one cares, that's why we came here in the first place," he argued, knowing he was fighting a losing battle. Even he knew it was dangerous for everyone involved if they left her the way she was. He spoke again before Ashyr could roll off a list of reasons why they had to do this. "I know I know. I'm sorry Avvie, but I have to." He smiled sympathetically at her, willing her to understand. Reluctantly she nodded.

"I know, go ahead." Sighing, he brought his fingers up to her temples and stared into her eyes. He felt himself falling into them, kind of like falling into a pine tree except without the pain. He was in her mind, at least superficially, as he had been before. Again he could see her feelings like colors. Red-black fear threading through cool green calm and deep violet love that was almost the same color of his eyes. Carefully he reached in, ready to twitch her memories of this night away, pinched them like one would unspun wool and pulled. But it wouldn't come. Something was resisting but it wasn't her. Frowning in consternation, he tried again, wrapping his mind firmer around the memories and tugging.

This time agony spun through his mind like knives tearing through his body. Pitch black and fire red strips colored his vision, obscuring the salvation of Avalon's green eyes. Vaguely he heard himself gasping for breath, body doubled over on the bed but he was caught within his mind as waves of excruciating pain battered him from all sides. It seemed to go on forever until finally, black descended on his mind, bringing with it cool relief.