Disclaimer: I do not own the Underworld movies (any of them, just to be clear), or any of the associated characters. If I did, I wouldn't be writing Fanfiction, and my bank account would be a lot fuller.

Summary: See Previous Chapters

CHAPTER THREE

My earlier words have come back to bite me.

I had said that Markus and Amelia never had to deal with the kind of trouble I did, but it appears that when Kraven killed the informant, his blood ran down into Markus's chamber.

So, not only do I need to find a way to have a frank discussion about my Grand-daughter with Lucian, but I have to deal with having two elders awake at the same time, and Markus and I have never seen eye-to-eye since I had William imprisoned.

Well, Selene used up the readily-available supply of blood when she awoke me, and it will take time to get more. I have time to find Lucian, and if Kraven likes his continued existence, he will take me to him.

With the sheer chaos of vampires and werewolves fighting, it is easy to slip through to find Lucian, speaking the only words that will stop him from killing me on sight. "Your daughter lives."

Just as mention of Sonja was always able to stop me in my tracks, so the mention of Selene make Lucian freeze. He motions for his Lycans to withdraw, and a glare from me sends Kraven scurrying away. "Explain."

This is not going to be pretty, but for Sonja's sake, and Selene's, I will try. "I intended to keep your relationship secret when I discovered it after a Lycan ambush, but Tanis also found out, and told the Council. They judged me too close to be impartial, but as Elder I was made to carry out the execution. Nothing could have saved Sonja, but killing her was the only way I could save Selene."

Lucian was clearly weighing the benefit of killing me vs hearing more. "What did you do to her? Where is she now?"

Speaking of those events was painful. "I dyed her hair and fostered her out to a well-off family. Her foster-father was the one to build William's prison, and I brought her back when she was grown." The next words pained me to speak. "She is very much like her mother, right down to the defiance in pursuit of what she thinks is right."

It was the closest I would come to a peace offering, but Lucian accepted it with the barest hint of a nod. "But you wouldn't be here to talk if Selene's defiance hadn't placed her in some kind of trouble. What happened, and where is she?"

Now came the tricky bit. "She has her mother's appalling taste in lovers, too. That hybrid of yours, Michael. I let them escape, so Selene is probably on her way to one of the Safehouses, but I don't know where."

Lucian relaxes slightly, fighting back his instinctive disbelief. Though he had not acknowledged it the last time we fought, he knew that we had both raged with grief over Sonja's death. "Good." He pauses for a moment. "Was she happy? With your coven or with her foster-family, I mean."

I nod, slowly. "I saw her when I commissioned her father to build William's prison, and she was happy then. She was as happy as can be expected for someone dodging Kraven's infatuation while she was with the Coven, though the last century has been Amelia's rule, so I had not seen her until yesterday."

Whatever Lucian had been about to say in response was cut off as the fighting spilled into the small cavern we stood in. Damn!

Lucian is resourceful enough that he probably escaped, and it is obvious that Michael will follow her to the end of the world. For now it is wonder, stability in a world that has been turned on its head, but the hybrid feels loyalty, and I doubt that it will take long before that loyalty deepens to love. No matter how much I dislike the idea.

Despite her regal, commanding air, Ilona was always something of a romantic, following her heart when it led her to love me, a vampire, even though many called it un-natural. Her daughter and grand-daughter inherited the latter two in spades, though I wish that they had been spared the former. Both had inherited my strong will and strategic, practical mind, but somehow, those traits went missing where the heart was concerned.

But in a way, perhaps that is a good thing. Reason would tell Selene to get as far away as possible and to never contact me again. Selene's heart would tell her to stay safe, but to keep in communication with the grandfather she had considered a parent, perhaps even to reach out to the man her mother had loved, if only to find out how to help Michael accustom himself to his new life. Selene and I always had a way of contacting each other in secret, if only for my peace of mind when she had gone on a mission.

There is nothing in this world that will end the conflict between Lycans and Vampires, but Lucian and I now have a common cause in protecting the daughter of the woman we both loved. Whatever excuse he comes up with, Selene and Michael will be safe from the Lycans.

Markus might be the first vampire, but I did not become an Elder by being soft. I commissioned William's Prison, but I never inspected it, or asked the location, and I had long ago convinced myself that there were safeguards in place to destroy the first Lycan if anything happened to me. Granted, that was nothing more than a carefully planned and staged conversation with a random underling, but if Markus managed to taste my blood, that is the memory he would see. Lucian still has the necklace that was the key, and Markus will obey my commands as long as I control his brother's fate.

Perhaps the fates were foolish to give one as old and powerful as I a daughter to love, and a grand-daughter who held an equal place in my heart. But they had, and I would love and protect her with everything in me, for as l exist on this earth.

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A/N: Originally, I hadn't planned to continue past two chapters, but it looks like plans have changed. I don't know if I will do the last movie, but we'll see. I don't know if I am making Viktor sound too soft, because I can never seem to get him quite right, so I would love some feedback.

Thanks

Nat