Sera marched back towards the cabin at a dizzying speed, for Dev's own safety she thought it was best; she was pissed and a rational part of her didn't really know why. Did she truly expect him to say yes? Wasn't it unbelievably selfish of her to expect Dev to pledge his loyalty to her if she were not his mate? The only reason she was with him now was because they were mates, so why was she angry? Seriously would she still love Dev if he were not her mate, would she still want to stay with him?

The answer came unbidden to her mind, yes. And it hurt her, humiliated her, made her want to cry. The absolute truth of it was that she would willingly love Dev and give him her life and heart whether or not they were mates or not, Sera kicked open the cabin door and stamped into the darkened room. The thick drapes had been left shut blocking out the sun and it was creeping into early evening and the light was starting to fade, Sera didn't make an effort to switch the lights on instead she made her way towards the bedroom. Her head was pounding and she was hot and sweaty, she needed to lie down somewhere cool and dark; she'd just lay on the bed, letting the overhead fan wash cooling, soothing air on her body.

Sera pulled her shirt off and threw it in the corner of the bedroom and was about to make her way towards the bed when hands grabbed her from behind. One hand caged over her chest while the other clamped over her mouth before she could let out a snarl of any kind; Sera didn't scream. Ever. But she felt her fangs lengthen, slicing the palm of the guy holding her, when she caught the scent that was rife in the room. Arcadian sentinel. And not even Arcadian bear, Arcadian panther! What a disgrace this would be if she lost to them.

"Shit!" The Arcadian cursed and let go of Sera shaking his hand. "The bitch sliced me!"

"Diomedes, don't touch her!" The other panther on the opposite side of the bed said, his gaze filled with incredulity fixed on Sera. "Can't you smell her?"

Diomedes shifted his bland eyes to Sera who snarled at him, her predatory instinct reacting to anyone who would threaten her or try to take her from or hurt her mate.

"Your Arcadian?"

Sera gave him a mocking smile before letting her sentinel markings show and then lifted her hand to show her mating mark. The eyes of Diomedes and his panther friend were shocked for a moment before deepening with understanding.

"The Ursuline Katagaria, Devereaux Peltier has been pronounced a slayer, it is our job as humans and sentinels to protect the world from such creatures. He kills indiscriminately and without remorse; he must be hunted and executed. We are here to serve justice."

Diomedes's monotone voice caused Sera to yawn widely then she arched a sardonic brow at him and laughed.

"Too bad, little boys. He ain't home and if anyone is gonna be killing my mate. Its me. So get out before I kick your ass's then let you go a round with my mate when he gets his slow lumbering ass back here."

The panther opposite clucked his tongue then shrugged, "since you're a traitor to your blood, I don't think anyone will be particularly fussed if we kill you, watcha say Dio?"

"Nope. To my thinking we should have a bit of fun with an Arcadian bear whore that fucks her enemies. That what you thinking, Dezzi?"

The one called Dezzi gave a low laugh as he liked his lips and leered at Sera. She hissed at them and manufactured her Sai out of thin air.

"Come on then boys. Lets have some fun while I skin your panther hides!"

Sera laughed once more at their foolhardiness before steaming in for an attack they weren't prepared for; with their numbers equalling her skills she thought it was a fair fight. And besides if she was going to be vicious, it saved Dev from a beating he would get when he got home. So lets go to town on the panthers! Sera thought wildly as she jabbed one and slashed the other.

"Is that all you've got!"

Dev grumbled and stumbled about a bit before he picked up his pace on the direct route to the cabin; he sighed. He didn't want to have to face Sera, not because he was afraid of her anger, sure she'd be angry that was just females for you in every race and species. And ok her anger did make him cringe and wince a bit, he wouldn't lie completely about that. But it was what was under that anger that would really crush him, that deep seated hurt that he had caused. Him. Her mate.

Dev huffed out a self-mocking laugh, what a great mate he was turning out to be, couldn't protect her when she needed it and now he has given her a twenty-four carat gold reason to hightail out of his life forever and leave him impotent and alone. Even though he didn't want to, he could see why she'd be seriously angry and hurt about this; why hadn't he bothered to just say yes?

But then he knew that deep down he wasn't sure of the real answer, he had thought that yes even if Sera was not his mate he would love her still, but was that strictly the truth? Could he really stay with any woman even though she wasn't his mate, could he be faithful? Because Dev could not lie to himself he couldn't find it in his heart to lie to Sera.

Shit, he was such a jerk!

Though he was giving Aimee most of the blame on this one.

Dev stopped and looked down into murky water, it was twilight and the familiar some what homely smell made his heart ache slightly. He would like to have talked to Remi, not that his opinion or advice was ever any good but it always made him laugh to hear his miserable, caustic twin grouse about Arcadians in general, women in general, life in general and Aimee. Yet it seemed that in those rare times over the centuries when Dev had truly needed a sympathetic ear, and when he said rare he meant literally momentously rare occasions; Remi was as close to that as it was possible for him to get. And then there was Colt, the Arcadian was a real whiz when it came down to all this emotional shit, he understood the human side of it all a lot better then he did. Though on whole he was a lot better then his family, especially Remi.

The cabin came in to view in the far distance, its shape just discernable amongst the low hanging branches and willowy curtains of leaves and moss and noted with a cold chill that the door was open. Even worse was when his sensitive hearing picked up the distinctly audible cursing of male voices and a battle cry from his mate.

"Holy shit, not again!" Dev swore and with a violent oath he ran the distance in human form towards the cabin, all the while wondering why he was given a mate that just could not stay out of trouble when she was on her own. Why did he have a mate that was so intelligent but had more courage then sense when it came to fights?

Dev reached the door in record time and bounded through to the bedroom, he saw Sera battling with two Arcadian panthers, he discerned by their scent. Her body was fluid and graceful, her moves deadly yet beautiful; she was amazing! A surge of burning pride made his chest tighten, yeah, this was his mate indeed.

One of the panthers, an over muscled stocky man with a salt and pepper beard, lunged at Sera's back, she artfully caught his arm and flipped him over, Dev let out a roar of outrage that anyone would even dare to approach his mate, let lone try and kill her. Sera jumped, shocked when she saw Dev standing in the doorway looking fit to kill; she had to admit though it stuck in her craw to do so, that he looked earth shatteringly sexy standing there with fire in his eyes and his body rippling under his clothes from just breathing heavily.

Sera shook herself back to earth but the damage had been done, that distraction cost her. Dezzi who she had flipped over her back had shifted into panther form and took a swipe at her, the wound laid open a good portion of her chest and caught her thigh. It was deep and painful and sent Sera to her knees, not knowing what to clutch or which was more painful. She tried to push the pain away and stand, her survival instinct kicking in hard but sputtering, with the her body so low on juice. She needn't bother trying to fight again because within a few moments of kneeling on the floor two thumps beside her sounded the deaths of the panthers.

Dezzi shifted back to human form and both lay side by side their throats laid open, their blood crawling across the floor in a dark crimson stain. Dev gathered Sera into his arms and she cried out in protest, his breath caught in her throat, her chest wound looked excruciating.

"Don't worry, bébé," Dev choked out, his chest felt tight and painful. "We'll fix it, tout est très bien."

"Its my thigh, Dev!" Sera tried not to sound terrified and hysterical but failed, she clung to Dev's arm that was wound round her, careful not to irritate her chest wound. "I think he caught my artery!"

Dev went cold, and spared one quick glance down at her thigh, her shorts soaked in blood did not conceal the vicious, evil looking gnash in her soft pale flesh. He flashed them out of there to the one place other then Sanctuary that he knew he could get help from, unquestionable help.

Dante's Inferno in Minnesota was a Limani just like Sanctuary, not as renowned and respected as his family's, but one all the same and it had long been a friend to Sanctuary as both Limani's were run by Katagaria. It was against rules and protocol he knew, but he had no time to waste; with Sera fading fast scooped up in his arms, cradled to his chest he flashed himself into the back room behind the bar of the club. For another Were to do something like this, uninvited, it was a unwritten rule that the family could kill the intruder. No matter the Limani rules.

Written rule or unwritten, legal or illegal, moral or just down right depraved, the Pontis brother's answered to no one, so anyone fitting to pull shit like this better have a hell of a good excuse. Dev had one alright, his mate was dying in his arms. The two young twins, Mike and Leo looked up from the table where they were playing cards and immediately sent out a psychic call for their elder and most powerful brother. Dante flashed in front of Dev, his shrewd eyes assessed the situation quickly and touched Dev's arm, and flashed them upstairs to a small clinic. Another panther rushed over to them as Dev laid Sera down on the table, it had only taken mere seconds for all this to happen but the more the blood pumped out of his mates body, Dev felt like he had run the distance to Minnesota and gotten there hours late.

"Gabriel, work quick I think its an artery!" Dante snapped out, Dev still had Sera's hand clasped in his, he noted with growing dread how her skin was taking on a milky, almost translucent pallor; a fine sheen of sweat coated her body and her grip on his hand was gradually relaxing.

"Mon Dieu!" Dev cried, "work faster! Elle meurt!"

"We don't speak gobbledegook, Cajun or French, Bear, so quit it!" Gabriel shouted, while working furiously to try and stop the blood flowing out of the wound.

"Just shut up and get it done, Gabe!" Dante snarled, his pitying eyes swept over Dev, he had noted the scent on the young bear, he was mated and though the bear chick was Arcadian he didn't need three guesses to figure out who to. Dante himself was mated to an Arcadian pantherswan, his beautiful Pandora; after seeing this he wanted nothing more to hold her while she tended their three day old cubs.

"What happened, Bear?" Dante asked, when Dev didn't answer he gripped his shoulder and shook slightly then jumped back. In all the years he had been acquainted with Devereaux Peltier and though they had been some long years they had never been more then acquaintances, never had he seen this bear snarl and snap for being touched. Ordinarily Dante would have kicked his ass then kicked it out of his club but he couldn't help but feel pity for the bearswain. It was obvious that he loved his mate.

"Some bastard Arcadian panthers attacked her while I wasn't there to protect her. She was doing fine, then I distracted her and he took her down!"

Dev had never heard his voice so shaken, in all his life had never felt this dread, this sick feeling in his stomach, the fear, the sorrow, the need to kill and maim, the need to roar to the heavens and rail against the fates on Olympus. This was all his fault.

"Well, for how bad that wound is I hope you put the hurt on them piece of shits," Leo who had come in to see what was going on murmured it over Dante's shoulder, "damn she looks bad." Dante closed his eyes and prayed for patience, making a mental note to beat the shit out of his brother then teach him some tact. But now wasn't the time. As Gabriel focused his whole attention on the thigh Dev moved in closer to Sera, she stared up at him, her eyes brimming with tears. Her hand was completely relaxed in Dev's and her breaths were coming out in short gasps, she began to shake.

"I'm so cold," she whispered, her breathing making her voice uneven. Dev crowded closer to her and rubbed his knuckles tenderly over her cheekbone. It was then right there that he knew, he wanted Aimee to ask her question again, he wanted Sera to hear the answer, he wanted to travel back in time and mate with her so she would be tied to his side.

"I love you, Sera," Dev leant down and whispered in her ear, "please, hold on for me."

When he drew back he noted that her eyes were unfocused, glazed over with a blank look and his heart stopped dead.

"No." Was all he could choke out. This couldn't be happening to him, not now, not when he just found her, when he just realised how much he loved her.

Dante had retreated to the corner of the room where he noticed a silent Pandora was weeping, Gabriel gripped Dev's shoulder in a masculine show of comfort and everyone else retreated from the room. Dev let out a bear roar, one of sorrow and grief, it resounding off the walls and was heartbreaking to all who heard it.

"Fuck me Freddie! Holy shit!" Leo shouted and Dante, with Pandora's support decided to kill his brother for just being the most insensitive person he knew; youth was no longer an excuse.

Dev didn't hear the young panther shout out, he was just kneeling on the floor, not weeping or roaring or making any sound or movement, just staring at the tiled floor, loathing himself.

"Holy God, Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus in a hand basket!" Leo was looking on with morbid fascination at Sera's body, he'd even gone so far as to point at it. "And all the baby farm animals too!"

"Leo!" Dante, Pandora and Gabriel hissed together. Leo dared to give them a look of exasperation and balled his hands into fists then flicked out his fingers in the direction of Sera's body, like a magician doing a magic trick.

"Look at the body, its healing!"

Dev scrambled to his feet and watched with awe and wonder and under it all that most horrible feeling of hope as the wounds had indeed begun to heal. The blood backtracked up their crimson trails over the material of Sera's shorts and seeped back into the wounds, the skin then began knitting itself unnaturally together. Dev looked at Sera's face, once again a healthy pale with that flush of rose blush on her cheeks and then she to a deep gasping breath; like she'd been plunged in a freezing cold lake.

Dev gave her no chance to take in her surroundings, he caught her first breath in his mouth and pulled her into his arms, crushing her to his chest and wrapping her raven curls around his fingers. Relief and happiness crashed through him, rocking him and his world. He's hands roamed freely, demanding to see every part of her so he knew that he hadn't gone mad, that it was her so warm and soft beneath him. Her heartbeat in tune to his own and her breathing even and normal; Dev felt Sera's arms wrap round him and he crushed his mouth to hers once more.

"Mon Dieu! Forgive me, Mon amour!" Dev mumbled much nonsense into the side of her warm neck, his lips pressed to her beating pulse. Sera raised her hand and ran it through Dev's curls, balling them in her fist and holding him closer, clinging to him like a bur. She was confused and immensely relieved and more then just a little frightened, she didn't remember much other then pain and Dev leaning over her then things got kind of fuzzy.

"How?" Sera asked in a voice that she didn't like, girly, soft and weak. She pulled at Dev's hair when he refused to raise his head from smelling and licking her shoulder and collarbone. Sera noticed everyone slip out the room to give them privacy, Dev muttered something close to 'I don't know' but it was muffled, then a voice that made then both freeze.

"I think I can explain that."

Sera looked to the doorway and her breath caught in her throat at the most handsome man she had ever seen. He was enormously tall and filled the doorframe with blatant masculinity, he moved forward in to the light and Sera's eyes moved over the handsome face of Acheron Parthenopaeus. His smooth golden tanned skin was delectable, the tantalizing bit just at his throat before it disappeared from sight beneath his tight black motorcycle jacket. He rippled with every movement he made no matter how subtle, his swirling silver eyes were captivating and piercing looking straight into ones soul. Sera shivered and none of it was to do with the blatant eroticism of his look and persona or the exotic timber of his voice. This man may be the stuff of dreams but also of nightmares; there was an air about this man that was lethal, untamed and deadly, it sent out waves that said 'don't touch' and he had a aura of extreme power and violence that clung to him like a second skin as it did with Remi only much more frightening.

So this was the enigmatic, eccentric Acheron that legend told us about, Sera mused watching him, she registered his pure beauty as it was impossible not to but she felt no sexual pull towards him, instead when she looked at his earth shaking handsome face, that so young face, she felt sorrow. For him. How strange.

Dev stood up and pulled Sera gently along with him, he knew Acheron had power beyond his wildest dreams and he also had a shit load of responsibility that made the presidents job managing America look like a walk in the park. Dev also knew that Acheron even though he should have starred in 'one flew over the cuckoos nest' was a good guy. Dev held his hand out and Ash took it with a kind smile.

"I don't care what I owe you for this, but thank you, Ash," Dev could only manage a whisper and he pulled Sera under the safety of his shoulder and savoured the feel of her soft shape moulding to his hard one, they fit perfectly.

"Your family do a lot of good, Dev, especially for the dark-hunters even when you don't have to. Think of it as a favour returned."

Dev nodded too moved and happy to trust his voice, he cleared his throat twice and nudged Sera.

"Meet my mate, Sera." Ash inclined his head with a mysterious smile, "Sera this is -"

"I know who you are," she said, gifting Ash with a dazzling smile, one of pure happiness not coy seduction or invitation. Ash bent his head closer.

"Do I fit the legend?"

Sera laughed. "You out-do your legend." It was time for Ash to laugh, a deep pleasant one that caused both Sera and Dev to exchange smiles. Ash sobered and eyed them both with a solemn expression.

"Your so much stronger together then you are apart. When you have love, real love, it can combat any force, any prejudice imaginable. Be strong, love each other and don't be afraid to take steps that don't show you where they lead to." With that Ash flipped on a pair of very cool looking sunglasses and gave them a charming smile, "catch you later kids, Simi needs to shop."

He disappeared and left Dev and Sera alone. He brushed her hair from her face and looked down on her feeling his heart melt. He kissed her long and hard, he planned to give her all of himself that night.