He was gone.

That was all Valette could think about. He was gone, disappeared off the face of the planet. All the years wasted searching for him. Wasted.

Closing her eyes she fought the tears beginning to build behind her eyes. She could feel the sun beginning to climb up over the mountain, but didn't care if she was burned alive. What did she have to look forward to? Zane was gone, her mother dead. And she was trapped traveling with Serana.

The journey had forced her to be honest with herself. Serana hated her. Always had. Valette knew that deep down inside, but it's so hard to admit, that someone you looked up to. Loved. Could hate you so much, simply because of a fathers favoritism. And she was supposed to be the wise, mature one.

"Are you ready to call off this search yet? We've checked all the wolf clans. He obviously is dead or doesn't want to be found." Serana said cutting into her thoughts. Her voice held a bored tone. If Valette could have had her way, she would have made the journey alone. But she knew her father would never allow it. She needed someone trustworthy to protect her. Yeah, Serana was "trustworthy" alright.

Turning to face her Valette searched her eyes. Looking for any sigh of pity. But there was only annoyance.

"...your right."

"Don't sound so broken about it. I'm sure someone like you will move on in no time."

Taking a deep breath Valette ignored the taunt. "If you think that, you don't know me at all." And with those final words, Valette bore one last wistful look at the small village , and then turned her horse to the long return trip home.

"It's time you really become part of the family, Valette." Harkon told her. They were in his private study that overlooked the still bustling city of their keep.

"You've put years of training, learning, and your ready to take on the full family name. You've surpassed your sister in every way as I expected you too. I've never felt so proud." Harkon said, with warm eyes. It made Valette feel happy. Ever since Zane had left she looked to her father for love, any type of it. She put every ounce of her will into pleasing him. Into training, her schooling, making diplomatic ties. Anything he asked. No matter what it was.

" So we will go through with the...ritual." She said softly.

Harkon nodded and began to fill her on its requirements. For summoning him. Molag Bal.

Few words were spoken at the ceremony. No speech, no reassurances. Not even Serana had a snark, she looked at Valette with pity. They both knew what was coming. And for the first time in years, Valette looked to Serana for reassurance, for all Serana had ever done to her. She still loved her sister.

To Valette's surprise Serana pulled her into a hug.

"I'm sure it will be fine." Serana whisper in her ear. Voice cracking as she said it hugging her back. After several minutes she pulled back and Serana filed our with the rest of their family, Valette was too terrified of what was to come to even become bewildered at the hug. It was the first time Serana had ever shown any affection back.

Taking a shaky breath Valette waited for the inevitable, as she watched the fountain of blood flowing from the altar bubble into a large form.

It was strange. Valette thought to herself as she lay naked and bleeding on the chapel floor. She felt different, stronger. But at the same time the loss of the little humanity she possessed felt strange. She no longer felt torn between two conflicting natures. For the first time in her life Valette felt whole. Yet at the same time felt as though something was missing.

"Was it like this for you too?" Valette asked sitting next to Serana on the keeps docks. She had never felt close to her sister until she became a pure vampire. The world was so much more intense. Light made her feel as if her blood was boiling rather than the old itch she got. The burning on her skin stayed the stayed when she strolled through the sun.

"It gets better. You get used to the intensity of the light. Drinking human blood can help. It also make you appear more human."

"Do you regret it?"

"I think the price payed was high enough for that to no longer matter." Serana said with a low voice.

Valette agreed that the price was high. Giving herself over to that...demon made any thoughts of regret pointless. She had the power she wanted. There was no going back anyway.

Turning back to Serana, Valette smiled. It felt good to have a friendship again. The bitter loneliness of losing her only friend were gone, replaced with the one sisterly loved she had always wanted.

"This is the answer! With this prophecy our kind will never have to hide again. No more sun to rule over us! Think of what we could achieve without its tyranny. We could finally have our rightful place above the humans!" Harkon yelled to the assembly. Everyone in the clan was there. Almost everyone was at the edge of their seats, starring reverently at Harkon.

"This is insane." Serana whispered by Valette's side." This is how we are meant to be. Children of the night. Not some eternal darkness." Valette found herself nodding. Molag Bael had made them this way for a reason. But at the same time, the freedom would be amazing.

Harkon's prophecy became his obsession day by day. And Valette found herself constantly sent on missions with Serana to look for relics or eliminate potential threats. Todays mission was to eliminate a growing pack of werewolves hidden within the great underground city of Blackreach.

Riding down the great stone elavator down was nerve racking. She had a bad feeling about this journey.A part of her was terrified that Zane would be here. Hidden amongst the clan of shadows. She didn't want him to know that she had become the thing he hated most a pure vampire. Like her father. Like his slave masters. Closing her eyes Valette took a deep breath as she felt their trip down coming to a shaky stop.

"Be ready for an ambush, I can't imagine this thing was that quite." Serana warned giving Valette a reassuring smile. "And don't worry. We couldn't find him in over two hundred years of searching. He is dead. There won't be any surprises."

"Thank you." Valette said smiling as the doors slid down to reveal a group of men.

There were eight of them, dressed in mismatched armor, each with the same honely like eyes. And stench. Valette knew the drill, no killing until we get the city.

" We surrender." Valette said putting her hands up, and seeing Serana do the same. "We do not wish to fight. We only sought shelter from the storm above." Both she and Serana had drank large amounts of blood before coming. Werewolves wouldn't be able to tell the difference unless they went into their beast form, and even then the human blood would confuse their sense of smell. They even appeared almost human.

"Oh really? You ventured into an ancient dwemer ruin and walked past all the traps and happened to have the mechanism that opened the other half of it that led to here." One said staring at Valette incredulously. While a shorter one beside him gazed at them both with interest,inhaling deeply.

"I've never been praised for common sense."

"Bullshit! Who are you."

"I am but a weary tra-."

"Her name is Evalynn and I'm Jade." Seranna cut in. "We heard of a pack nearby and were seeking shelter from humans."

The shortest man who had been gazing at them spread his mouth into a toothy smile. "They seem human enough to me. Lets take them to Leaf. Hr can have a final say."

"But what it they are hunter?"

"What if they aren't. We aren't like the vampires. We take'em Leaf and he can decide if they live or not."

And with that Valette found herself being led throught the beautiful crystal caverns and down into the depths of what felt like a dream world.