A/N: Here's chapter nineteen! Tempers flaring abound, even for someone who's generally quite calm…Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Bloodlines, but I do own my OCs. And, yeah, Phaedra.

When there was a knock on their door, Phaedra and Poe exchanged a glance with each other. Cadmus wasn't up for visits, and Gottfried's knock was much less meticulous and almost intimidating.

Phaedra stood up, "I wonder if the phone lines are down." She opened the door, surprised to see that the person there not only had a heartbeat, but was entirely unrecognizable. He had a suitcase on him as well, one that smelled oddly compelling to her.

He adjusted the apple of his tie, "Greetings. Miss Kokinos?" He asked.

She found it very interesting he was looking for her. "Yes…I'm afraid I don't recognize you."

"We've never met." He paused, "Chester Montgomery." He held a hand out. All his actions were so robotic, so thought out and yet performed with absolute precision. It was quite the spectacle.

Phaedra smirked as she shook his hand, "Alright…what is this about?"

"May I come in?"

"It depends. What are you here for?"

"Business."

"I understand that, dear. What sort of business?"

His eyes briefly flickered to the ground, then back at her, "For lack of a better word, consider me a solicitor."

"Solicitor?" She asked, "A salesman? You look like some sort of scientist."

"I am."

She was beyond confused, "If you're planning to hurt either of us, I'll have you killed right now."

"I am fully aware." He walked in, setting the suitcase on the table and leaving his hands at his sides, "You have Dominate, and could very well kill me in an instant."

She gave a little nod, looking back at Poe. She still had no idea what this strange man was here about, and was even less sure what Poe would think.

Chester adjusted one of the sleeves of his lab coat. It seemed even lugging that suitcase around wore him out a bit. "I am not here on a hunting mission, or a mission to endanger your life. I am here to help."

"Mmm hmm?" She crossed her arms.

"I am selling flesh. It is fifty dollars a pound."

She seemed surprised, "Flesh?" She stepped forward, "Where did you get it?" Her eyes narrowed.

"Confidential." He didn't falter.

She scoffed, "Children and mothers, hmm? Infants? Little girls? No. I refuse."

"On the contrary, Miss Kokinos, it is actually the flesh of criminals."

"And how do I know that?" She asked.

"Go ahead and try to force the truth out of me if you don't believe me. My master sent me for a reason."

She paused, then rolled her eyes, "I'm almost certain it's rigged."

"Would you like to sample some?"

"Heavens no. I'm not taking your scam, darling, but thank you for the show."

"This is a mistake. You're being hunted, yes? We are trying to do you a service. The prices are steep because we're dealing fair trade. If we were ripping you off, we wouldn't charge as much. It would be much easier to gather the amount of resources needed for a week of feeding."

"How do you know about me and my clan?" She demanded answers.

"You made your presence known." His eyes narrowed, "There's a reason you're being hunted, Miss Kokinos. I didn't think you needed me to remind you that."

"Enough. Lasciami solo! Go, go on with your tricks!"

Chester took a step back, "Clearly it's a sensitive topic. You'll come to your senses after you grasp your lack of humanity. After the hunger starts." He turned towards the door, leaving the case, "The first batch is on the house. I'll be back to deliver the second at full price."

"If you come back, il mio stivale sarà nel tuo culo." She pointed a finger and chased him out the door, "Nel tuo culo!"

She turned back to Poe when the door shut, "That foolish boy. I should have killed him and eaten him."

"Do you think his offer was genuine?" Poe asked.

She sighed through her nose and sat on the couch next to him, leaning in to open the case. Her thin fingers unlatched it, a little insolated box inside, which she opened. Sure enough, the inside was full of flesh. She picked up a sliver between her fingers and looked at it, "It's hard to tell. I suppose if it looked a little brighter, you'd be able to tell it was from a younger person. Then again, he could have left it out to dry." She dropped it back into the box. "I am not my sire. I will not eat people without question."

He was shivering even after Chester left, and now he was shivering even more at the sight, and in turn, smell, of the flesh. "What would they gain…from all of this…?"

"Cash." Phaedra said, "There were no organs in there. They sold the organs, valuable parts, gave me the rest, I'm assuming. If they knew anything about my clan they'd know we favor the heart the most, anyhow. If they wanted a deal, they'd at least give me that."

"How pleasant."

"Mmm. Apologies." She shook her hands off, straightening her back, "Well. Perhaps we should let the Prince know my location is…out in the air."

"Do you think he was with the Sabbat?"

"Mmm. I'm not sure. Do they typically have ghouls?"

"It…would depend on the clan in question…Tzimisce and LaSombra hate humans and ghouls…but…he didn't seem to be bonded to either of those…"

"He could be from anywhere but the Camarilla…" She sighed, "Oh well. It's a mystery I'll sleep on and address tomorrow evening."

"Do you think he'll come back?"

"I think he'll be back within the next week. Perhaps we can tie him up and pick his brains."

"I…" He swallowed hard, "Don't think you'll need me for that…"

"Very well. I'll make it efficient and quiet. I'll only kill if he's truly malignant."

"This all sounds very unsettling…the Prince should definitely know…"

"He'll know by tomorrow." He nodded, then he finally reached out and gave her a hug. She held him back, "I'm sorry if you've been disturbed by any of tonight's happenings."

"It's alright…it's not your fault." He squeezed her.

She slowly let her eyes close, resting her head on his shoulder, "You must let me know if any of my unfortunate qualities upset you…I'll give you some space."

"No…no…it's not you…it's Caine for giving you your curse…or…Nagaraja actually don't have anything to do with Caine…do they?"

"No, we cursed ourselves." She chuckled softly, "I'll blame Pisha for it. She's the oldest I can think of."

"Did she ever tell you the origin of your bloodline?"

"She told me she knew, but wouldn't tell me. I'm assuming it was her sire's sire, or at least, somewhere along those lines."

He gave her another squeeze, then he kissed her lips. Her hands started peeling his shirt up. When it was too tight to just yank away from him, she gave up and smoothed her hands over his abs, sighing a deep tone into his mouth. He helped her take his shirt off, then he took his pants off, all the while, he stayed attached to her lips.

She peeled her dress over her shoulders, holding his arms as she slowly stood up. She kept him there though, pressed to her mouth, giving her the space to take her dress off. "How badly have you wanted me?" He asked, their mouths just an inch apart, at most.

She gave him a confused look, something lost in those deep red eyes, "The day I met you, why?"

He snickered, "I meant tonight. Right now, what we're doing."

"I think my answer is still accurate." She grinned. He smiled back, reaching out and grabbing one of her breasts once her dress slid down enough. She pressed her lips against his neck, leaving kisses there as she traced her fingers along his back, "Why, what about you?"

"Sometimes…I just have to look at you long enough…for a few minutes or so…or hold you…I know we're both dead…but, you feel so warm…and soft. That's usually what does it."

She grinned, he could feel it against his neck, then she licked him, and reached back to take her bra off, "I should have figured you'd say something like that."

He felt a chill as her tongue danced on his neck, "D-Do you like it there?"

"I do…" She slid a few fingers on the other side, licking the same side she was, focusing on the point where his pulse once thumped. He gave a quite sigh, holding her head there with one hand and squeezing her with the other arm.

She giggled softly, her hands slowly sliding down to grip his ass firmly. His eyes widened, he tensed up a little, but it wasn't out of nervousness, "Hello…there…"

"Hello." She purred in his ear, licking the shell as she squeezed a little tighter.

He gasped, closing his eyes, before he finally relaxed and grabbed her rear as a sort of payback. Though, true to his nature, he didn't dare squeeze too hard. It was rather more of a rub, with the slight caress, very much his style.

"Did you want to head to my bed?"

"Okay." He kissed her lips.

They migrated to the bedroom, Phaedra didn't hesitate to take the usual sprawl she did. Legs spread, arms ready to hold him.

He swallowed hard as he stole a glance of her legs for a while, then he gently situated himself on top of her. He kissed her lips and grabbed both her breasts, giving them gentle squeezes. Her legs hooked up around him, her mouth to his, and her hands on his chest. Her eyes kept flickering over all the rippling muscles, the slightly messy blonde hair, the bright blue eyes that just seemed so enamored with her.

He kissed her back, rubbing both her hips delicately and giving her the occasional squeeze. She sighed into the air, "You're getting me quite anxious…"

"The same applies to me." He said, "I could go inside you now for a bit, if you wanted."

"Only when you're ready…"

"It'll help your anxiety."

"Whenever you're comfortable." She held one of his cheeks and smiled.

He hugged her for a bit, "You're so sweet to me…"

She held him back, "Because you're a sweet man."

He smiled and gave her a kiss, reaching hands down to the tops of her legs, where the joints connected, close to her inner thighs. She hummed with anticipation, her head rolling to the side as she moaned for him.

His smile grew as he slid inside her quietly, penetrating her, but as usual, very patient before releasing his load. He gave a quiet, content sigh as he hung onto her.

Her voice grew in volume, her legs spreading a little wider to compensate for his size. As soon as she was filled, she shut her eyes tightly, feeling the sensitive nerves deep inside light up with contentment as he reached them. She set a slow but deep pace, holding onto the small of his back to help her predict his movements.

He sighed, "It's so nice in here…" He said, "Very warm…should…should I go now? I could, if you want."

She cracked her eyes open, "Whatever you…" She let slip a little moan of pleasure, "Feel comfortable with…"

He chuckled, knowing that the only thing that could make her orgasm better would be him releasing right in the middle of it. So that's exactly what he did. It felt nice to let it go, as holding it in really tired him out after a while. He did what he could to control his shuddering and vibrating as he gave a loud sigh and clutched onto her for dear life. She gave an uncharacteristically shrill screech, a sure sign of success, in his eyes. The feeling of her walls pressing around him was all the more reassuring.

He increased the rhythm to a high degree from the slow, basic one that was started, as usual being quite stubborn when it came to pulling out. She savored every moment, keeping their bodies as close as possible for as long as she could. Even when he hardly had a speck of energy left, she helped him ride out her own orgasm before he pulled away.

He could tell she was satisfied with the smile on her face, "Polonius…you do wonders for me…"

"That…one…was quicker than usual…I apologize…" He said.

"I loved it…"

"So did I." He smiled, "I think it makes our sleeping all the better…"

"I concur…" Her eyes drifted closed.

He gave her a squeeze, "Goodnight Phaedra."

Their limbs were all individually chained to walls. They were in a prison, of sorts, but for whatever reason, their cells were arranged on top of a temple. It was magnificently crafted, and Egyptian in origin. The stones used to make it looked ancient and olden, like the very rocks used to craft the pyramids were used when constructing this temple.

"We were captured!" Lafayette struggled in his binds, "By who?! I want answers immediately!"

Remus closed his eyes just as soon as he opened them, taking a deep breath, "It is unknown. The Followers of Set betrayed us…and…worse of all…due to the secrecy of our mission, no one has any idea of where we are. We need to think fast, if we are to avoid dying here."

"That Madame Vaska scum will pay for this!" Lafayette screamed.

"You still think Madame Vaska was behind all of this?" Cedric asked, "This is entirely a Setite operation…I had no idea there were so many rogue Followers of Set in the area. But I have a theory as to their spike in population…Jasper mentioned a Lady Natalia…"

"Lady Natalia?" Lafayette, "That's—"

"Sirius's sire." Remus finished.

"Someone call?" Natalia cackled, ascending the long flight of stairs to the summit of the temple to greet her new captives. As usual, a flock of at least half a-dozen snakes were with her. And behind them were Jasper, Selina, Drake, and Axle.

"Natalia…" Remus said, "I can't possibly imagine what's so funny about losing two-thousand of your men like that…"

"Oh, such impressionable neonates like them can be easily replaced." She said, "I'd say the casualties were worth it for my prize." She held her hands out.

"It's a pleasure to finally see you in the flesh, what with all the tales we've been told of you and Kemintiri…"

"Tales?" Natalia asked, "How many tales did Sirius tell of me, exactly?"

"Enough to know that you are the second most vile and wretched creature on the surface of this planet."

"Oh, how charming." She said, "And who would be the first?"

"Kemintiri, of course."

"Let me out!" Lafayette thrashed, "Let me out!"

"It seems your dear Tzimisce friend doesn't have any manners." Natalia strutted over to Lafayette, leaning in and smirking at him, like he was a teased animal.

"What exactly are your plans for us?" Cedric asked, "Hoisting us up here? Why not just destroy us?"

"You're bait, of course." Natalia said, "The Camarilla will surely notice my tower, now that all the construction has been complete. They will come up here and see the three Sabbat leaders. Then I'll be rid of all of you without sullying my own hands."

Lafayette screamed and raged that such a plan would not be possible, while Remus calmly said in between his yells, "Even if you were to strike us down…the Sabbat would not just simply collapse. There are dozens of capable generals to fill in the gaps…like, your childe, for one."

She laughed, "Well, in that case, you'll still be four less problems for me, won't you?"

"Wait, four?" Lafayette asked.

Natalia nodded, "Jasper, darling, wake up the fourth prisoner, will you?"

Jasper nodded back, walking over to a fourth cell and stirring the captive. "What…what do you want?" An ancient, feminine, Slavic voice asked.

"Madame Vaska?!" The three Sabbat leaders exclaimed.

"I figured you all had a history, is that right?" Natalia grinned.

"She is no ally of ours." Lafayette spat.

Madame Vaska wearily looked ahead, her eyes tired and her body beaten and bruised. No telling how long she was stuck in this temple.

"You." Natalia walked over to Cedric. He narrowed his eyes. "You are the only creature in my tower aside from old Vaska that could possibly equate to me in power."

"Yes…?"

"So…while the others will be doubtlessly killed by the Camarilla, I will spare you…in exchange to servitude to me…"

"How dare you!" Lafayette thrashed.

"No." Cedric said.

"Such a quick rejection." Natalia pouted, "I'm not used to men rejecting me so quickly…mmm…and Serpentis wouldn't even control you…either…hmm, that's no fun." She said, "Why so hasty?"

"Like you said." Cedric said, "I am just as old and wise as you. I know where your putrid path concerning Kemintiri will get you." He said, "And I suspect she does too." He looked at Madame Vaska, "You were probably trying to recruit her for days now…"

"Well, I'm hurt." She crossed her arms, leaning in closely and holding Cedric's face, her red-nailed thumb rubbing his mask up and down, "Because I know the connection that your Cappadocians have with my Followers of Set, is that right? Would you think Lazarus—"

"Be silent!" Cedric bellowed, causing Natalia to jump and back away.

Remus and Lafayette exchanged a glance. As did most of Natalia's commanders.

Natalia rolled her eyes, "The four of you, listen. I have new orders."

The four former Serpents of Light bowed at her, "What are your orders, mistress?" Jasper asked.

"Take the reaper and the Tzimisce lady out of here. Take them to the lower levels, right now. I don't want to look at them."

They all nodded, the Followers of Set quickly unshackled Cedric and Madame Vaska.

"Enjoy rotting in the basement." Lafayette growled.

"Enjoy being burned by the sunrise." Madame Vaska said.

They were soon taken down the huge flight of stairs, leaving only three Kindred on the top level.

Lafayette was still screaming about wanting to be let out, so Remus knew that he was going to have to do most of the talking, "Why do we remain?"

Natalia was meanwhile bent over petting one of her snakes, she met Remus's gaze, "It's obvious. Those two will have to die. They're too old, stubborn, and set in their ways. You two are young…impressionable. I can teach you about Kemintiri…"

Remus narrowed his eyes, "I may be young in regards to you…but during my entire life as a Cainite, I've had some very old company. You're not the only one with Methuselahs a simple call away…"

"Is that so?"

"Indeed, some of the most revered LaSombra instructed me in the arts of politics and battle."

"Are you trying to sell yourself to me?" She stifled a snicker.

"No, I would rather die than serve you."

"Aw…darling, I thought we had such a connection…" She said, "I just don't understand it, any of it. The Sabbat are supposed to be against the rise of the Antediluvians. They should want to kill them at all costs."

"Which we do."

"That's also what Kemintiri wants." She said, "Set abused, molested, and defiled her. Her motives are the same as yours. Together…" She smiled, "We could destroy Set once and for all!"

"Your sanity has long since slipped…therefore I have no inclination to listen to your lectures."

She snarled, "So you want to rot out in the basement with the others, is that it?" She snapped, "You want to die with this fool leading you?"

Lafayette laughed, "We will not be dying, Natalia…but I'm afraid the same cannot be said for you. You'll never get rid of the Sabbat in this state, we'll always have more control than you!"

"Unless you can flesh-craft your hand into a key, I don't see that happening…"

"Then you will have to take us to the basement." Remus said, "For our principles as a sect are far higher than anything you could ever change." He said, he and Lafayette exchanging a plotting glance for a split-second, "But I have a feeling you will not have us in chains for long."

"You're right, because you'll all be executed by the very enemy you despise the most, the Camarilla! And while they're all battle-worn and weak, I'll swoop in to eliminate them too!"

"Hey sweetheart. How are you?" Cissy sat next to Killian.

He was sitting out, away from the camp, a pretty good distance. Relaxing under the darkness of an elder birch tree, fireflies lighting up here and there as the cicadas sang. He was smoking a cigarette, and judging by the look on his face, she was the last person he wanted to talk to.

"Where'd you get that? Bring it from home? Can I have one?"

"No." He took a deep breath of it, "Piss off." He grumbled.

"I'm not sure how many times I can say sorry."

"Cool."

"Well, what do you want from me?"

"A good friend of mine taught me that apologies mean jack shit unless you actually change and show that you mean it."

"I mean it. Promise."

"No you don't. Don't promise shit you can't hold up. God, words like that can't just be thrown around for shits and giggles. I can't even believe you decided to go out with Catalina, of all people."

"What, something wrong with two girls hooking up?" She crossed her arms.

"Did I say that?"

"Then what's the big deal?"

"You screw with her and you'll never live to see another day. You thought I was bad? Tch. Good luck, toots. Practically handcuffed yourself to a live tiger."

"Tigers are pretty. I'm fine with that."

"Yeah, alright. You keep acting the way you do and that tiger will rip your face off."

"That'd be hot."

"Christ. Maybe Skelter's right. Maybe there is no hope for you."

"Well, you used to be the dumb kid, you know. Least I didn't rape anyone."

"Okay, there was no rape, first of all. I'm not a goddamn animal. Second of all…" He sighed, then shook his head, "Look, it's just different. You and me. You can't just compare them. You cross lines I wouldn't dream of crossing."

"Aw, are you coming out of the closet?"

He narrowed his eyes, "What?"

"You look like the type that could be gay."

"…okay…"

"Have you ever slept with a dude?"

"Cissy, swear to god." He looked more and more frustrated as the conversation continued.

"Not even when you were as drunk as you were with me."

"No."

"What about when you were really stoned? Like, so stoned, you couldn't even remember."

"You're a real fucking pain in the ass to even look at sometimes, you know."

"C'mon." She elbowed him in the ribs, "Let's just let bygones be bygones."

"I'll forgive you when the time's right, alright? I can't exactly throw all my art into the shitter and call it a day."

"Ugh." She stood up, "You know, you're a real pile of piss and shit. Makes absolutely no sense. This is all because of Anastasia, isn't it? She doesn't forgive you after day one, so now you're going around, holding grudges against people who step on your favorite pair of shoes?"

He bit down on his cigarette, it then tumbled to the ground, where he mashed it out with a thumb, "Get the hell out of my sight before I make you."

"I'd like you to fucking try." She put her hands on her hips, "This isn't about me, you know. Maybe you should have kept your money further away. Maybe you shouldn't have broadcasted it out to the world! Do you know how tempting it is to me? Do you know how much that hurt me, to take it, and to lose it? This isn't just a game for me, this is…this is no different than the Gangrel frenzying, or the Toreador crying all the time, this is my clan. We're thieves, we're criminals, we're the shit at the bottom of the barrel. At least let me hold onto that."

"You think the Gangrel are permitted to frenzy because that's just what they are? The hell kind of thinking is that? The whole point of this life is to resist the beast. Just because your beast comes out a little different than everyone else's doesn't make it okay to let it loose."

She grit her teeth, "Fuck yourself! You'd never understand!" She turned and ran off, back towards camp, dark streams tearing down her cheeks.

Back at the camp, the fire was roaring, and Skelter was bent over the hood of the car, the map unfolded there. He was tracing some sort of route, chewing on the eraser of the pencil, then erasing it and starting over. He'd been doing this for hours.

Catalina looked up, surprised, "What happened?"

She wiped her tears away, "Pfft. Nothing." She crossed her arms, "Just…something in my eye…" Her voice cracked a bit.

"Where did you say we were going next?" Anastasia asked.

"I'm…figurin' that out." Skelter muttered, "We're…too middle-a'-nowhere."

Cissy hugged herself and kept wiping tears away, "Shit, I should just…I should go. I'm going to do something. I'm gonna fucking…kill someone! Get me out of here!"

"Cissy, what's wrong?" Catalina asked.

"I can't take it." She shuddered, walking over to Catalina and throwing herself into her arms, closing her eyes and holding on for dear life, "I'm going to steal something, or break something, or drive someone else crazy…"

"Hey…it's okay…you're not going to do any of those things…you're fine."

"I already did most of them…" She sniffed, "Killian's probably…out there killing himself…oh god, I said the stupid stuff you told me not to…" She shut her eyes tightly.

"Shh." She squeezed her, "It's okay…just…try to calm down…things will get better…"

Skelter looked up from the map. "He didn't frenzy, did he?"

"I…" She sniffed, "I don't know. I ran away when he seemed like he was…getting upset…And…uh…that's after I told him to fuck himself a bunch…"

Skelter seemed a little distressed, "Shit. Someone should go find him. I don't want to know what the hell kind of trouble could be out here."

"Not me." Cissy held onto Catalina tightly.

Skelter's gaze landed on Anastasia, "You up for a rescue mission?"

Anastasia nodded, "I'll go get him." She left the group.

Thankfully, by the time she sniffed him out, he was just where he was before, not frenzying, not destroying anything either. He did look over his shoulder at her for a second, caught off guard at the sound of the rustling leaves and brush. Once he saw who it was, he turned back around, shame slowly swallowing him, "Cissy tell you I attacked her or something?"

"No. We just wanted to make sure you're okay."

He sighed and nodded, "Yeah. I'm fine. That…that girl can be a little…"

"How's it feel to have your own you?"

"Yeah, sucks. Sorry." He closed his eyes, a burning in his chest that only came from Anastasia when she was fed up enough to sting.

"Look…" She crossed her arms, "That was harsh…I didn't mean that…she shouldn't get away with taking all your money and all of your life as an artist. I just meant…well…you're not the youngest Anarch here anymore. There's her…and…god…she is so screwed up…but…we're stuck with her. Unless she turns out totally useless…"

"You had a point. And so did she. I used to be that person. I never realized just how…awful I was…" He combed his fingers through his hair, "Whatever." He took a shaky breath, "You know, she's either gonna make it or break it. And if she breaks, that's too bad, we don't have time to dwell on it."

"Still…going from five to four isn't something any of us want, even if it is Cissy…"

"I know. There's only so much we can do." He said, letting an insect-song fill the air. Then he rubbed one of his temples. He didn't know why he said it, especially to her, but it came out anyway, "I've never felt so alone."

She sat beside him, "Because she lost your money…I'm sorry…"

"I mean, that's not the only reason." He crossed his arms, but it was more out of insecurity than masculinity. "I…I don't have anyone left…Damsel was more of a mother than I thought…Sirius was like a brother…Nines was like the old man I never had…" He shook his head, "It's like I have no motivation. I don't give a damn about this movement anymore, why should I? We failed, what are we going to do if we do find more Anarchs? Go back to Cali and find out the Camarilla got stronger too?"

"I'm not…really a fan of going back to California…it'd be like opening the wounds again…listen." She said, "Just because we're a small band of Anarchs and we don't have a movement doesn't mean that we can't just…be a family…a funky…dysfunctional family…who sticks together…"

He snickered and looked over to her, "The most dysfunctional family I think I've ever heard of…and this is coming from us…"

She sighed, "I guess if we ever need a perspective, at least for the two of us, we could think of that…"

There was a long silence between them. Anastasia was about to get up and say a few parting words before she realized he was crying, trying to be subtle about it by quickly wiping the tears away.

"Killian…" She looked over at him, "I'm here…" She put a hand on his shoulder, "Talk to me…"

He sniffed, holding his face with both hands, "I told him everything…god, this…hurts…why did he do that…? Why did we fall for it…?"

"I…I don't know…" She said, "I…I almost forgot about that, it feels like it happened so long ago…" She chuckled dryly, before sighing, "He just…ripped all of our lives out from under us. Now the California Anarchs are either dead or in poverty…I just…can't picture him working for Strauss…"

"Neither can I…he fit in so well…he'd…he'd hang out with me…give me advice, try and cheer me up…this wasn't some filthy Camarilla operation, this was worse than murder…" He shuddered, "I don't know how he did it…I never thought I'd miss him this much…"

"Maybe…he could be like Cadmus or something…you know…? Like…be Camarilla, but still be your friend? Though, I don't think the others would like that…so…even if you did rig it up, you'd probably have to keep it quiet…"

He shook his head, "You heard what he said. He wants nothing to do with us. Nothing to do with any of us."

"Yeah…I guess he does want us killed…"

He shook his head and rubbed at more of his tears, "I'm sorry…I didn't mean to make you…sit out here and council me…thanks for checking on me…"

"It's alright." She held her arms out, "I'm here to help."

He gave her a deep look of shock, like he was asking if she was sure she was allowing that, before he just dove in and squeezed her like a teddy bear.

"I'll be here if you need me." She said softly.

"I'm…I'm gonna need you a lot…" He muttered, closing his eyes, "And I'll be here for you too…"

"Uh-huh." She squeezed him, "We'll pull through this."

A/N: Cissy is just having a blast, isn't she? I bet everyone is just so thankful to have her around. Thanks for reading!