Nathan sat on the lanai with a pair of headphones on, blasting the music so loud that it could be heard quite clearly from ten feet away. His eyes were closed as he tapped the arm of the chair with his index finger and spasmodically nodded his head to the music.

Saya and Haji stepped onto the lanai and stood in front of Nathan, who appeared not to notice them, and paid them absolutely no mind until the song had finished.

"Judging by the canoodling you two were just doing, I would assume that Haji is no longer in the proverbial dog house." He said as he opened his eyes and finally removed his headphones.

"Not that it's any of your business, but no, he's not -"

Nathan caught sight of the ring on her finger. "Oooooo!" he hooted, "I think Satan's lacing up his ice skates! I never thought I would see the day!"

Saya blushed and Haji just looked annoyed.

Nathan bounced in his chair and clapped his hands before he suddenly calmed down. "So, is there something you want to talk to me about?" he said with a knowing smile.
"Yes, I wanted to, um," Saya paused uncomfortably, "make some kind of, um, arrangement with Solomon, so I wont have to sleep anymore."

Nathan clapped his hands softly. "Splendid. Alright now Haji, you'd best buzz off, leave this to us."

"But Saya's -"

Nathan quickly cut off his protests. "Bzzzzzz-zzzzz-zzz!"

Haji rolled his eyes and reluctantly walked away.

Saya sat down beside Nathan. "So um, how is this going to work?" Saya said, still quite uncomfortable with the subject. "Should I call him or something? I guess you have his number."

Nathan laughed. "Oh yes, you should call him." He pressed his middle, index and ring finger against his palm to form the shape of a phone, and put it to his ear. "Oh hi Solomon, Saya speaking, I was wondering, if its not too much trouble, could you possibly deflower and impregnate me? What? You'll pick me up at eight? Oh, are you going to take me to dinner first or should we just get right to it?" he mocked.

"Nathan, will you be serious!" Saya said exasperatedly.

"Oh now where's the fun in that?" Nathan let out a sigh. "Oh well, if you insist. I guess you would prefer if I just went and talked to him."

"Yes, that would be much better," said Saya, relieved that she was no longer obligated to make such a horrendously awkward phone call.

"Alright, I'll talk to him for you, sheesh, what is this, the sixth grade? I guess then he can come over and you two can discuss logistics."

"Thank you."

Nathan, thinking that the conversation had ended, put on his headphones and began searching for whatever track he had in mind to listen to next. Saya didn't move. He removed his headphones once more.

"Was there something else?"

"Um, yes," said Saya, "I was wondering if, um, maybe you could tell me about my mother. I really don't know anything about her, except that her name was Saya."

"Saya was not her name, it was her title. It means 'Queen,' more or less."

"What was her real name then?"

Nathan let out a genuine melancholy sigh. "Alas, I was not permitted to know her first name. I was not even allowed to speak to her directly, I was nothing more than a human, and a lowly one at that."

"If they thought you were so inferior, why were you made into a Chevalier?" asked Saya.

"Back then, when a pair of Queens came of age, they would each create two Chevaliers, but those two Chevaliers were destined for very different roles. One was destined to be the Queen's Consort – her lover, protector, eternal companion, and of course, her own personal blood bank. But I was the other kind of Chevalier, known as a Groom, slaves, more or less, made into Chevaliers only to be the biological fathers of a Queen's sister's children. Typically Queens choose their Consorts from the crème de la crème of human civilization – great heroes and warriors, and those men were destined for a life of near eternity at the side of their Queen. But us lowly Grooms, we were made only to be used and thrown away, no one cared much for our feelings. I was raised in a family of peasant farmers, one of six surviving children, the chiropteran elders choose me as a groom me because I had a 'good face,' whatever that means." Nathan let out yet another sigh. "I think that's why I have always liked Haji so much, he and I have a lot in common. We were both sold by our families at a young age and were supposed to father the next generation of Queens, but we both managed to weasel our ways out of that gruesome fate. Haji did so by, for all intents and purposes, becoming your Consort instead, I mean, consummation aside, what has he been these past decades if not you life partner, body guard and blood bank? My escape, on the other hand, was far less romantic. After recovering from my rebirth as a Chevalier, I was brought before my Queen's sister to carry out my destiny as a Groom," Nathan let out a brief giggle. "But let's just say that flower had already been plucked long before I got my turn with it. When my bride's dirty little secret got out, it was made known that because she had already lost her virginity, she would never be able to conceive. Thus I was deemed useless and cast out to fend for my self, left to wander the ages, immortal and free."

"Didn't you know anything about my mother?"

"Not much, like I said, someone as low as myself was forbidden to speak to chiropteran nobility unless directly ordered to do so. However, I was put to work in the gardens during the years between being bought and being reborn, and I used to see her there often. She adored the garden, whenever I saw her there, I would cut a few flowers for her." He let out a sigh. "She was more beautiful than the glittering stars, and she had a gorgeous voice too, you know, even Diva and her girls couldn't compare. For me, that was the highlight of each day, watching her stroll – no float through the gardens, singing like an angle amongst the flowers." He sighed once more and gazed out into the night for several seconds before suddenly turning back toward Saya. "Lets see, what else?" He put his index finger to his chin. "Oh, she was a great shot."

"Great shot?"

"Archery, darling, archery. Bloody hands were considered to be beneath a Queen's dignity, but she also needed to be able to join her people in battle if necessary, so they were always trained in the use of weapons. Your dear mother's favorite was the bow, or at least I would assume so, I used to see her practicing nearly every day." He let out a brief chuckle. "I bet she could hit a flea while riding at a full gallop." Nathan paused and put his finger to his chin again. "I'm afraid that's all I know. Other than averting my gaze as I silently gave her flowers, the only time I really interacted with her was on, well, I guess you could call it my wedding day, when she ritualistically slit my throat before gifting me with her blood." Nathan's voice became uncharacteristically low and somber. "I know only what I observed. Sadly, I knew nothing of her thoughts, dreams, feelings, except what came out in her singing."

"Did you know my father at all?"

"He was imported from another region shortly before the ceremony, so no. All I remember is that he was a brave man with red hair and fair skin, I suppose you inherited his complexion."

"Nathan, what caused our kind to die out?"

"The same things that causes the extinction of modern species – a mixture of natural and man-made factors. Our kind was always intimately connected with humans, them being not only our food source, but also our means of reproduction. Because we were so dependent on humans, we began to get involved in their meaningless conflicts, taking sides and fighting against each other. But even in our golden age, our numbers were never prolific, generally not much more than a dozen sets of Queens. While the humans could afford to send countless thousands off to die in battles, our kind could not. Our numbers got smaller until our kind seemed to be lost to antiquity, thus you and the twins are the only full-blooded chiropterans living in this world, or at least you're the only ones I know of."

Saya sat reflecting on what he had said when Kai's face appeared in the window.

"Dinner's ready. I know you and the girls had a late lunch, but I figure you bottomless pits are always up for another meal."

"Did you cook?" asked Saya.

"Yup."

"Alright, I'll be right in."

Saya stood and turned to Nathan as she was about to walk through the door. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it honey."

Nathan put on his headphones once more.

"The board is set," he whispered smugly to his imaginary audience, as he switched to a new play list, a Rolling Stones mix that seemed to stick out amongst the predominantly classical selections. He scrolled down to "Sympathy for the Devil."