::Sigh:: I work so hard . . . =) The reviews will come in, I just know it. ::Thinks happy thoughts:: Hehehe. Anyway, here comes another chapter, longer than most of my others.

Blaise: You are always so eager for more chapters! So funny. Thanks for your support, please keep reading.

plot-less: Yeah, the reviews are a little lacking, but it's okay. I work hard for my few supporters. =) And for those who don't review, whether they like it or not. Thank you for reviewing. I like to portray Monroe as a jerk . . . my bitter feelings toward men at the moment, I suppose. I hope this chapter shows a softer side for you. It'll take a while for a good Monroe transition, since he's so stuck up, but maybe we'll see one.

Adelaide E.: I like the idea of a good Monroe ass-whooping by Tala. She almost got her chance when they were in the mangroves a few chapters ago. Gives me some ideas though, so we'll see. Hopefully you'll like his attitude in this chapter better.



*Chapter 10*



Dropping her head to the cool counter-top, Tala shifted the barstool to get more comfortable.

"I don't think so." Monroe took the seat out from under her so that she barely caught herself. "We're not done yet."

She started to do her puppy whine. "Come on . . . I've been up for twenty-six hours!" She pointed up at the comical cat clock, its eyes shifting and tail wagging with the seconds. The hands indicated that it was going on six o'clock in the morning. "And my sleep wasn't that good the other night because of *your* snoring!"

He only shrugged his shoulders, going back to his seat across from her. "It was your idea to work on this until we had it figured out." She persisted with her eyes. "Let's go over what we have so far."

She mumbled something obscene, readjusting her seat. "Nothing. That's what we have. A snitch told Daybreak that she was valuable for the Night World side in the Millennium Battle, especially if they lose the last Wild Power. There's nothing in the prophecies about her, and she's too young to be the last Wild Child. She's half-witch, therefore giving her some power, but we've never seen her do anything to prove that." She sighed, leaning her head on her hand. "Is there anything you remember about her as a baby?"

He rolled his head back, cracking his neck. "Let's see . . . As far as I can remember, she never showed anything significant to power. Her name, Vesta, means 'Guardian of the sacred fire.' I know Adonia and Charles picked a fire name, because she had fire in her eyes when she was born."

Tala laughed. "It's still there. There's no evading them."

"You're telling me." He ran a hand through his hair.

"But there's so many fire names. I wonder why that one stood out. I mean, I can't remember the last time I heard that name anywhere."

"Adonia said the name came to her in a dream. Our grandmother told her the baby was born for the name."

"Sounds like a vision to me." She began to pace the room. "Well, I doubt her name is going to show us anything." She stopped in front of the calendar on the wall next to the stove. Christmas Eve. She could almost taste the dinner her mother would make. Too bad she couldn't be there.

"Go take a nap." He was standing, piling the papers they had been going through. "I need to feed anyway. I'll wake you up in an hour or so, since she'll be getting up soon."

Tala almost ran to her room, making sure he didn't change his mind. Closing the door, she began to shift. The only way she'd be able to get a decent hour's worth of sleep was if she was in her wolf form. Shaking out her fur, she hopped onto the mattress. She dug at it with her paws, making a comfortable spot amidst the comforter. Unfortunately, she didn't have her opposable thumb, so she had to use her teeth to pull back the sheets, snuggling securely underneath them. It was almost dark enough to block out the rising sun.

Just as she was drifting away she heard the door open. She gave a light growl, warning the visitor that she wanted to sleep. Hearing the footsteps, she sniffed the air, sensing that the person crawling in her bed was Vesta.

The little girl cuddled up to her, hugging her warm body close to the wolf. Tala settled back with a sigh as a tiny hand began to scratch her belly. This girl knew exactly what she needed.

Falling to sleep, she felt an unbearable happiness filling her soul, knowing somebody loved her the way she was. Her last thought slipped out as her dream took over.

*Too bad Monroe doesn't . . .*



Standing in the doorway, watching the little girl laying with the wolf, Monroe winced. Tala didn't guard those last few thoughts. He knew she didn't mean for him to hear it, but with the soulmate connection and his strong psychic abilities, it was really hard to miss. Not to mention, she hadn't known he was standing there.

He sulked off to the living room, leaving Vesta and Tala to their nap. He sat on the couch. He didn't really feel the need to feed at the moment. Cartoons were wacking each other with mallets on the television, but he didn't seem to take it in. All he could think about was her.

Her beautiful honey-colored hair with its curious white lines. Those stunning green eyes just asking for trouble. He sank further into the couch, his heart torn between her and his past. Of course he wanted to love her, she was his soulmate. She was gorgeous beyond means, and her attitude was fierce. She was a fighter with a softness for the underdog. But she was a wolf.

He cringed. He didn't mean to, but it came anyway. Not so much revulsion or disgust, more like hateful irritation. All of the wolves he had ever met were as dumb as a box of rocks. Put them all together, they might be able to find their way out of a paper bag. Yes, they were loyal to the side they fought for, but they were also the greatest casualties. And they had caused him so much pain . . .

*But she's different,* a part of his mind, the sensible part, whispered. *Get over your foolish pride and accept her for who she is, not what she is.* It was funny, the voice sounded just like his sister's, which he hadn't heard in ten years . . .

He glanced over to his side to see her sitting beside him. He sighed. "I fell asleep, didn't I?"

She nodded. Her long locks of mahogany hair draped over her shoulders, eyes the same color of his own looking at him cynically. "You're an idiot, you realize that?"

"Yes, your daughter brought that to my attention yesterday, thank you." He directed his position toward her. "Is that the only reason you're here? To remind me that I don't know how to live my life?"

She shook her head, chuckling. "Look at what you've become. Arrogant, confused, blind."

"I've heard arrogant, but blind is new. Please explain." He set his head on his hand.

"You can't see how great everything is around you. All you see is yourself and the views that you've set. Tala, for example. She is amazing. I can't believe you're so lucky to receive such a great soulmate."

"Great? She's a damn wolf! I see that as misfortune."

"See, that's how you're blind. It doesn't matter that she's probably the greatest woman to enter your life, since me, that is." She gave him a knowing smile. "Okay, maybe arrogance runs in the family. Anyway, you're too stuck in the past to see that she's unlike your ideas of a werewolf. She's bright, sarcastic, well, she's me as a shifter."

This was his turn to laugh. He got up, walking around the couch. "You don't think I know that? I just can't go back to when I was an idealistic kid, thinking everybody's okay until they do something wrong! You were killed by one of them." He pointed toward the bedroom. "Or did you forget that?"

She stood, glaring right into his eyes. "No, I was killed by the Night World for wanting to live my own life, and because of that my whole family died. Had we been killed by other witches would you have hated yourself?"

He looked away, knowing she was right. "I can't forget the pain. I had nothing, except for Vesta, and I couldn't take care of her."

His sister set a hand on his shoulder, leading him to the open bedroom door where his niece and his soulmate lay sleeping. "Look at that." She pointed at the protective way Tala held Vesta with her arms, her muzzle set on her chest. "Sure, all you have is Vesta, and you can take care of her now. But what you don't realize is that you have Tala, as well, and she loves that little girl as if she were her own niece. I couldn't ask for two better people to look after my daughter."

He smiled, turning to her. "Why do you have to make so much sense?"

She shrugged. "Who knows? I know it won't happen overnight, but try to see her as the person she is, Monroe. I love you, and whether she says it or not, she loves you, too. Before you know it, you'll feel the same way."

She began to walk away, heading toward the front door. "By the way," she added, walking outside. "Keep looking into the name. That'll tell you what you're looking for. Granny told me to name her that for a reason."

"Wait!" He was jerked awake by the slamming of a door. Looking up, he saw a blond wolf with white highlights and eager forest eyes turning her head at him. Vesta had a hand on the door to the bedroom, which she had just closed.

The wolf trotted off toward the kitchen as Vesta sat next to her uncle. She looked him over, then smiled. "She came to see you, didn't she?"

"You're too smart for your own good." He looked toward the front door, almost expecting to see Adonia standing there, smiling. "Just like your mother." He grinned to himself. Goddess, he missed her.

"Did she talk any sense into you? I asked her to try, since I figured my pep talk didn't work."

He laughed, hard. "Meddling in my love life, geesh." He scooped her up and set her in his lap, holding her tight. "I love you, fire girl."

She hugged him back. "I love you, too, idiot."

"It's like an after-school special," Tala said, walking in on two legs, eating a piece of fast food chicken. "The morals we learn from my vampire uncle and the wolf caretaker. Wait, maybe it's a white trash talk show."

The little girl laughed, jumping from his lap and running to the open arms of Tala. They held each other close. Barely noticing, a grin grew upon his face.

Tala stood, pulling her hair back. "What the Hell is that smirk on your face for? Wipe it off and get your ass into the kitchen. We've got work to do."

He shook his head, chuckling. Yeah, she was just like Adonia. He smacked the back of her head playfully as he ran into the kitchen. The shifter ran after him, yelling something about staking him when the mission was over.