Lights covered in dust hung from the ceiling in a long corridor that seemed to stretch on forever. Shades forever scarred by mould reached over bulbs that had seen too much use. Occasional drops of water fell from rafters running along the ceiling peppered a floor upon which many feet had trodden. Rats hid in dark shadows keeping out of the way as they scurried up and down hoping to chance upon an insect or a morsel of food left behind by careless visitors. Unfortunately there was nothing for them save for each other or the occasional dropping.

It was down this corridor that he walked, his footsteps echoing amongst the mud like silence. His eyes followed every movement nervously as if he were expecting someone to leap out on him in the darkness clinging to the intervals between the lights. As he continued to walk down the long, winding corridor that as yet appeared to have no end his patience almost failed him but he realised that he'd have to walk back the way he had come to leave the building hidden behind abandoned factories that he was in now. He thought for a moment of calling out to see if anyone could hear him, to see if they could tell him just where he was in this maze of impatience. At times he wanted to run to see if that brought him any closer to the end, if there really was one, but he knew that was unwise. The quarry he was carrying in a bag held in a tight grip by his side was rather…explosive.

Feeling tired from his long walk he paused and set the bag down on the ground. He leant against a wall marred by mildew but it didn't matter to him, he was more worried about resting before he fell down. Wrinkling his nose he watched a rat come dangerously close to him, he hated the creatures. He hated all animals, especially small ones more likely to be trodden on than petted. To him animals were food, pets were unnecessary extensions of the food chain and indulgences that many couldn't afford and yet committed themselves to. It disgusted him the way people viewed their pets and it was a subject that he could debate with someone about for hours but he had neither the time nor the patience at this moment and there was also a lack of a conversational partner.

"So there you are," A voice echoed in a mocking tone down the corridor, "I thought you'd gotten lost."

"I did at one point. You forget I'm not as young as I used to be." The man replied annoyance clear in his tone.

"Neither am I. Did you bring what I asked for?"

"Would I dare not to? I know what you're like. You're like your mother."

"I try to be."

The man shook his head, "You've got a long way to go though, your name doesn't mean as much as hers nor does your reputation. It doesn't have the same affect."

This observation was greeted by loud, uncontrolled laughter that rang out through the corridor. Confused yet taken up with the apparent humour of the situation the man joined in. With his laughter came vulnerability, he didn't see his contact step out of the shadows holding the weapon nor did he have time to react before it tore into his throat. His laughter turned to desperate gurgling as his knees began to fold from underneath him. The last thing he saw before the world around him went black and the dread hand of death took him, was his contact standing over him a smile still visible on his blooded face.

Something akin to frost mingled with fresh fire tore across her throat. She heard laughter ringing in her ears and the sticky wetness of blood pouring down her neck. Her lungs constricted cutting off her air supply. In a complete panic, alone in a place where no one knew what was happening to her she tried to get up unassisted. Her legs betrayed her as she tried to stand upon them and she fell to the ground like a dead weight. Coldness overcame her as she closed her eyes against the pain.

Monuments of darkness stood as if guarding over something, something that needed to be protected at all costs. They reached high into the sky, little lights twinkling up and down them. All around them buildings seemed to be vying in an immortal competition whose point was to see which of them was the tallest. Tinted glass shimmered in moonlight that had broken through wispy clouds circulating the sky like hungry predators searching for a feast. Every now and then they would devour the moon's light only to release it when their sustenance was taken.

Stepping into the chill night air he looked around him. This was a city he had never been to. In all the places he had seen this place as similar to them but it held an element of danger that he couldn't place his finger on. There was something in this city; something somewhere hidden in secrets, secrets shrouded with a mystery that couldn't be solved. Part of him wanted to dive into that mystery, to discover what it had hidden behind its veils of secrecy while another told him to steer well clear of something he shouldn't begin to think of meddling in. Right now all that really concerned him was finding her.

Enigmatic in his incomparable sophistication he walked into the room. As always he was flawlessly dressed in his favourite attire, a black Armani suit with a sword shaped neck pin fastened to the top of his jacket. A thin yet devastating smile brushed his lips as his cold blue eyes fell on his guest. Taking his eyes from her for a mere second he seated himself in an easy chair lined with the finest velvet, directly facing hers. As if his eyes had been caught by something in another time his gaze became fixed just above her left shoulder after he had sat down. Slipping into the past he sat silently his eyes fixed on that invisible spot of time.

There she stood, in a garden somewhere a long, long way away. A rose rested softly in her hands, her lips kissed with gentle moonlight as tears pooled in her clear blue eyes; tears that pleaded with him to stay, that pleaded with him not to leave her as her heart cried out for his.

"Lucien. Please. Take me. I cannot live without you," She had whispered as he walked silently away.

Never again was he to see her shining face or feel the softness of her lips upon his.

"You loved her didn't you?" A voice softer than a rose petal guided him back to the present.

"Yes," He breathed, "I loved Fleur very much. You…you look a lot like her."

"Does it disturb you?"

As if he'd broken something valuable he looked at her, "No, not at all my dear. I find your presence rather…" He paused as he searched for a word, "Refreshing; in truth, arousing."

"I know. I can feel it." She replied her voice nothing more than a whisper.

It was then that he stood. Something shone in his eyes that she had seen before, it had been restricted but now it had free reign. As he walked over to her she watched him, his movements graceful yet slow; as if he were hunting her. She let him pull her up into a standing position and wrap his hands around her waist. In turn she wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders. As his lips met hers the world melted away, nothing mattered anymore.

As if stung by something LaCroix pulled away from the kiss quickly, "I'm sorry. I…I forgot…your fiancé-"

LaCroix's apology was cut off by Robyn pressing her lips to his. Lost to sensation his hands tightened their grip on her waist as he deepened the kiss…