There have been so many times, so many moments when people have looked at them and speculated. Where they would be sitting outside having lunch, or in Aidan's case pretending to have lunch, and someone would walk by and give them a look. A look that he knew all too well, having seen it many times over his many decades of existence. It was a look that said, now aren't they just a nice looking couple? Don't they look good together?

There are the times when he has stopped by the nurses station for a moment and someone has said something to him in passing, like "Your girlfriend is being awkward again, she just bowed to me." Or "doesn't it bother you that, that Intern is always talking Joss up?" That intern of course being Jesse, who still remained firmly in the just friends category. There are days when Aidan is gleefully pleased by this fact, and then there are days when he just wants Joss to find something stable and normal. Not that he wants to distance himself from her, far from it. And there in lies the problem. It is one thing for a teenage girl in the checkout at the store to comment on their relationship, they can laugh it off and go on like nothing is different, and another to put it into practice. Sometimes he feels like there is no one that has known him better since he became a monster, seen him for a person and not as some warrior killing machine like Bishop did. Like a child to be consoled and bemusedly dealt with. Sitting here now, with Sally and Joss, the loss of Bishop still fresh in his mind, the effect of what he had to do the night before both to Bishop and Celine still lingering ,he can't help but feel at home.

He had felt it before, in the basement of the hospital while Joss held his hand tightly, her own fear at that moment so palpable that he could practically taste it. After Bishop had busted through their front window and staked him Joss and Sally had acted surprisingly fast, somehow getting him into their junker of a car and to the hospital basement, in the room where Joss would sometimes change into the wolf. Joss had then somehow managed to get him blood and had then sat there with him all night holding his hand. He had wanted to tell her so many things then, sure that this was the end for him finally; there had been a moment when he had opened his eyes and seen her sitting beside him, his hand clasped between both of hers and even in his delirium he had been struck by a feeling of rightness.

They had sent Sally back to the house where her door to move on waited, but apparently she had missed it. Fast forward 48 hours or so and here they were, sitting on their living room floor, admiring the fire damage to the house from Danny's attempt to burn the place down a few days ago.

"No more waiting," Sally said with conviction. "I'm going to do something with my time. You know, I mean maybe I got closure with Danny, but I never got it with my family, my friends."

Joss nodded, "So you're just going to haunt them basically."

"Basically," Sally smiled at her slightly. "And," she said more brightly, shaking the somber tone their conversation had taken, "We're all going to be supernatural Krav Maga crimefighters,"

Aidan had to laugh at that one, he had said it off the top of his head, but Sally was right, crime fighting could be a lucrative business for him. The doorbell rang then and he went to answer it, throwing back some comment about how it might be fun to watch Joss eat pizza. Of course it wasn't the pizza boy, because really when had life ever been that simple. He stared at the Dutch Vampire who stood on the other side of the threshold of the door and then stepped outside closing the door firmly behind him.

"Hegeman. You're looking well," he said respectfully.

Hegeman nodded. "I have you to thank for that."

"You've come a long way to thank me, when there was no need." He wasn't sure why the Vampire elder was really there, but he could feel that it didn't bode well. He had just gained his freedom from Bishop; wariness would probably be the best course of action.

"But there is," Hegeman insisted. "You have saved us a lot of trouble by slaying Bishop."

"It had to be done," he looked away slightly, because part of him would always grieve the loss of his maker, even while he felt extremely free for the first time in over 200 years.

"And you are honorable," Hegeman continued, ignoring Aidan's discomfort. " So, Its time."

"I'm sorry?" He asked carefully.

"She wants to meet you," obviously seeing the confusion on Aidan's face, although there was no doubt which she was implied, he continued, "Aidan do not be foolish. You are the leader now. Of course, she wants to meet you."

Still Aidan found that he could only stare. Of course he was the leader no;he had killed Bishop, he should have realized what that meant. But to meet with her…

"This is a great honor Hegeman, but I'm not sure…"

"It is all settled," Hegeman cut him off and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Mother will come to Boston. Until then, lead the family. I must return now," he nodded to Aidan who could only nod back and watch the older Vampire leave, so many questions racing through his brain. Just as he was about to turn and head back in a car pulled up and a teenage boy hopped out carrying a pizza box. Aidan paid him absently, probably tipping more than necessary if the smile the kid flashed him was any indication, and then headed back inside.

"Finally," Joss said as he slowly came into the living room. "Did you have to wait while they instructed you on how to eat it?" She turned and looked at him, smiling and then slowly her smile was replaced with a look of worry.

"Aidan, what's wrong?" Sally asked, also noticing that he seemed out of sorts.

He sat back down on the floor and handed Joss the Pizza, which she sat aside in order to give him her full attention.

"Aidan?"

He sighed, "We had a visitor. Hegeman, was just here."

"Hegeman?" Joss asked, her brow furrowing, as Sally asked at the same time,

"Hegeman? As in the creepy Amish vampire who felt Joss up?"

Aidan ignored the reference to his less then stellar behaviour on the day that Joss had been forced into the wolf fight, and said, "He said that I'm to lead Boston now. And that Mother wants to meet with me."

"What?"

He looked over at Joss, her eyes were wide, a worried cast over taking them. Sally too looked similarly worried and bit confused.

"Who's Mother?"

"Never mind that," Joss insisted. "Aidan, he can't be serious. Don't you have to want to lead Boston? Isn't there some sort of nomination process or something?"

He nodded, "This is it. I killed Bishop, so I'm in charge now. Or at least until Mother determines the proper order."

"So what, its like one of those macho, I'm stronger so I get to be in charge things? This is ridiculous," Joss muttered. He could see that she was getting upset, worry for him apparent in her tone and expression as she shook her head and looked down at her legs.

"Who the hell is Mother?" Sally demanded, somewhat crossly, breaking him out of his contemplation and bringing his gaze back to her.

"Mother is," again he sighed, this time looking for the right words to describe the complexity that was Mother. "She's like our ruler. She's the oldest of us, Royalty. Her word is law. If she takes an interest in you, you don't say no."

"And she's taken an interest in you," Sally stated. He only looked at her, not saying anything. What could he say, that he hadn't already? He was still reeling from Hegeman's announcement.

"I need a drink," Joss murmured, quickly getting to her feet and practically running to kitchen. He watched her go, feeling at a loss. Things were happening way too quickly and if he were human, he was sure he would be cracking right about now.

Some time later, while Sally was off somewhere, probably making good on her promise to start haunting her friends and family, Aidan found himself knocking on Joss' door. He waited a moment and then pushed it open and leaned against the door frame.

"Hey," she greeted, looking up from the book she had been reading as she lay on the bed. It looked like the journal that she had rescued from Sapp and Sons basement.

"Hey," he watched as she sat up, closed the book and sat it aside, an unreadable look on his face. She bit her lip lightly, the action causing him to feel certain things that he knew he had no business feeling, and looked at him earnestly.

"Are you okay? I mean, really okay?" She sighed and ran hand through her hair, "of course you're not, why am I even asking."

His lips curved upward in a small smile; it always amused him when she got awkward like this. It probably always would. "I will be," he said gently, entering the room and sitting on the bed just bellow her feet.

"I don't just mean about what happened with Bishop and this whole crazy thing about leading Boston. You lost someone yesterday."

He looked down, worrying his own bottom lip slightly. He had lost someone the day before, someone that he held dear, that he loved at one point and still held fond feelings for. But he had taken her life, as sure as he had taken Bishops.

"What Celine did… that went beyond anything; I don't…" he shook his head and was only slightly startled when she reached out and took his hand, caressing it lightly.

"Celine loved you, I could tell from the moment I met her. Even after all these years, she still cared about you and what she did, what she asked you to do, was because of that love. She wanted you to have a chance Aidan," she paused and he raised his eyes to meet hers, which were reassuring and piercing all at the same time.

"When you love someone," she continued never breaking eye contact, "You do whatever you have to, to make sure they are safe."

"Like offer to take their enemies on in the basement of a hospital?" he asked lightly, a small smile coming to his lips.

Joss didn't return it, "Yes."

They continued to simply look at each other, thoughts reeling and he found himself feeling amused once again as a slight blush spread across her cheeks."I didn't mean..I mean I care about you, so of course I'm going to want to protect you, but I mean," and there was that awkwardness again. It was amazing how she could go from full on deadly serious to endearingly stammering in the same conversation. Still, while he would love to address what exactly it was she was denying, there were other things that needed to be said just then.

"Things are going to get a little harder now," he said slowly, voice low. "Bishop created all these followers, new vampires, and I'm going to have deal with them all. I might not be around as much, for a while." Her hand still rested on his and she began to draw it away. Before she could, he grabbed it and held it tightly in his own.

"You'll do what you have to. Life goes on right?'' her voice was a bit breathy and he could see something blossoming in her eyes. What was that expression? The eyes were the windows to the soul? In that moment he was sure that they were.

"Yeah," he said, leaning forward and using his grip on her hand to bring her closer. "It does."

"I might not be able to meet you after the full moon for a while or take you to the woods. Or lock you in the room." They were close now, only a hand space between them.

She shrugged slightly, "Sally could probably use a change of scenery. I could get her to lock me in, she did such a good job of it last night."

He nodded; eyes shifting down to her lips briefly and then back up to meet hers again. He slid his hand up to her wrist, loosening his grip a bit and he could feel the increase in her pulse. "Joss," he leaned closer still, all the words that his mind screamed at him to say trapped; his instincts warring between backing away and taking what he wanted.

"Ai- Aidan," she breathed in a stuttering breath and that was the end of him. Had he not been just thinking not ten minutes before that her awkwardness was endearing? He closed the final distance between them and captured her lips with his own, her hand now trapped against his chest, still in his hold.

At first it seemed that she was not going to kiss him back, as she sat frozen under his ministrations. Just as he was about to pull back though, she pressed her lips back against his, bringing her free hand up to cup his cheek. An indescribable feeling began to suffuse him then, an ache in his still heart, and if he had to he would have said it was like the feeling he got looking at her sitting by him that night when he thought he would die. It was the feeling that came over him every time he looked into her eyes of late; the feeling of being home.

The kiss began to become more heated, lips possessing and searing, hands, hers now free from his grip, caressing, finding smooth skin as the moved up the back of shirts and brushed through soft hair. Finally he pulled away, resting his forehead against hers, eyes closed. He could hear her gasping for breath, trying to calm her stuttering heart down. He moved away from her, placing a chaste kiss, merely a brush of the lips, against her forehead and stood.

"Goodnight Joss."

As he left the room, he glanced back to see her eyes still closed and her chest still heaving slightly. The sight, the vulnerability of it, would stay with him all his days.

"Goodnight Aidan," her voice barely reached his ears as he closed her door and moved down the hall to his own room. Once there he sank down onto his bed. What have I done, was the thought that kept circulating through his mind. He couldn't escape the feeling that he had potentially just ruined what he had with Joss. She was his best friend, his support and his family. Still, the feel of her hands on his skin, the taste of her lips and the exhilaration her racing pulse gave him, just the thought that he had done that to her, was something that he would not trade. And her stuttering words before were practically an admission.

Whatever may happen in the months to come, he would not regret kissing her. The expression may be that you can't miss what you don't have, but he thought that knowing, in this case, was better than not.