Chapter 8

I couldn't believe it was only Tuesdays when I woke up. It was 4:00 am. I wanted to go back to sleep, but I couldn't. I was still tired from the big fight. But I got up and dressed and every thing anyway. Everyone was in different rooms so I didn't bother going to everyone and waking them up. They had to be tired anyway.

It was still really dark so I grabbed a stake and a really cool, and really sharp throwing boomerang thing. (One of my favorite weapons) Then I headed out for an early patrol.

I was really out there in hopes of seeing Aries again. So I went straight to the grave yard were we had met. Then I went to the spot where I first saw him and sat. I didn't want to go far from home so I just sat there and waited for something-hopefully Aries-to come along.

Nothing did I was soon lying on the tomb stone and hoping for sleep.

Of Course, right when my eyes shut around 4:45 something was there. I sighed and go up. "Okay, funny creature, just come out so I can kill you." I practically shouted it. How stupid someone could have heard me!

"How very confident of you slayer."

I turned to face the voice.

"I could have been a mortal." Fangs showing, it was a female. Strangely enough the females were better fighters then the males. And they were pretty rare. In fact I almost never saw a female vamp. This one looked old.

"And you just walk right up to me? You seem pretty confident yourself."

"Well, shall we dance? I haven't gotten a shot at the slayer in just about 100 years."

She was old. "Well, then let's see how good you are at this." I grabbed the stack and launched it at her from in my sleeve.

Her shoulder was hit in an attempt to dodge the stake. It did miss her heart though. I grabbed the boomerang from the stone and threw it. Her hand on the stake, to try and pull it out, let the boomerang hit, and off with her head!

"Too bad isn't it." Another voice.

I whipped around before I could grab my weapons to fight if needed. It was Aries. So I relaxed. "What did you know her?"

"A little bit I suppose. Every 50 years or so, we run into each other."

"Oh, well sorry," I walked over to the scene and picked up my weapons. "But all that's left is this clump of dirt or dust, whatever you want to call it."

"No it's all good I didn't really like her any way. I tried to kill her once, didn't go over so well."

I shrugged, "Then, consider it a favor."

"Thanks." He smiled and walked over. "So I thought you were going to bed?"

"Yeah, but I woke up and couldn't sleep, so I thought 'well hey, how about a patrol?'"

"Oh, well I guess you're allowed to do that. So I'm going to be out for until just before sunset so I'm going to hang here."

"Okay, fine with me." It was really, really, okay with me. "So I guess you were right because here we are again face to face and no one-but…umm…what's her name-is dead."

"Yeah, and you were right before you are a very good fighter. Every slayer that crossed her path has died. It's kind of her hobby."

My eyes bugged a little. "Oh, okay, well I guess I dodged a built there."

"Yeah, if that didn't kill her I was going to…" He might as well have slapped a hand over his mouth.

"Going to what?" I grinned

"Nothing."

I rolled my eyes. "Oh come on; just tell me, you already know how this will turn out."

"Okay, fine, I was going to help you, because I couldn't have you die."

"Why?"

"Because, I don't know, because, because…well I truly don't have a good answer for that."

"Well strangely enough I believe you."

"Good, you should."

"Well, for give me for not being the most trusting of people, but I normally kill vampires, I don't befriend them."

"Well, I'm not going to kill you either. I mean it's not like in two seconds I'm going to turn on you."

"Yeah, I know." That was my apology. (I know it sucks) "Hey, what time is it?"

"Umm…I don't know." He said it using and accusing voice.

"Well," I stared him dead in the face and offended. "I don't have a watch I was hoping you did."

He put and apologetic face on. "Sorry, I don't have a watch. Umm… do you have a cell phone?"

"It's okay, umm… yeah I do have a cell phone, I forgot about it." I smiled at him in a forgiving way.

He put on a crooked grin when he saw I forgave him.

"It's almost sunrise. How far is your house?"

"Why? When's sunrise?" he looked at me with concern.

"It's in twenty minuets." I frowned and practically squinted with fear of what he would answer with. The thought crossed my mind; if I had to I could sneak him into my house.

"My house is too far to make it."

"My house isn't."

"What are you saying?"

"I could get you in my house and you'll be safe until sunset."

"What? Don't you have your mansion of military? You know, like your watchers and stuff?"

"Yeah, but the military, as you call it, is actually two people and my friends, but we like to stay in the kitchen and the fighting room and the basement is normally clear I mean it's a wine cellar both my, watchers, as you call them have to work until after sunset so you'll be out before they even get home. So, what do you say?"

"What do I say, well I mean I don't have much of a chose do I? It's my life on the line here and I don't really have a death wish."

"Okay, let's go before someone wakes up, they'll know that I was gone and then be looking out for me. Especially Dave, he's like my big brother."

"The one with the Mohawk, the one looking at you with googiley eyes, or the one that has great taste in clothes?"

"Well, if I'm right-and I usually am- Jack is the one with the Mohawk, Max is the one with the googiley eyes, and Dave, is the one with great taste."

"Yeah, I could have guessed as much. Dave was looking at you with real concern. So either he's you family or in love with you. Jack was cheering with ever good hit you got. Max, wouldn't take his eyes of-and this may seem strange- me, he was really, really pissed off that I was touching you, and with every hit, he fell farther in love with you."

"Yeah, that sounds exactly like them."

"Yeah, but there was another one, he looked pretty rich like with the sweat shirt he was wearing."

I gave him a puzzled look; I really don't know who that could be. "The only other person I know that was there is Criss, and she's a girl, so…"

He cut me off. "No this was defiantly a guy. He was looking at you, maybe laughing or something, umm… his sweat shirt said…umm…" He stopped to think. Then he snapped as he said. "'Canandaigua braves football,' and it had a red foot ball on it. Umm…a grey sweat shirt."

I stopped walking, I hadn't realized I was walking in the first place, I felt sick.

"Dru?"

"Kyle." I don't believe that the words even made it to my lips. My knees buckled.

"Dru!"

I blacked out.

"Dru, Oh my god! Are you okay?" It was Aries, thank god!

"What the hell happened?"

"Oh thank god, you passed out for about three minuets, are you okay?"

"Yeah I feel a little like I just woke up and ran a mile but other than that I'm good."

"That's great, uh…can you walk?"

"Umm… I don't know you might have to help me." He helped me to my feet. I tried a few steps I didn't go over so well. My legs were like jell-o trying to hold up a five pound wait.

He grabbed me around my waist and walked me until I could do it myself. Thank god, about a block before we got there I could walk stably enough that no one would expect a thing.

"Okay, umm…let's go around back and then go through the cellar."

"Okay, no ones going to attack me if the find out I'm down there right?"

"Not that I know of, Beth and John won't find out, and if any of the kids find out, well I can't be sure. I'm pretty positive I can control them though."

"Well, I could be screwed."

The day took an extremely long time. Mostly because I knew I had a secret I had to get out to the house with out anyone knowing. If only I could have told someone then maybe I could have checked on him or stayed with him. Truth be told he was the most interesting thing to happen to me for awhile now. Dave was my best friend and I couldn't tell him about it, he hates vampires. I couldn't tell Criss because she doesn't trust vampires. Jack just likes to kill anything that's not considered a murder once you do it. And Max, well he probably hates him because I like him and kept him alive.

Thoughts of someone finding out because they decided to come in through the cellar and, or maybe hide down there because they wanted to scare someone. But nothing happened. No one found out. Around four the sun started to set and I made an excuse to slip away. I didn't even matter what I said because I couldn't remember when I was standing in front of the stares waiting to go down.

With each step panic grew over me, not sure what I would find. I never really took the time to read up on vamps. I only cared about there blood shed. Well, they didn't really bleed they just, dusted and dropped. But I didn't really know if he was sleeping like Dracula or if he was still up because he couldn't sleep like a Cullen. Or maybe he was gone because the sun was low enough and he knew it. I really didn't know, but I wanted to.

I put my hand on the door knob and walked through the thresh hold. "It's almost night time." I sang through the cellar.

There was no response.

"Aries?" maybe he was gone. "Aries are you here?" I walked around and looked.

There was still no response.

I walked to where there were some chairs and a couch we put down there when we got knew furniture. There he was, curled up on the couch, his coat draped over him. I silently walked over and as gently as I could place my hand on his shoulder. "Aries, wake up the sun is almost down." I called to him in the most motherly of voices I could produce.

He rolled over as well as he could on a couch. When he opened his eyes, he saw me and smiled. "Hey, mom," He put so much into the word. "Thanks for the wake up call."

I rolled my eyes. "Well, you can't sleep forever." I got up and moved to the chair. "So do you have to wait for the sun to be totally down to go out or what?"

"Shouldn't the slayer know these things?" He asked trying to bother me about my inexperience.

"I don't really study about vampires, that's what the council and trainers are for. My job is to put the stack into the heart nice and snug so that it doesn't come back out until they're a pile of dust."

"Oh, I do believe that's in the job description. Yeah, connect the stack with the heart of the beast, oh yeah that's in there." He mocked at me.

I rolled my eyes. "So I don't really do my part on the knowing part, but maybe there's something to that. I mean if every other slayer was studying and fighting then that didn't work to well for them, but not studying is working out just peachy like for me."

"Well here's a little tip then, as long as we don't get too much direct sun light then we can go out when ever we want, but if your out during sun rise there's not much of a chance you make it out alright. That is why I'm here, because being out at the crack of dawn and noon will kill me, but other than that, I'm all good."

"So your good at dust?" I asked him even though he seemed a little annoyed. He had a lot of mood swings, he was possibly bipolar.

He laughed. "Yeah I'm good, but can I use your shower before I go?"

"Uh…yeah sure I think there's one around down here, some where. It was originally supposed to be a second apartment." I explained.

"Yeah, I saw it, so I'm going to use the shower, now."

"Oh yeah," I got up kind of uncomfortably and said. "So I'll leave you to that then." I left for upstairs.

Twenty minuets later I went back down to see if he was done, he was. I knocked before I went in. "Are you ready Aries?"

"Yeah," He called through the door.

I opened it and walked in. I found him in the bathroom trying to make his hair stand back up, even though he didn't have any gel. I would have offered if I hadn't run out of excuses to leave everyone.

"Okay, well your hair isn't going to stay up so you kind of have to go in a hurry, everyone is wondering why I keep leaving, and why I don't have any more excuses, and so you can stay here if you know how to get out."

"Yeah I know how to get out. Umm…I'll only be a few more minuets so I'll be gone before long you can go back up stairs and I guess I'll see you around sometime."

"Yeah, see you around, bye." I turned and walked and in my head I waited for it.

"Goodbye."