Hiya guys! Oh my... so many followers and so many readers! *blushes like mad* You deserve metals to still be here - ok, there will be many more rounds of such metals... I did say EPIC!FIC right? Ya... like, not over in a few chapters... or nearly over. Not remotely over... so if you are enjoying, could you drop a note? Pass on a little shout out? I'm not fishing, just honestly am curious how you guys (my lovely readers) are enjoying the story - where you think it's going and stuff... ya. Ok. Onward!

Chapter 43: Sebastian POV

"Behind you, my Lord!" I flung my knives, even as the Master turned and shot his gun over my shoulder. He breathed and cocked the lever once more, as we continued the dance we had perfected over the years. I pulled him down as I swung my arms around and flung my knives back at the men who still were advancing.

"This is rather alarming," the Master muttered. "This dignitary is sure popular. Bloody too popular."

"It does seem a bit excessive. Perhaps we should leave? I do think most of the mercenaries are dead." I glanced back at the Master, assessing any damage that could have come to him. He was whole besides the small gash on his arm, a stray bullet I could not stop.

"I will not object," he said, gritting his teeth as we walked out of the house, the stench of Human blood seeping out the door as we walked. I didn't acknowledge the four Reapers who stood by the door, waiting. They were looking at me and the Master. "Ah, my shoes!" the Master said as he shook the mud off them. "These were presents from Lizzie," he muttered.

The back of my neck and all down my back prickled. A wave of Hunger came over me and then a thin line of terror zipped through me. I reached out to the Master as he got into the borrowed automobile.

"Dear god, Sebastian, what is that look for?" the Master said, alarmed as he turned back to me.

"We must go home, my Lord." I turned and looked back up the road we had come down. "Now."

"Our train leaves in the morning, and this bloody rain is right blinding at times."

"I must insist. We must go. The Mistress... "

"Lizzie!" he hissed and leaned back out of the auto. "Is it faster for you to carry me home?"

I didn't answer, but scooped him up, a grown man, back in my arms, as if he was still a small child. He still fit in my arms and I ran. I ran from Dover to the Manor in half the time it took us to get there by train. The Master's coat flattened against him and he tucked his head into my neck, reminding me of when he was older than the young Master, and even Danny, were in my arms. The pain that came from within spurred me on, knowing I was getting close, and something was dangerous.

I passed the Gates and slowed to walk up the stairs, as the rain was slowly lightening up, but we were both drenched so it didn't matter. I opened the door and Mey-Rin squeaked and turned as she was carrying linens up the stairs.

"Master! Mister Sebastian! Oh thank heavens you are back! And early! Master - you have a daughter!"

The Master frowned and walked to her, taking off his hat and dripping water onto the floor. "No I only ha-"

A piercing scream from above cut him off. His eyes went round and he took off, dropping his soaked coat in a pile, flinging his hat down as well and ran up passed Mey-Rin who was wearing a big smile.

"Right on time, she is," she said.

Another scream seemed to answer the child's, and I took a step toward the stairs and paused. No, that was not a Human. That was Hunger. Raw, powerful, and in agonizing pain. "Go up and attend to the Master and Lady. Where is Finnian, Baldroy, and the young Master?"

"Finny and the young Master are with the Lady and the new baby," she said with a sigh. "Bard rang - the Doctor and he were stuck in a small flood that happened in the village." She paused and frowned. "The Tutor helped deliver the baby, and then he fled. I haven't seen him in a few hours."

"Yes, very good." I turned and walked as quickly as I could and still look Human toward the kitchen.

"Are you fetching tea, Mister Sebastian?"

I groaned. "No, I am making sure the Tutor is… is well." I gritted my teeth. Meddling Humans, always wanting things about them and their comfort.

I heard the almost mutters of someone - of Danny, I realized as I went below. It sounded like a priest, praying, and I walked through the kitchen and found her glove, bloody, laying beside the sink. I picked it up and the smell of birth hit me. "Oh my love."

I tore down the cellar stairs, my eyes seeking her body, or her form, or anything. Her mutters and whimpers cut me and I found the cage, the one used at times when attackers came too close, when the Watchdog gave in to the terrors and anger needed release. Bodies had been tortured, Souls had been taken. The cage had been empty for a few years now, yet there was the darkness of the Demon, of the beautiful Demon, eyes bright and red, her lips curled, her claws ripping at her own flesh, which stitched up even as she did so.

Opening the door I recognized my error; I had let her linger, hunger, pant, want, for too long. And the baby - the child whose Soul was the brightest, the purest, the most delicious. I balled my fists. I had satisfied my taste for Souls at the house, picking my way back to the Master, I had found one lingering, and I had taken it. Danny was surrounded by the powerful Humans I had brought to protect the Master, and I had not shown her the way to satisfy that balance.

"I will… no…. Not. I will not…"

I cradled her head as it lobbed back and she squeezed her eyes. "Look at me," I said softly, and realized I would not be gentle. I could not be gentle. I grabbed her body, forcing it back to the Human form and I slammed her into the wall, knowing as I did so, it did not hurt her. She was strong, her power protected her being, as mine did. "Look at me," I growled, and let go a bit. Her eyes snapped open and they were bright, bright pinkish hue of the deepest need.

"It smells like rain," she panted. "It smells… like fresh rain."

I couldn't yank the chains off of her yet, her mind was racing and her eyes wild. I was still stronger than her, but just. I held her by the arms and looked at her. Her lingering being, her heart, her very essence - her Soul as it were - were slowly darkening. "No, you will not give into this - continue fighting!"

She snarled and I hissed back, making her shrink a bit. I snapped the chains and wrapped them around her and sped out to the far reaches of the property, to the small stream and I dumped her none to gently into the water. She snapped the chains and the silver went flying, sticking into the nearby trees, ground, even the rocks jutting out of the water. She lunged at me, her claws sharp and her eyes almost wild. I knocked her down and grabbed her arms, holding her back into the water.

"Calm! Think of why you accepted your Birth! A paper does not make you a Demon, your heart wanted something - you wanted redemption! You asked to be a protector!" She reached up and scratched my face. I ripped her sleeve. She clawed back at my hands and my gloves were soon hanging off by the threads. I threw them off and I pinned her onto the opposite shore. "Daniella Hyde!"

Her eyes stilled and her hand stopped pushing me away with such force. She shoved me in the chest and I staggered back a bit. She sat up and brought her own hand to her face and looked at her Mark, bright and burning.

"It hurts so much Sebastian!" she wailed. "I want that Soul! It smells so beautiful and so pure, so delicious… I need it!"

I picked her up and lept into the air. She had settled a little more and I figured I could take the chance to get her to a place I could let her Feed. I felt as if I could do no other thing but to allow her to once more slaughter and take the Souls - it had been her satisfaction months prior. As much as I hated that part of being a Demon, the Hunger and the balance of desires and being a sworn protector of Souls, it was who we were. It was what Danny was now as well.

"It's better," she whispered. I pressed on. "Please, I can handle myself."

"No, you can not deceive me, dear. I've been at this dance for a while. A very long time."

"Where are we going?"

"To the Tip of Hell," I sighed. "You need to learn a few more things about this new being you are. I do apologize for not doing this as soon as your Mark appeared. I had tried to reason within me, you were stronger than our base needs." I looked at her as I set down on the icy ground. "I do love you so, please, my Lady, believe that."

And I opened the Portal to the top of the Human and Demon realm, leading Danny in. We looked as if we were needing refuge with the rips and tears, half hanging clothes. I grabbed Danny's left hand and laid it over my right arm. I placed my left hand, bare as hers, over hers.

"Marks, please," a Demon said, walking up. "Ah, Michaelis! It has been a while. A new dining partner?" He asked, eying Danny. I lifted my hand off hers and his gaze widened. "Oh. Hyde."

Danny groaned beside me and turned into my shoulder. I stroked her hand and smiled at the Demon. "Please let us pass. We wish to eat immediately."

"Yes, yes, this way." And I helped bring Danny, already a bit weaker, a bit darker, walk to an empty alcove and sit. "Any particular variety, Michaelis?"

"Bring a few," I snapped. "Hold onto that Humanity my love," I whispered to Danny.

The first Human that approached us, I simply shoved at Danny, holding the others, even so it wasn't needed; they had sold their Souls to be taken by any of the collective of Demons who passed this place. Dabbling Humans who thought Demons were toys were brought to the Tip of Hell as offerings, as satisfaction when we were wounded or between Contracts. Danny wasted no time in shredding the body, drinking the blood and Soul down, holding out her hands for the next one. I shoved them and she caught one, drank it down and the other. She was licking her lips as I knelt down, pushing the bodies to the side, lower Demons scrabbling for the bodies, scraps. I lifted Danny's chin and looked at her. Her eyes were not on the verge of total darkness, and they were settling into a calmer flutter as I bent and kissed her.

"Now, how is the Hunger?"

"I could use some a little more pure," she said. I laughed and nodded.

I signaled the Demon over and whispered I wanted bottled Souls. He looked at me and then over at Danny. "Celebrating?"

"Bathing in Virgins is a bit dated as a celebration, but the Souls of Nuns do have a timeless beauty to them. And, I am dining with a Lady." I turned and held Danny, my Demon who needed me more now than I realized. "A more fulfilling dinner is coming, and then we shall go back and teach you how to use this," I said, holding her to me and stroking her beautiful Mark.

"I almost lost control," she whispered. "I wanted to slaughter them. With no regard that I want to protect each of them. I forgot myself and tried-"

I pulled her to face me and pushed her to the corner. "You didn't go and take. You didn't become the Demon that was crying out. That is what you should focus on. Our very duality is that we wish to soak in Souls, freely and without tangling webs, and the need to have Contracts to deepen and shape the Soul." I breathed into her hair, the very smell of her bringing me back to how I had wanted to protect her, and in doing so, had hurt her. "My sweet Daniella. Children are easy to take and Possess because they are so innocent. The young Master - and the Master - smell so good and tempt us. Your wish to protect the young Master and not harm him, that is what makes you an exquisite Demon. The very fact you wish to protect without a Contract is your special power." I laid my hand over her heart and looked deeper into her red eyes, now burning with tears and slowly built confidence. "This is your power. Your mighty strong power."

"Nuns," the Demon said, placing the vessel down on the low table. The ripple of blood trickling down the sides caught my eye for a moment but I picked up the bottle and brought it to my lips, savoring the sweet purity.

"Drink, Danny. It's as pure as an adult Human we can get," I smiled, feeling myself seep into the feeling. "It's the closest we can get to being wildly drunk, I imagine, as well."

She eyed me and grabbed the bottle, sniffing the top and examining the viscous liquid as she tipped it back and forth. She leaned over and kissed me hard and straddled my lap, pushing her free hand into my hair as I did the same down her back, cupping her underside. "May we have never to revisit this in our eternity together," she whispered in my ear and leaned back and tipped the bottle.

I was surprised she was able to drink it all - it was mixed with Holy Water and burned on the way down, but the way it made us Demons feel, was worth the burn. I held her to my chest once she was done and she was giggling a bit, then laid her head on my shoulder. Her Mark had settled back into a blackened seal, no longer burning her or her flesh. I cradled her and closed my eyes, listening to the heart beat, to her steady breathing, to the Danny I had become accustomed to hearing and feeling. The Darkness that was in her - was in all Demons, high and low - had receded into the depths of her.

"My dear, we need to have you take a Contract," I whispered into her ear, waking her from her stupor. She blinked as she woke, and focused on me, and looked around. "We must get your Mark Sealed."

"The young Master? He is ready?"

I raised an eyebrow and looked at her, covered in blood, her clothes still in tatters. "No," I said cautiously. I pulled her to stand and steadied her. "The young Master is not. But we need to get you Sealed."

Danny ripped her hand away from mine as we walked from the alcove. "I don't want a meaningless Contract as my first!" she hissed in a low tone. "I don't think I could bare a Contract with someone I wasn't willing to protect. When you made your Contract with the Earl, were you ready to protect him for so long?"

I frowned. No, of course not. I had taken the Master because it was an easy Meal, an eager Meal with the anger that quaked through his body. But he had not proven to be an easy Soul to eat. He wanted revenge - simple - but he wanted more - delicious - and then he wanted power - divine - and more, and more, and stave off attacks, use my powers as a Demon to do his bidding. Wait on his every command, his every whim, because when a Demon is Contracted, when the Soul bares the Mark, both Demon and Human become linked. I must serve my Master - for he is my Master - yet he will ultimately serve me - for I am the Master. I looked at Danny and her questioning gaze. Could I let her live in the half crazed state of desire? Could the desire of having, the hope of having, be enough? Could she use the young Master as I used her even? To take the Soul so delicious and wait to savor it, praying it would be delivered, in the meantime, taking morsels and nibbles. I glanced back at the alcove, at her frenzy in the cellar, at her red eyes, becoming savage, but not quite.

"I desire the Master and at times that desire is enough. But I also must Feed for I can never break the Contract that has been made. A Contract is a bondage of sorts, and no, I did not expect to be in bondage to one Soul for so long." I brought my hands back to her face and leaned in and smiled. "But I never thought I'd be willing to be in bondage to a Demon either."

"Can I wait to be Sealed? The savage parts of Feeding are… hard sometimes, but to be a slave of sorts to a Soul I don't care for, that would be unbearable."

"Even if it's a simple Contract?"

"Sebastian, can we go home? Go back to the Manor?" she asked. She slid her hand up to my neck and hugged me. "I… I just want to be a Tutor and be with you. And when the time comes, as I am sure it will, then can you show me how to be Sealed and make a Contract. Can I… can we do that?"

I held her close as we went back to the Human realm, having slipped the Demon a paper with a murderer's address on it as payment, and found that I would have agreed to anything Danny asked. I would summon all of Hell to sing for her, present the Master's Soul to her if she asked. "I will help you in anyway I can if that is your desire. But, Danny," I said, pulling her closer as I once more landed, "if the Hunger drives you to… do that again -"

"I'll let you know. I thought I was handling it. Thought it was stress of all that was going on. I should have asked."

We entered the Estate grounds and I tugged her hand as she began to walk ahead. "Your clothes. They are a bit ripped."

She looked down and looked at me. "No worse than yours. I don't mind staring at your bare chest, but I do believe everyone else may have a fit if they did."

I chuckled and pulled her close. "New clothes my sweet Lady," and she had a new outfit on, as did I.

"Perhaps, a bit more feminine?" she said as she looked down. "Nothing like what the Lady wears, but perhaps a bit of lace on the edges?" I kissed her and remade her clothes, a bit more fitted, showing a hint of her breasts, and a ribbon that trimmed her vest. "Oh, nice, my dear," she cooed as she looked at her new top and vest. She wiggled her new shoed feet and smiled. "Heels?"

"Not terribly high, so you should not have problems walking. I may introduce you to my favorite pair sometime," I added, pressing a kiss into her temple. I reached into my vest and presented her a pair of gloves, which she put on as we passed into the gardens, the rain having stopped and letting the sun dry the ground slightly. I felt the Master's relief when he spotted us walking hand in hand toward the Manor and look discretely away as I laid one last kiss on Danny's lips before we walked into the house.