He ran his claws through her silken black hair, watching her sleep. He tried to be as gentle as he could be in order not to stir her. She had a long night. Her sudden display of affection for him last night had taken him by surprise, it was a long way from the arrogant lioness he had first encountered. Not that he had minded, of course.

He lifted her head up carefully with his hand, attempting to remove his now numb arm from underneath her. She was beautiful when she slept. She was always beautiful.

These past few days had held things in store for him that he couldn't have imagined when he first arrived here. In his quest to dismantle the remainder of the Sarafan, he had run into the head of the religious sect of their cult. He wasn't expecting one with magic such as his, a slight slip of weakness. It wouldn't happen next time. This city had seemed so strange to him in the beginning. It was vast and far too noisy for his taste. He had been glad to discover the relative calm of her home once she had brought him here. He supposed that the priest had wished him gone for good. Well, we'll just see. Kain was greatly anticipating the look on the coward's face once he returned to Nosgoth. Whenever that was.

And then her. What was he to make of her? She had frustrated him to no end at first with her apparent lack of cooperation in his needs. Everything he asked of her seemed to be a problem, an intrusion into her comfortable routine. Although, she hadn't exactly refused his needs last night.

He smiled as he felt her turn slightly in his arms. He let his hand trace over her hip, following towards her navel. She moaned softly in her sleep.

He had spent the better part of the early evening trying to sort through the emotions he had for her. She could be so alluring at times. She was intelligent enough to hold a conversation, even though their talks didn't always end on a friendly note. But her arrogance was enough to get her in trouble if she didn't know how to control it, although he was one to talk. She was honest with him, almost brutally so. Although, like him, she did not always find it necessary to reveal every little detail about herself, she had yet to outright lie to him. At least, as far as he knew. And it was that nagging point that stilled galled him. It was that point that drew him back from any foolish mistake his emotions could lead him to and reminded him that trust was not something to be handed out so quickly, despite the fact that she really gave him no reason to distrust her.

Suddenly he wondered if most of the attraction was simply due to his alienation about this place. She has been the only real conversation he has had for some time now. Perhaps she was just good company.

He chuckled. How cruel that would sound to some. To fluff off someone as nothing more then entertainment, a toy to pass the time with. But he never was known for his kindness and somehow he doubted that she was any different. In some moments, he believed he was nothing more then a buffer for her, someone she could use to ease her way into her own life as she made her break with her old ways. But at this second, his heart tormented him with the desire for something more. In their passion, he had wrapped himself up in the idea that there was a connection, some profound understanding between similar minds, if only for that night, if only it was only brought on by physical attraction. He had allowed himself that one indulgence, knowing fully well that by the next dusk his heart would freeze over again and remind him that he should know better than to care. If by some twist of fate they should reveal more to each other and come to know the other for their true selves, would he still find her so alluring after the mystery had been chipped away? Would she live up to the fantasy everyone builds in their heads when they first meet someone? Oh but she was so sweet when she wanted to be. Her personality was too tempting at times.

He mocked himself for such emotion, forcing himself back behind the impenetrable walls he placed between himself and others. Last time he had attempted companionship it didn't exactly work out how he had planned. It never did.

He at first didn't understand how she could make life so incredibly dull for herself. For one with such an aggressive personality, she appeared perfectly content with others holding control over her ways. She seemed almost to have enjoyed playing the pawn. Before their previous candid dialogue, he had almost believed that. He hadn't expected her to open up to him like that, to show such a weak point to someone who could easily use it against her. Perhaps she enjoyed the danger or maybe she just couldn't hold it in anymore. He wouldn't take advantage of it and he wouldn't punish her for being truthful with him. Honesty was so hard to come by.

She rolled to face him, nuzzling against his body. She felt so warm. He would have thought her still asleep if it wasn't for the feel of her hand caressing his chest. He ran his claws over the soft flesh of her back, gently raking against her skin, causing a slight shiver to go through her body.

He met her eyes as they opened. She blinked several times before adjusting to the harsh light of the evening sun as it shone through the curtains.

"What time is it?" she asked, her voice slightly hoarse.

"5:30."

"Oh that's too early," she groaned, arching her back to stretch out the stiffness before returning to his arms. "How long have you been up?"

"About forty minutes." he said, rather amused at her laziness.

"What have you been doing?" she asked as she stifled a yawn.

"Nothing really."

She glanced up at him, her hand continued to guide itself further down his body. "Just laying here, doing nothing?"

"Yes." She was making it hard for him to concentrate on their conversation with her current exploration. He took her hand in his as he leaned forward to kiss her, his body now over hers. She smiled as he pulled away, her hands running over his bare shoulders.

"Are you hungry?" she asked.

"Famished." he replied, brushing the hair from her face.

"K. I'll get us some food," she said as she slid out from beneath him. "You just stay there and...do nothing."

He grabbed her waist as she was about to walk away and pulled her back towards him. He whispered in her ear. "You weren't able to order me around last night. What makes you think you can now?"

She laughed before kissing him on the cheek and leaving for the kitchen.

He followed her from the bedroom, watching as she poured them each a glass of blood. After all this time with her, he still has yet to see her hunt. If it wasn't for her otherwise savage nature, she would almost appear too civilized for his taste.

He came up behind her, wrapping his arms around her as he pressed his body into hers, trapping her between him and the counter. She leaned back into his embrace, her hands caressing his forearms. She purred softly as she felt him kiss her neck, lightly grazing his teeth over her skin. She had felt so much of those fangs last night.

"You're wearing your new boxers I see," she said as she turned to hand him his meal. "Are they comfortable enough for you?" She hoped so, she spent enough money on them.

"Yes actually."

"I tried my best to guess your sizes," She smiled, watching him down the contents of the glass. "You look better without them though."

He glanced at her with mock surprise. "Really now?" His hands entwined themselves with the string of her silk robe, pulling out the knot holding it closed.

The sudden noise of a car pulling into the driveway and the honking of a horn interrupted him, causing him to momentarily consider ripping the throat out of their new visitor. He groaned as she pulled away from him to look through the window.

"Oh hell, it's him. Good timing Michael." she hissed, looking somewhat agitated. She hurriedly walked back to Kain, reaching up to quickly kiss him again before running off to dress herself.