Roxie was dreaming. Or at least she was pretty sure she was. She was sitting in a chair with a spotlight over her in an otherwise dark room. "Hello?" She called. "Is anyone here? Where am I?"

"With me, sweetie." Roxie quickly turned around in her chair as a woman stepped out from the darkness, her eyes a wide blue like Roxie's own and blonde hair cut to just below her chin. She was wearing black stockings and a tight black dress. "I know you wanted to meet me," the woman said, sitting in another chair that had mysteriously appeared next to Roxie's. "You wanted to meet me and here I am."

Roxie snorted. "No, I'm sure I don't want to meet you. You look like my mom. She's so lame."

"How so?" The woman who looked like her mother asked, leaning forward. "Tell me how badly I've ruined myself over the years."

"Well, she's so good," Roxie complained. "She doesn't believe in killing people at all, even though it's in our nature to do so, and she broke up with my dad to be with my uncle who's totally lame and wrong for her, and-"

"Hold on," The woman said. "I've left your father? Why would I do that?"

Roxie scoffed. "I don't know! I don't see how anyone could hate my dad!"

"Exactly," Selina nodded. "It's impossible. 'Cause even if someone did hate him he could just compel them to like him. Or he could kill them." She shrugged and blew a gum bubble. "Whatever."

Roxie looked at Selina in amazement. "It's like you're my mom...but better. I have a question: I know this guy and I really like him, but he wants to be married. I don't. I think I have several years before I'm ready for that."

"Am I telling you you should marry this guy?" Selina asked, eyes narrowed. "How old are you, sweetheart?"

"Seventeen," Roxie said immediately. "I'll be eighteen soon."

Selina gagged. "I better not be telling you to get married at your age. I mean, when I was growing up, that's all my mother did, and-"

"And we know how much you resent her," Roxie finished. "No, you haven't told me to marry him. That was all Dad's idea."

Selina growled. "Has he lost his mind? What's wrong with him?"

Roxie shrugged. "I don't know exactly. "Maybe he's doing it for security or something. Or he could possibly think I can't handle life by myself, which is absolutely ridiculous."

"You'll just have to prove otherwise to him and anyone else," Selina said. "Do you think you can do that?"

"Sure," Roxie nodded.

"I remember the first time I realized I couldn't depend on men anymore," Selina told her. "It was right after I was turned. Doctor Stensrund tried to isolate me from my child, my friends, my family...and when he wouldn't let me leave his house, I killed him. Ripped his throat right out. Damn it felt good!" She grinned, showing her fangs.

"Did you feel bad about it afterward?" Roxie asked.

"Why should I have?" Selina said. "The man victimized me, okay? No one should have to live their lives as a victim. You have to take action against men who treat you like property, no exceptions. You deserve to be your own person. Think you can remember that?"

"Yeah," Roxie nodded. "I can."

She woke up feeling much more chipper than usual. When she went into the living room, Vince was just coming in with a bag over his shoulder.

"You just getting home?" She asked him. "Where were you since you didn't come to bed last night?"

"Oh," Vince said, "I spent the night at Charlie and Tony's. I thought it would be best."

"What do you mean?" Roxie asked. "Do you want to move out?"

He nodded after a moment. "Yeah, I think I should," he said. "I can't go on like this anymore."

"Go on like what?" Roxie asked.

"Like this!" He gestured wildly around the apartment. "You and me in this...whatever the hell you'd call it. This thing where we're everything but married. Why can't you just let us get married anyway? How would that be so different from how things are now?"

"Well, why are you so eager for us to be married?" Roxie asked. "'Cause you see me as some sort of chattel and you can't wait to brand your name on my ass so that you have proof that I belong to you and nobody else? Well, let me tell you something, Mister. I am a grown woman and I have goals and dreams and desires that are beyond being married. I'm not one of those stupid, vapid girls who spent all of school writing 'Mrs. insert-jock's-name-here' all over my notebook covers. I had other things on my mind."

"I never said you were," Vince shot back. "I would never want you to turn into the sort of person you describe. And I want to be married to you because for some reason even I'm beginning to lose sight of, I love you, even if you are a shallow, self-absorbed bitch. And I believe that if you love someone, you should be selfless enough to give them whatever they want, and since you don't want to be married, I won't stay here and waste my time or yours." He put the bags on the steps. "Now I'm going to go to our room and finish emptying out my drawers, and when you've decided for sure you want to be with me, but not before then, you can come and find me at Charlie and Tony's."

"Wait!" She said, running after him. "This isn't fair! If the reason you want to be married is to be sure I won't cheat on you, you know I wouldn't do that! I've never slept with anyone else besides you! You know that, don't you?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I know that. And I've done the same for you."

Roxie put her hands on her hips. "Well, what do you expect me to do while you're gone then? Unless you'll let me come over at night for a little...pick me up."

He looked up and shook his head. "I don't think so," he said. "I don't want to do any of this halfway anymore. Why can't you get that? But if you're concerned, might I suggest you pick up an electric toothbrush and put it in a place you won't lose it? That should hold you for awhile."

"Ugh!" Roxie winced. "That's just gross."

He shrugged. "Fine. I was just trying to help. But maybe a little celibacy will be good for you," he said. "Goodbye, Roxie." When she didn't respond, he shook his head and shut the door behind him.

Roxie stood staring at the door for several minutes and then walked over to it, opening it again, hoping that Vince was just messing with her and that he'd still be on the other side. "Vince?" She called. But the hallway was empty. He was gone.

"Hey," Selina said as Elijah looked up when they walked through the door. "Did you miss us last night?" She held Lucy by the hand and the little girl was walking beside her.

Elijah picked Lucy up. "Of course I did," he said. "But it was wise of the two of you to stay at your apartment for the evening."

"Maybe it wasn't," Selina said. "Stefan and Nicky saw the news and came over to 'congratulate' me."

"Oh?" Elijah asked. "And how did you respond?"

"I told them that it wasn't something I was proud of," Selina said. "That it was just an unfortunate phase that I went through and that it's over now."

Elijah nodded. "Good for you. Things were pretty quiet last night around here."

"Good," Selina smiled. "The bird didn't cause any trouble, did he?"

Elijah smirked. "It was like he wasn't even here."

Selina stared at him uncomprehending for a few seconds, then his words sunk in and she took off for her room. Lucy squirmed in Elijah's grip for a moment before he put her down and she ran after her mother.

"Oh, thank goodness," Selina said, taking a deep breath when she saw that Nicky the bird was still in his cage.

"Birdy still here," Lucy said. Selina looked down at her. "Yes, he's still here, but even so..." She strode back to the living room and paused right in front of Elijah, snatching his paper out of his hands. He looked up at her. "Yes?" He asked.

"What the hell did you do with my bird?" She asked. "Is that even the same one? I bet you lost him and that's a replacement bird!"

"I never touched it," he said.

"Whatever!" Selina shot back. "I know you hate him. What better opportunity to get rid of him then at a time when I'm not here to stop you?"

Elijah just shook his head. "If were as concerned with his safety last night as you are now, then why did you leave him here with me? Why didn't you take him with you for the night?"

Selina stood silent for a moment, then, when she couldn't stand looking at his smirking face any more, she leaned forward and spit her gum in his hair.

He ran his fingers through his hair and when he felt the gum, his eyes widened. "What the hell did you do that for?"

"Oh, no reason, really," she said. "I just felt like it." She looked at the clock. "I just realized that Lucy and I have to be at Damon's for my weekly visit with Sam in a few moments. We should probably get going now."

"Now wait just a minute!" Elijah called after her. "You come back here right now and get this gum out of my hair!"

"Bite me," Selina said over her shoulder as she carried a waving Lucy out the door. "Bye-bye Unc' 'Lijah!" Lucy called.

"Well, you sure look happy," Damon said when he opened the door to Selina's knock. "What's going on?"

Selina smirked. "Oh, nothing. Exacting vengeance is always fun."

"And against whom were you exacting vengeance?" Damon asked.

"Elijah was antagonizing me about the new bird I got, so I spit gum in his hair." She sat down and gave him a grin. "It was funny."

"Ah," Damon sat down next to her. "So the honeymoon's over, I see."

Selina shook her head. "Not exactly. I don't see what's so hard about leaving my bird alone, but apparently, Elijah has a problem with him."

"When did you get a bird?" Damon asked.

"I was playing poker and one of the guys in the game didn't have enough money to cover his bet, so he put the bird in and I won," Selina said. "Where's Sam?"

Just then, Sam came running into Selina's open arms. "Mommy!" He said.

Selina hugged him. "Do you want to play with your trucks?" She asked him.

"No," Sam shook his head. "Monster."

Selina looked at Damon. "What's Monster?" She asked.

"Just a game we play," he said. "We have to get his blocks out of his room first."

"All right," Selina said, picking up Sam. "Let's do that then."

"Let's go, Cookie Monster," Damon said, picking up Lucy and carrying her to Sam's room. He and Selina grabbed the box of blocks and carried them out to the living room with Sam and Lucy following. They dumped the wooden blocks on the floor and then Selina looked at Sam. "What do we do now?"

Sam began making little stacks of blocks four high and he and Damon put them in a circle with an opening on one side of it. "Would you go in the middle?" Damon asked Selina.

"Okay," Selina said, sitting on her feet in the circle of blocks. "Am I in jail or something?"

"You've been captured by the monster and now you have to try and escape," Damon said. "If Sam catches you then you lose."

Selina grinned. "I have a feeling this isn't how you usually play, but okay. What's your role?" She asked Damon.

"I get to try and rescue you," he said. "I'm the good guy."

"Wanna play?" Selina asked Lucy. Lucy shook her head and went to the kitchen table and tried to climb up on a chair to reach the cookie jar on the kitchen table. Damon picked her up off the chair, gave her a few cookies and sat her down on the sofa where she could watch the game unfold before her very eyes.

Sam went to the corner of the living room opposite where Selina sat and then ran at her, roaring, his arms in the air. He began kicking the little piles of blocks over and when he threw himself into her arms, Selina hugged him hard.

"You're missing the point of the game," Damon said after a moment. "He's not supposed to catch you. You're supposed to run away when you see him coming."

Selina patted Sam on the head and kissed his hair. "Why would I want to do that when he's so cute?"

"Because that's how the game goes," Damon said through his teeth.

"Are you okay?" Selina asked him, putting Sam down and coming to put a hand on Damon's back. "What's the matter with you?"

"Nothing," Damon said moodily, not meeting her eyes.

"Is it really nothing?" Selina asked. "Or is it something?"

"Yeah, okay, it's something," Damon said. "What about me?"

"Do you need a hug?" Selina asked.

"Don't bother," Damon said. He went to sit next to Lucy on the sofa, then took the cookie she offered him and when she crawled into his lap, he hugged her hard.

"I'll still hug you if you need it," Selina said. "That's not a problem."

"It is for me," Damon said. "It's not enough. Every time we have these playdates, I-it's getting to be a bit much for me, so how about when it's your time with Sam, I just drop him off and then come pick him up at the end of the day?"

"Well, okay I guess," Selina said. "If that's what you want."

"That is what I want," Damon snapped. "Why would I say it if I didn't mean it?"

"When you come, do you want me to send Lucy back with you?" Selina asked. "It'd be okay with me if you took her for a bit. I'm sure she wouldn't mind either."

"Well at least somebody doesn't." Damon's voice was still bitter.

"If you're going to be angry, then I'll just leave and take Sam with me so he still gets his time. And you can keep Lucy for a little," Selina said. "She might cheer you up."

"You're acting like it's all my fault I'm angry," Damon said. "Do you even realize how much of it has to do with you?"

"Of course I do," Selina said. "I'm not stupid and I'm sorry for making you miserable, but there's not much I can do about it now. It's unfortunate, but it's true. You're no good for me anymore, Damon. And I have to remember that. And don't make me feel guilty for thinking of myself," she said when Damon opened his mouth to protest. "I'm sorry that things didn't work out between us, but you still have Wendy, remember? Don't forget about her. Why don't you give her a call?"

"I don't need to," Damon said, tickling Lucy and making her giggle. "Cookie Monster and I are going to have lots of fun tonight, aren't we kid?"

Lucy snuggled against him and Selina said, "Well, whatever works for you." She took Sam out to her car and brought him back to Elijah's, where they played until it was time for her to put Sam to bed.

She had just finished her shower and was reading in bed in her bathrobe when Elijah came in, giving her a sour look. She just giggled. "I love your hair," she said. "The gum really does a lot for you. Don't try and pull it out though. It'll just get stuck worse."
"Don't act like any of this is my fault," he told her. "You're the one who brought the damn bird into my house."
"I don't see what the problem is," Selina said. "Nicky's sweet."
Just then, the bird flew in and landed on Selina's shoulder. "You're an idiot," he squawked at Elijah.

"That's it!" Elijah growled. He pulled Nicky off Selina's shoulder and wrung his neck, dropping his crumpled body on the floor next to Selina's side of the bed. "There," he said. "All my problems are solved."
Selina looked at him in shock. "I can't believe you just did that!" She ran to the kitchen and grabbed the ketchup out of the fridge and squirted it all over his pants. "I guess you'll have to take them off," she said. "I know you will."

"No, I won't," Elijah said. "I'm perfectly fine like this." He wouldn't give her the satisfaction of seeing how upset he was.
She heaved a sigh and let her bathrobe fall to her feet. "I'm going to bed," she said. "Are you going to join me?"

He looked at her resentfully, growling and pushing her against the wall. She peeled his shirt off and unzipped him, and he threw her down on the bed. "I hate you," he whispered angrily. Then he pushed into her.

She gasped. "I just bet you hate me," she said breathlessly. "How much? How much?"

"So much," he said. "Sometimes I just want to..." He pulled out of her almost all the way and pushed in again. She screamed. "Do it again!" She said, her hips bucking upward. "Take out all your anger on me!"

He pulled her to him and kissed her. "Stop talking!" he ordered.

Suddenly, she pushed him off her and rolled him over so that she was on top. "If only I had some way to occupy my mouth," she said. "Then I wouldn't need to talk so much."

She went under the covers and slowly sucked on him. He shut his eyes and felt himself relax. Just before he was about to fall asleep, Selina resurfaced from under the covers. "Goodnight," she said, kissing him softly on the lips. Then she lay her head on his chest and shut her eyes. "You drive me crazy, you know that?" He whispered.

"Yeah," she said. "I do. But I'm not sorry."

"I know you aren't," he said. "And I know you never will be."

She grinned. "It's good we're clear on that."

"How are you feeling?" Charlie asked Roxie when she met her at school the next day.

Roxie sighed. "Fine. How's Vince? Please tell me he's as miserable as me. I'll feel better that way."

"Well, he wasn't happy when he threw his stuff in the guest room last night," Charlie said. "I think you're looking at this the wrong way. This isn't a bad thing. You can make this work in your favor."

"Of course you'd say that. You have a husband," Roxie told her bitterly. "You don't have to come home to nothing every time you enter your apartment."

"Use this as a time to discover yourself," Charlie said. "Learn new hobbies. It'll be good for you." She watched Roxie yawn and said, "What's wrong with you? Why are you so tired?"

"I spent most of last night discovering myself and let's just say there isn't much uncharted territory left on me," Roxie said. "But I suppose if Vince is as miserable as me, then it'll all be worth it."

Then they heard the sound of someone clearing their throat. "Yes?" Charlie said, looking at the mousy girl with the glasses and curly hair. "May I help you?"

"I'm Agnes," the girl said quietly. "Remember me?"

"I do," Roxie said, looking at her with distaste. "What do you want?"

"My family is having a termite problem," Agnes said, looking shyly at Charlie, "and we need to find another place to live while the exterminators spray our apartment. Vince offered to let me stay with him and you and Tony, but I don't think my father would approve my living with boys."

"Well, it's just me at my apartment," Roxie said to her. "I'd be glad to host you while your family deals with their insect problem."

"Really?" Agnes asked. "I thought you hated me."

"Of course not!" Roxie said, pretending to look horrified. "I'm sorry if I gave you that impression. When can you move in?"

"Any time," Agnes said. "Thank you, Roxie. You're so sweet!"

She ran back to tell Vince what Roxie had told her. He looked at Roxie from across the room and stood up and strode over to her. "What are you doing?" He asked.

"What's wrong with you?" She asked. "Can't I be helpful? After all, any friend of yours is a friend of mine."

"Bullshit," Vince said. "What are you really up to?"

"Nothing," Roxie said. "I'm alone thanks to you, and she needs a place to stay. It's a perfect arrangement. I'll treat her just like family."

"Would eight be fine for me to move in tonight?" Agnes asked her eagerly.

"Yes," Roxie grinned. "Eight would be perfect,"

Agnes grinned at her and gave her a hug that she didn't return. "Thank you for doing this for me. You have no idea what a lifesaver you are."

"No," Roxie shook her head. "I should be thanking you. See you tonight, sweetie."