Hey! Trial time! You know you've been wanting a new Trial for Ally, you have to admit it….

Disclaimer: I do not own Eidos, or Soul Reaver, or Blood Omen, or anything like that. I do, however, own Ally, Raevin, Vogel, and Ectoplasm.

~Raevin~

**********

Raevin slowly opened her eyes, and squinted against the glare of the sun coming in through the mouth of the cave. She turned her head slowly to one side, then the other, trying to get all of the kinks out of her neck. Reaching up, she grasped the rock wall with one hand and pulled herself up to a sitting position. She felt the pain in her right arm intensify, and she ground her teeth to keep from groaning.

She glanced around the cave, then carefully stood up and used the rock wall for support. Vogel was perched on a ledge right at the cave mouth, and Ectoplasm stood close to her. He nickered softly, and pushed his muzzle against Raevin's stomach. She smiled weakly, scratching him behind the ear and using him for support. "Where's Ally?" She asked, not expecting either horse or raven to answer.

"River." Vogel cawed. "Ally went to river." He screeched softly, then flew into the air and out of the cave. Raevin stared after Vogel and gave Ectoplasm a "I had no idea he could actually talk" look. Ectoplasm rumbled gently, then he and Raevin followed the black bird outside.

Vogel led Raevin and Ectoplasm down to the river, then up it a way. They came to a waterfall, as clean as the river it fed. Ally was sitting on a large boulder, gazing at the cascading water. Vogel flew down and landed beside her, and Ally glanced up when Ectoplasm whinnied.

"You're awake!" She exclaimed, jumping down from her rock and running to Raevin and Ectoplasm. Ally hugged Raevin tightly, then quickly released her when Raevin cringed. "Sorry." Ally apologized.

"It's alright." Raevin said. "It's just sore."

"I found a cave behind the waterfall." Ally began. "We can stay there a few days. I managed to get to it without touching the water."

Raevin thought for a moment. "You didn't try to get into the water? The sun doesn't hurt you, why should water?"

Ally fidgeted. "I didn't feel safe trying water without someone watching. Just in case it did burn." Vogel cawed from his perch.

"I'll watch you. I can pull you out if anything goes wrong." Raevin offered. I can't believe I just said that…

"Yes… I'd like that." Ally said, smiling. She led the way to the pool that the waterfall fed. She knelt by the bank and carefully slid her hand into the clear water.

Nothing happened. Ally took a deep breath, then put her other hand into the water. Still nothing. She removed her boots and jacket, kept her pants and shirt on, and slipped her entire body under the water's surface.

Raevin watched as Ally tested the water. She stiffened when Ally submerged herself, then relaxed when she saw nothing bad was going to happen. Ally: two. Vampire Weaknesses: zero. She thought to herself.

"Come on!" Ally's call shook Raevin out of her thoughts. Ally grinned and motioned for Raevin to join her.

Raevin shook her head. "No, I don't think so."

"Oh, come on!" Ally said, still grinning. She splashed water at Raevin, who shrieked in protest and ducked behind Ectoplasm. The white horse snorted and shook his head, pawing the ground a bit.

"I'd like to stay dry." Raevin said, sticking her tongue out. The pain in her right arm and shoulder had gone down a bit, and she couldn't help but think that the cold water would probably feel good.

Ally sighed and shook her head. She climbed out of the water, grabbed Raevin, and proceeded to drag her to the water. "Hey!" Raevin yelled, twisting and thrashing.

"Hold still, stop thrashing." Ally said, poking Raevin in the ribs. She grinned mischievously, then pushed Raevin into the water.

Raevin landed with a splash, and murmured thanks to Charles and Anna for somehow making her leather waterproof. She resurfaced quickly, coughing. "You little-" she said, looking for Ally. She had disappeared.

Strong arms wrapped themselves around Raevin's waist and pulled her deeper into the water. Raevin squirmed, then looked back at a snickering Ally. "Oh, relax. I'm not going to bite you." She said soothingly, nuzzling Raevin's neck. "And you've got to admit the water feels good."

Raevin sighed, keeping silent. She wasn't about to admit it, because it was true. "Alright, you win. I'll swim." Raevin finally said. Why fight a girl that had the strength of a vampire? That was lacking reasoning and common sense, no need to question it.

Ally smiled. "See? Was that so hard?" She asked. Raevin grumbled softly. Ally giggled, then rested her chin on Raevin's shoulder. "Don't be so grumpy."

"You aren't the one that was attacked by a piece of glass." Raevin pointed out.

"True." Ally said, nuzzling Raevin again.

Raevin shook her head slowly, then closed the front of her jacket. Wet, white shirts and girls do not mix well. Raevin thought. She stood still, letting Ally hold her as the water swirled around them.

The two girls spend the rest of the afternoon and early evening swimming and enjoying the temporary peace. Ectoplasm stood nearby, watching Raevin protectively and tensing up whenever she shrieked when Ally managed to sneak up on her. Vogel chattered constantly, but only Ectoplasm noticed. In fact, he seemed to be getting on the horse's nerves, because the white ghost stallion would bare his teeth at the bird, who would in turn caw back and click his beak.

When the sky had begun to adopt a rosy color, Raevin and Ally got out of the pool and traveled deep into the cave behind the waterfall. There, they stored their weapons. Ally helped Raevin weave a vine net to catch fish in, and Raevin helped Ally to repair her sword. Together, they strung the net out and were able to catch several large fish. Raevin managed to gut them with her sword, slipping on one and cutting the fish in half. Vogel appeared to laugh at Raevin when this happened, and she just threw the remains at him. "Eat that, bird, if you think it's so funny." Raevin had told Vogel, who cawed back with what sounded like a very rude comment. Ally cooked the fish, scales and all, over a fire and wrapped in clay. When the clay cracked open from the heat, the scales came with it, and they were able to eat the fish without having to skin them.

"Needs some spice." Ally said, snickering. Raevin just shook her head and continued eating.

***

"I'll take first watch." Raevin offered after they had eaten.

Ally shook her head. "No, I am. I can tell you're exhausted. You sleep. Besides, I'm part vampire, remember? I can stay awake much longer than you can."

"I can stay awake for three days straight."

"I'm willing to bet I can stay awake for three times that." Ally retorted. Raevin grumbled, seeing that there was no way to persuade the girl otherwise.

"Alright, you win. Wake me up in a few hours." Raevin said. She laid down, using her jacket as a blanket, and was soon fast asleep.

Ally smiled at the sleeping Raevin, brushing a lock of blonde hair behind an ear. "Sleep well." She whispered. She stood up, checking the area to make sure all was well, and made her way to the front of the cave to Ectoplasm and Vogel.

***

It was around 2 a.m., and Ally was still standing watch with Ectoplasm and Vogel. She had gone back to wake Raevin up, but seeing that her friend had been sleeping soundly, she decided against it and returned to keeping watch. She was wide awake, not even the slightest bit tired.

Ally was leaning against the rock wall of the cave when she smelled it; the unmistakable scent of a vampire. It was very faint, but she could still smell it. Vogel and Ectoplasm apparently knew it was out there as well. Vogel was puffing out his feathers in every which way, and Ectoplasm was fidgeting, baring his teeth, and laying his ears flat.

"Stay here, don't let anything past you." Ally whispered to Vogel and Ectoplasm. She retreated back into the cave to Raevin, who was still sound asleep. Ally knelt next to Raevin's sleeping form and gently shook her. "Raevin… Raevin, wake up. There's a vampire out there." Ally whispered.

Raevin stirred slightly. "What? What time is it?"

Ally squinted. "Can't tell time without the sun, dear. It's dark."

Raevin mumbled. She quickly got up, pulled her jacket on, then gathered up her things. She strapped her sword to her belt and held her lance tightly. "Let's see what's out there." Raevin said quietly.

The girls went back to the cave entrance, where Ectoplasm was baring his teeth at something out in the darkness. Raevin placed a hand on the horse's shoulder, letting his mind into hers. She was able to look through Ectoplasm's eyes, and she saw outlines of creatures in the darkness of the surrounding forests. They looked human enough, if you ignored the fact that they had claws on their hands. It was too dark for even Ectoplasm to make out what they wore.

"Yes, they're out there…" Raevin murmured to Ally. "I can't tell which clan they're from, but they're pretty close to human… except for the claws on their hands."

"Most of the vampires, no matter which clan they belong to, look fairly close to human." Ally whispered. "Sometimes, though, you can notice slight changes, like scale impressions or inhuman build or the like."

Raevin nodded. "What do you think we should do?"

"We can get into the water and hope they don't have boats." Ally offered. "Or we can wait here and hope they don't try to get behind the falls."

"Lord Raziel!" They heard a voice call from their right. "There is a cave behind this waterfall. Day will be upon us shortly."

"Alright." A deep voice replied. "Everyone! Into the cave! Do not fall into the water, because no one is going to risk fishing your corpse out!"

Raevin's breath caught in her throat. "Now what?" She asked, the hairs on the back of her neck rising and the fear in her gut causing the bile to rise.

"I don't know…" Ally replied. She touched Raevin's shoulder in an attempt to give comfort, and was probably looking for comfort for herself as well.