Emily scowled darkly as Aaron and Paul talked with earnest enthusiasm about the next series of Emily's wildlife show. They had insisted it was a business meeting but there was nothing they were saying that could not have been said over the phone.

"You've got me here under false pretensions!" Emily cried curtailing their chatter.

"Pretences," Aaron corrected without thinking.

"Whatever!" Emily snarled sharply, "why have you brought me here?"

Aaron and Paul exchanged comical looks of blatant she's-on-to-us, evidently they knew they had been caught out.

"Well, what else have you got to do all day?" Paul retorted quickly, "lay in bed crying wet patches into your sheets under your duvet?"

Emily blushed crimson and was extremely glad that the restaurant they were in was practically empty.

"I don't cry under my blankets thank you very much," she snapped, thinking that just this morning she had been eating ice-cream out of the tub and crying into it.

"Well, to be honest the only reason we did this was to get you out the house so your maid could clean it. We promised to pay her extra if she gave the whole thing a spruce up," Paul informed her primly and Emily gaped in outrage.

"You had no right -"

"The neighbours were beginning to complain of the smell, Emily," Aaron said soothingly, which was of course an exaggeration, although Emily admitted her love of neatness and order in her little home had gone slightly askew with the on set of her grief. Suddenly Aaron waved at someone and Emily turned and suppressed a groan, it was Lynette.

Lynette was five foot ten and as willowy as she was tall, she was smart, she was sassy and she was beautiful. Her coffee coloured skin was as smooth as butter and she had style that put models on the catwalk to shame. She was Naomi Campbell only better looking, her voice was a deep purr when she spoke, and whatever she said was either hilariously funny or bitingly sarcastic, it was no wonder Lynette and Emily had become friends. Lynette had also been born David Landis and as much as Emily loved her company, she just wasn't in the mood for Lynette's perpetual life-is-good attitude.

Lynette put her bag down beside the empty chair and went straight to Emily and hugged her tight, Emily inhaled the smell of coco butter on her skin and took a strange comfort in it, evidently Paul, Aaron and Jay had told her of Emily's problems.

"Honey, I heard a man - a foul, sleazy man of obviously lower then dirt IQ, has broken your heart," Lynette said her voice was all sympathy.

Emily smiled ruefully and began to tell Lynette her story, replacing certain facts with lies as to make Lynette understand without revealing her secret. An hour later when they were all eating dessert and drinking coffee, Lynette was listening intently with her chin resting on her fist. Emily was scraping the last of her Danish pastry from the plate with her fork as she spoke.

"So let me get this straight," Lynette said slowly once Emily had told her all she could, surprisingly Emily found she felt a little better. "He found out that you are descended from a certain race of people that fought his certain race of people and he hates you for it?"

Emily nodded and shrugged in a that's-kind-of-it fashion and Lynette shook her head and pursed her lips; it was obvious that a rant about the failure of men was building up inside her.

"How can you allow yourself to cry over a man like that, Emmy?" Lynette asked passionately and Emily shrugged listlessly. Lynette patted her impeccably weave which she usually did when she was about to start ranting.

"I think it was more the humiliation of it all that's got me," Emily muttered sadly and even Lynette stopped her mouth to throw her a pitying look.

"Oh my!" Aaron breathed, his eyes wide as saucers as he stared over Emily's shoulder, Emily turned and gaped.

"Jasyn!" she squeaked absolutely stunned.

"Hello Emily," he murmured deeply and Emily turned to look at Paul and Aaron, both of whom were simply staring at Jasyn as if he had come in and announced himself as the Messiah. Emily felt her heart begin to pound with a kind fear as she let her eyes scan him up and down, he hadn't shaved and there was a growth of stubble that was beginning to turn into a beard. The muscle shirt that he wore probably would have creases in it had it not been so tight to his perfect body, he had a rather pale, unhealthy pallor to his skin and his face looked … thinner, for want of a better word, as though he'd lost weight. Emily couldn't see how that was possible when they had only been separated for a week and a half, but then Were-Hunters did have faster metabolisms then humans. In fact, he looked terrible and as petty as that made her seem Emily was rather glad, even though the bigger part of her longed to walk into his arms. Emily physically turned her face away and closed her eyes tight trying to shut down those feelings.

"What do you want?" she asked sharply, her eyes letting nothing but her rage show.

"This is him!" Lynette cried, her perfectly plucked brows furrowing with fury, "this is the guy?"

Emily could see an almighty storm building in Lynette and it wasn't all on Emily's behalf, as a black, gay and now transsexual man Lynette could not abide prejudice or discrimination of any kind and her indignation was rearing its head.

"You have a lot of nerve showing your ass round here!" Lynette barked, Jasyn who hadn't even acknowledged anyone else's presences flashed his eyes towards her. He arched a brow that said he was getting mildly pissed off and Emily felt concern for her friend cloud her stomach. She laid her hand over Lynette's as her friend growled at Jasyn about his bare-faced cheek, and that he wasn't good enough for her friend, thank you very much, annnnnd another thing -

"Lynette, don't!" Emily said sharply, Lynette stopped and bit her lip, deliberately turning her back on Jasyn. "What do you want?" Emily repeated again, her voice full of strength and not the merest trace of familiarity.

Jasyn swallowed before speaking.

"The tape," he said, "I need the tape."

Of course he did, Emily thought furiously, silly, little Emily, why would he ever come back for you?

Emily took the napkin from her lap and threw it on to the table with a sharp snap that rattled the cutlery.

Emily got up without a word and made a phone with her hand and pointed to Paul and Aaron, they nodded. Emily stalked by Jasyn without even looking at him though she saw his eyes fix on her, he turned and followed a little belatedly, Emily couldn't help but smile when she heard Lynette's distinctive voice sound through the restaurant.

"A kick in the ass is what he needs!"

Jasyn followed Emily as she marched down the street, it would have been easier to flash to her house but he instinctively knew that this was her way of letting him know she was running the show. By walking she would have to let him into her house and probably make him wait at the door. Jasyn opened his mouth to talk to her plenty of times but she refused to look at him or let him catch her eye. She had blown him away when he'd walked into that restaurant and seen her; obviously he'd tracked her there and knew she was in there by her scent, but, damn! When he laid his eyes on her and saw just how beautiful she was, he wanted to scold his memory for not doing her justice; either that or she'd grown more stunning in the days they'd been apart. He wanted to drag her to a stop but the words of explanation and how sorry he was wouldn't form, so he didn't. In fact Jasyn wasn't sure what he was doing here but after watching Mama Lo and Aubert die in each others arms, it had done something to him. He had panicked inside and it had galvanised him into action, and he had flown non stop to New York. He'd gone to Emily's home but she hadn't been there, he'd watched her maid leave before tracking her by scent all over the city. He hadn't a clue what to say to her, he didn't even know what he wanted to say to her or what he wanted out of telling her the truth because it wouldn't change anything. She would still be in danger and even more so now that Sanctuary was no longer standing as Limani. No, all it would do was make her care about him again, and wasn't that selfish of him? To crave her so much he would allow her to put herself in danger, it wasn't right … Gods, he was such a rat bastard!

Jasyn followed her into her apartment building and up the stairs, she stopped outside her door and fumbled with the keys, Jasyn stood behind her and breathed deeply. Her scent was everywhere and it was making him hard and needy, he wanted to tuck himself against her back and press her against the door while he trailed his tongue over her neck …

The door swung open with such force that it hit the wall with a bang and the TV that sounded faintly from her neighbour's house went mute for a moment, as if the person watching it was listening hard to what might be happening outside their door. Emily marched into her home and Jasyn followed immediately, not giving her time to demand he stay at the front door, he closed it quietly and bolted it. Emily wasn't looking at him, she had stormed across to a bureau that stood next to her fireplace and ripped open the drawer, her hand went immediately to the tape that was settled all snug behind the clutter. She pulled back, turned and threw it into the space between them, as if throwing down the gauntlet. It landed with a loud and annoying clattering sound of plastic hitting bare wood which is always obscene to the ear. Jasyn stared at it knowing that he couldn't care less what was on the damn thing, but that it was his only excuse to see her, one which made her despise him more.

"Take it and get out!" Emily sneered before turning away from him ready to lock herself in her bedroom until he left. Jasyn snapped his head up and moved to her side with preternatural speed, he grabbed her arm and spun her around to face him. Emily turned and with strength and precision he would never have attributed to her, she landed her fist into the side of his mouth. Jasyn was thrown off course for a moment, his knees bent but he stayed standing and angled away from her as his vision fuzzed out and came back again. He snapped his head around to her and she was standing there looking terrified, as if she had been just as shocked by her actions, her breasts heaved as she panted. Jasyn touched his lip with his tongue and tasted blood, it set fire to him and he flew at her, taking her up to the wall and locking his lips on hers. He got the biggest sexual thrill when she kissed him back, her tongue diving into his mouth and her teeth scraping at him, he pressed her harder into the wall intending to take her. His lips pushed firmly on hers and she began to lose her rhythm, to his horror he saw her struggling against him, her lips stopped moving and her tongue pulled back and had she not had her arms trapped between their bodies she would have pushed at his chest. Jasyn backed off and watched as Emily wiped the wetness and blood from her mouth.

"I'm sorry, Emily," Jasyn panted and tried to take her head in his hands, but she wouldn't let him, she struggled out of his grip and away from the wall. She escaped to the other side of the room where the high windows looked down on the street.

"Just leave me alone!" she yelled at him, she kicked the tape in his direction and it skidded across the floor and under the bureau, "just take the damn thing and leave!"

"I can't!" Jasyn shouted back, "I love you, Emily!"

Emily was shocked into silence for all of two seconds before flying at him; Jasyn caught her at his chest and held her flailing fists.

"I hate you!" she screamed through her tears, "I hate you! I wish you were -"

Emily pulled back and stopped herself before she said something she didn't mean, even for how badly he'd hurt her, she still didn't wish that.

"Jasyn just go!" she begged emphatically, "why are you doing this to me?"

Jasyn was staring at her with desperation and contrition written plainly across his face, and she saw it too, but when someone had hurt you as badly as he had hurt Emily, it was hard to read what to others would seem very simple.

"I love you," Jasyn whispered, he'd never said those words to anyone in his long and terrible life yet now the fuckers had gained freedom it seemed the only thing he could say. "I love you, I do!"

Emily hissed as if he'd stung her and she closed her eyes and turned her face to the side, she shook her head and made waving motions with her hands trying to get him to stop and shut up.

"Emily, listen to me, it wasn't real what you saw," Jasyn licked his dry lips, "I didn't do anything with that female, I couldn't. I didn't want her. I haven't wanted anyone else since I met you."

Jasyn took a rattling breath and wiped at his bleeding mouth, his eyes were beginning to sting.

"You are such a liar!" Emily snarled with venom, "just take the tape and -"

Jasyn was on her again and this time he was rougher, taking her shirt by the shoulders and dragging her to him.

"I don't want the fucking tape!"

"What do you want then!"

"You!" Jasyn cried in her face, "haven't you been listening? I want you! I want you now and I want you always!"

Emily rubbed at her temples wearily and tried to force Jasyn from her with her elbows but he would not back up or let her go, he brought her close instead. Emily struggled and she felt his grip loosen.

"Hit me again if you want, Emily," Jasyn offered, he let her go and opened his arms, "I'll take all you have to throw at me. But I need you to know that I didn't do anything with that woman. And everything that happened, and everything I said was for good reasons, even though I hate myself for hurting you, I did it because I didn't know what else to do."

If she acted as smart as he knew her to be, the smart thing to do would be to kick him the hell out of her life, but - didn't it say something about what a sick ass motherfucker he was that he wanted her to be incredibly stupid? Emily shook her head and tried to rush to the front door but Jasyn flew after her and caught her, the momentum taking them both into the wall and knocking her table and sending her beautifully placed trinkets smashing to the floor.

"I don't believe you!" she spat, her tear streaked face mutinous as she glared up at him, "you're a liar!"

"I am a liar!" Jasyn cried, "I'm a liar, a thief, a murderer and a miserable, hate-filled piece of shit but - damn it, Emily, stay still! I'm not lying about this; I'm not trying to make a fool of you!"

Emily stopped struggling and began to weep in earnest, Jasyn tried to hold her to him but she struggled, as weak as her resistance was it told him no, it told him she didn't want him and that he wasn't allowed to touch anymore.

"Emily, smell the truth from me!" Jasyn pleaded with her, it was then that a spark lit in her eyes and she looked at him dead set. Her tears stilled on her cheeks, Jasyn frantically touched her, stroking back her hair and touching his face. "Take them Were instincts you were born with and know that I am telling the truth. Don't rely on me, prove to yourself whether I'm lying or telling the truth!"

Emily looked torn, she sniffled and the sound was too damn adorable but Jasyn held himself steady and didn't rush to her, he knew she needed to work out whether or not she believed him.

"Why did you do it?" she said finally, her face red and her eyes puffy, she still looked like a queen to him. Jasyn scrubbed at his hair and run his hand over his face; he pushed himself away from her and knelt to pick up the causalities of their argument. Jasyn ran his fingers over a now badly chipped porcelain statue of two penguins; he set it up on the table beside a pair of brass swans who were entwined. The most badly damaged were the ones that wrung his heart, a pair of red tailed hawks, he smiled sadly.

"Did you get these before or after you found out you were a Were?" Jasyn asked softly, his eyes fixed on the small ornaments. Emily slid down the wall and crouched in front of him, sweeping the chips of marble and porcelain into her palm.

"Both," she whispered hoarsely and cleared her throat, "I found the hawks a week or so after I began transforming, I felt like it was fate. So I bought them, they remained in my home ever since."

"It's a surprising collection," Jasyn commented and was happy to see Emily's face lighten even if she did not smile exactly. In fact he was simply happy that they were talking, even if it was about inane things.

"A weird one, you mean," Emily said wryly and Jasyn looked at her, she placed the small statue of two barn owls beside a pair of wolves cuddling together, "can't you see the common theme?"

Jasyn scrutinised them, what the hell did barn owls, French angel fish, wolves and gibbon apes have to do with each other? Jasyn shrugged nonplussed.

"They all mate for life," Emily explained and her scent was ripe with sadness, Jasyn shifted closer, "I loved animals as a child. When I was in the orphanage and if the girls decided they didn't want to be my friend that day, I would sit in the playground and watch the pigeons for hours."

Emily tapped the figurines of two common pigeons.

"It always fascinated me, even before I became Were, why some animals mated for life and others didn't."

Emily began to gently sweep the rubble into a tiny pile when Jasyn caught her hand, he put his own on top and Emily felt his warm weight keeping her palm flat to the floor. He began to rub her hand, smoothing his palm over the back of it and stretching his fingers between the creases of her own. Emily felt warm tingles spread throughout her body and she glanced up to see Jasyn with his eyes closed, a look that was close to ecstasy on his face.

"Why did you do it, Jasyn?" Emily whispered to him, Jasyn opened his eyes but did not remove his hand, something Emily was glad of; she looked at him dead in the eye. "Why did you want to hurt me?"

"I was afraid," Jasyn admitted starkly, "God, it's so messed up!"

Jasyn pressed the heels of his palms into his eyes so hard he saw dark colours swirl before him; he linked rapidly when he lowered his hands.

"You got that right," Emily commented miserably when he looked at her.

"First I was just scared of being around you. The way you make me feel … the way I think when I'm around you. Damn you have no idea how … shit, I sound like such an asshole, but … you have no idea how traumatising it is to suddenly feel so different, and to want to be different. All my beliefs just got turned on its head."

Jasyn pushed his hands through his hair again, "you have no idea what it feels to adore someone you think you should hate."

"Thanks a lot," Emily grumbled and sniffed a little, Jasyn picked her hand up off the floor and smoothed away the grit; he kept stroking it and massaging it, using his thumbs over the back of her hand.

"You know what I am, Emily," Jasyn said suddenly, he caught her eyes and she felt her throat tighten, he was so sincere and heart felt. "You know how much people hate me. If I was to start up something with you, you would be the first person my enemies would go after. I saw the way Arion came after you; he's set his sights on you. What kind of male would I be if I couldn't protect you from him? That's why I've never wanted to let people close to me - well, no," Jasyn added as an afterthought, "people just generally piss me off."

Emily let out a small noise that sounded like it could have been a laugh.

"But when you care about people it creates a weakness for everybody to see and for everybody to exploit. I thought if you hated me too, they would have no reason to ever some after you."

"Oh, Jasyn," Emily groaned with anguish as she realised that it had been a set up.

"I'm sorry but I had to make sure you were safe. I was falling too hard for you and I was caring too much about you. So I guess again my reasoning was as selfish as everything I've ever done in my life. I couldn't stand the thought of losing you and the pain I would feel, so I wanted to make you hate me."

"You bastard," Emily whispered vehemently, "you stupid, arrogant bastard!"

She whipped her hand away from him and her beautiful face frowned darkly at him, Jasyn wasn't sure if he had been expecting that.

"How dare you think you can make such a decision for me?" Emily was incensed and outraged and underneath all that strangely touched. "Damn it, Jasyn, it wasn't fair play!"

"Fair play doesn't count if it comes down to whether your life is at risk!" Jasyn snapped back and Emily was just a little bit overjoyed.

"I would have stayed, Jasyn!" Emily said emphatically, "I would have stayed with you. At Sanctuary. I would have been content to build a life with you there."

"Content isn't happy," Jasyn said definitely and she wanted to hit him for being so hard headed.

"Every relationship has its problems, besides it wasn't your decision to make," Emily reminded him forcefully, "I wouldn't have cared as long as I was with you!"

Jasyn tried to make his heart stay still but it was bouncing around like a mother-fucking jack in the box, it wanted to jump out of his throat and scream at her to say those words he longed to hear.

Jasyn ran his hands up and through his hair again, at this rate the stuff would fall out, he thought. Jasyn tried to not look at her and the expression on her face, she could break him and he knew it, kneeling like that opposite him, wanting comfort.

"What's changed?" Emily asked after a minute or so of silence, where both were lost in thought.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, why have you suddenly had a crisis of conscience and told me the truth?" Emily sniped and Jasyn gave her a dirty look, and for a brief flicker of a moment it was almost as if they were back at Sanctuary.

"I'm thinking of going away," Jasyn muttered and saw the wounded look on her face, "I am going away."

"You're leaving me again?" Emily choked out and Jasyn wanted to gather her to him and fly them both away.

"I wanted to be the one to tell you, ah, Sanctuary's license has been revoked," Jasyn said edgily, "shit went down a few nights after you left and, ah, Nicolette and Aubert were killed."

Emily caught her shocked, hurt gasp in her hands as they cupped her mouth, her eyes looked anguished for seconds before they widened.

"It's not a Limani anymore?"

"No," Jasyn sighed, shaking his head, mores the pity for him.

"Oh no, Jasyn! Where will you go? Are there others?"

The worry in her voice was his undoing and he had to reach up and stroke at her satin cheek, she caught his hand and held it to her.

"There are. Not as good as Lo's place but … but I won't be going to them."

"Why!" Her eyes were frightened.

"I'm sick of hiding. I'm sick of a lot of things. I don't know what I'm going to do," Jasyn said, finally voicing just how confused and out of place he was feeling in the world. Many of the inhabitants at Sanctuary had scattered to other Limani's over the world and in different time periods, but some had stayed. Jasyn wasn't sure what he should do now.

"Stay with me," Emily said hopefully and Jasyn wanted with all his heart to say yes to her and her eager look. "Stay with me, Jasyn."

"I can't," Jasyn got to his feet and paced away from her, Emily got up too, her knees cracking from being on the floor for so long, she tripped her way over to him. She still hadn't the grace and elegance that he possessed but she had just as much spirit and fire to want to fight with him.

"Why not?" she demanded, grabbing his arm.

"Because I fear not being able to keep you safe!" he growled and Emily flung her arms around his neck and clung to him, Jasyn responded by hoisting her up his body and holding her off the floor. He buried his face in her neck and squeezed her tight against him; he moaned gloriously into her skin and rubbed his splayed hands up and down her back and sides.

"What if they come after me?" Jasyn whispered to her and felt her shake her head.

"Then we fight them together, or we run or we hide. But I don't want to be on my own, I don't want to be without you, Jasyn. I really don't."

Jasyn clamped his eyes closed and knew he was lost to her. He would stay with her and most likely bring all sorts of trouble to her, he might even be the reason she could get killed. But he would love her, as selfish as it was, and as pitiful as it was in exchange for all the hardship he would bring her, he knew that no one would ever love her the way he did.