Nikola was momentarily disoriented when he woke in the morning. He was lying on the floor wrapped in the bedding and the bed was on its side behind him. He worked himself free and stood up.

He was pleased to see that the rest of the room was intact. He turned the bed back onto its four legs and tossed the bedding on it. Then he dressed and sat down to wait impatiently for Helen to show up. For a moment he wished he had brought his cell phone with him, but then changed his mind since it might not have survived the night intact.

He smiled and jumped up when he heard her heels clicking down the hallway. He waved at her through the window as she unlocked the door and quickly joined her outside.

Helen said "Good morning. It looks like you had a better night last night, even without the medication."

"Uh, kinda" he replied and changed the subject. "I could use something to eat this morning, let's stop off . . ."

"You want to go to the infirmary?"

"Not really, but I'm hungry so maybe you could fetch me a baggie while I find a nice bottle of wine?"

Helen linked her arm with his and they started walking. "As an adult you should be able to get your own food Nikola."

"Well, you could bring me three or four baggies and I could keep them in the cooler in my suite."

"If you open the infirmary door yourself, I'll get you two baggies- deal?"

"Ah, sure" Nikola said uncertainly. He knew he could get as far as the door and he was hungry, so maybe he could actually open the door knowing he didn't have to go in.

And that's how it turned out. He opened the door for her, gestured her in and said "After you . . . eventually."

Helen smiled and said "Progress, good. I'll be right back." She got the two bags of blood as she'd promised and handed them to him. They strolled back down the hall and took the elevator up, Helen getting off to go to the kitchen to get her own breakfast and Nikola continuing up to the residential floor to eat, shower, and change.

After a couple of hours in her office, Helen was well caught up on her work so she decided to check out the incoming books. She found Nikola in the library with both boxes of books open and half empty, the extracted volumes spread around his chair in piles on tables and on the floor. He was reading of course; she knew he would read everything he found interesting before shelving anything, so there had been no need for her to rush.

"Anything good?" she asked as she knelt and began looking at the titles of the books from the second-hand stores.

"There's a Book of Eibon that's in better shape than that rat-chewed thing you have on the top shelf."

Helen pounced on the large brown leather book with steel clasps. Leafing through it she said "Yes and this copy appears to contain additional pages." She set it down and moved the library ladder around to where she wanted it and climbed quickly to the highest shelf.

Nikola paid little attention to her but said "I want to look at it when you get done. I'm sure you noticed the similarities between that oogly-googly creature from the rift and the Cthulhu mythos."

Helen pulled out the heavy book and said "Since you mentioned it I assume you think it may not be coincidence."

She started back down the ladder but the cover of the old damaged book slid off and her attempt to grab it with the one hand not holding the book threw her off balance and off of the ladder. But she wasn't very surprised to land in Nikola's arms rather than on the floor.

"Well you seem to be your usual speedy vampire self" she commented.

"Actually my reaction was a little slow, but not too bad."

"Hmm, you can put me down now Nikola."

He gave her a cheeky grin and walked over to a couch with her. She waited for him to drop her onto it, but he set her down gently lengthwise and leaned over her head with his hands bracing himself on the couch's arm. "I think I deserve a reward, don't you?"

Helen ducked underneath his arm and stood up. "Talk to me after you've rescued Henry."

"Oh yeah, Henry. I went over Dramelin's law and Legal's analysis, marked it up and sent it back to him to finalize. I called a meeting of the Council for tomorrow morning my time and I'll go try to shove it through then."

"The diazepam will be completely out of your system by then. I'm going with you" Helen said, and when Nikola opened his mouth she added "No arguments Nikola."

"I wasn't going to argue. I was going to ask you to visit the HAPs for me."

"I can do that, but why?" she asked, knowing it wasn't out of concern for Henry.

"It's occurred to me that the vampires think collecting HAPs or any other Abnormals is a harmless pastime, that anyone who isn't a vampire isn't a danger to them."

"Which isn't true if course, some Abnormals could be extremely dangerous to anyone, even vampires."

"Exactly and we need to show them that, hopefully without anyone getting hurt."

"If the HAPs were to change forms and leave their comfortable little nest . . ."

Nikola was nodding. "And rampage through the main cavern in a pack and scare the snot out of a few vampires . . ."

"You would have a lot more support for passing the law against enslaving whatever creatures the vampires manage to get hold of" Helen concluded.

"Right. And as a bonus Rene might not use it as an excuse to challenge me when he finds popular opinion against him."

"That could actually work."

"Don't sound so surprised, I do occasionally come up with a good plan you know."

"Occasionally" she said, amused.

"I have another one. Since we can't do anything about Henry and the vampires until tomorrow, why don't you and I . . ."

"Look at some more books? Excellent idea Nikola."

/

The wooden ball didn't last very long. A couple of bad throws, a dropped ball or two, and a large crack appeared and then the ball split in two. The Hungarian male just shrugged and sat down next to a female who was receptive to him, and they were soon engaged in kissing and petting. Well that was one way to pass the time.

Henry just turned away and looked for something else to occupy himself. He sat down near where the little boy was playing and picked up a little stone monkey and tried to join the child's game. The boy snatched the monkey away, but thought a moment and pushed over a snake.

Henry made the snake hiss and slither toward the other animals and the boy laughed; it wasn't long before they were playing together. Henry saw that the boy's mother was watching them, and she smiled at him and went back to her conversation with her mother. For Henry it wasn't that much different from playing with his own daughter, although at a different level since she wasn't a year old yet.

The woman who had looked at him lasciviously earlier came over and started playing too. But whenever her animal came near Henry's, she took the opportunity to touch him, putting her hand on his or on his arm. At first he ignored her, but when she laid her hand on his thigh and squeezed he decided play time was over.

He stood up and she looked up at him, but not nearly all the way to his face. Henry blushed and fled to his bed; the ledges were too narrow for two to sleep together comfortably so he felt safe there and suddenly bored didn't seem so bad.

She didn't pursue him, she just went back to playing with the child for a little while, then got up and went over and got some water and a piece of yellowish fungus. She sauntered over to Henry and offered him a bite but he just shook his head. She shrugged and went over to a pile of pillows, flopped down and continued eating. But the look she gave him over her shoulder as she walked away said clearly she hadn't given up on him.

Henry squeezed his eyes shut and said very softly "Come on, come on, come on, somebody come get me now, please." But nobody came. He lay down on his back and tried to envision Nikola's dog fence problem in his mind and mentally worked on the reprogramming. He suspected his assumptions were way off since he really couldn't remember exactly every bit of the physical configuration of the device, but he didn't care, it gave him something to do even if it turned out to be useless.

Eventually he heard a general stirring in the room and looked to see the three Germans had gone to the toilet/bathing area and the Hungarian couple were standing at the food troughs munching and talking in low voices. But the other woman had made up a bed just past Henry's and slightly above his and was perched there watching him. Henry pulled the comforter up to his chin and looked anywhere except at her.

Soon the lights dimmed and everyone settled down. The mother and child stayed together in a nest on the floor with grandmother not far away. The Hungarian male and the other woman had taken to individual platforms a good distance away.

It got very quiet and the lights dimmed further. When Henry was sure everyone else was asleep he slipped down from his bed and went to eliminate and take a shower. He did so quickly, hoping no one would wake up before he was done.

When he finished everyone was still asleep. He went to the inner door and slipped out. Being outside the building could get him in more trouble than he was now, but he was curious about what was in the boxes in the outer room.

He found more pillows and blankets, and a box with cloth. Henry found a piece the right size and shape and tore a small hole in the middle of it and enlarged it carefully until he could put it over his head. Another long thin piece went around his waist and he had something that looked sort of like a sleeveless dress down to his knees.

He found another box with more toys and pulled out a rubber ball that he bounced a couple of times when the outer door opened. Rene Dramelin came in with a couple of his guards and said "Ah, just the dog I was looking for. Come along Henry, we're going to have a little talk."

Henry looked longingly at the ball but tossed it back in the box. "What are we going to talk about Lord Dramelin?" he asked with false innocence.

"Why the king of course. I understand you know him well. Come along to the house, I have some fruit there from the surface you might like."

Henry went along docilely; he was hungry and the thought of actual food was enough to draw him. And he could chat about Nikola all day long, but of course he didn't have to tell the truth, did he?

They went to a room that looked like a parlor, with a bowl of apples, pears and bananas on a small table in the center of a seating group. Rene said "Help yourself" and Henry grabbed an apple and a banana and sat down to eat. The High Lord seated himself across from him and pushed a small plate in front of the rapidly chewing HAP who nodded and put his banana on it.

Rene waited for Henry to get halfway through his apple before he asked "So tell me, what does Teslat do on the surface?"

Between bites Henry said "Technical innovation."

The vampire frowned. "He's a scientist?"

The HAP nodded and kept eating. Dramelin asked "He has his own laboratory?"

Henry nodded and put the apple core on the plate and peeled the banana. Rene asked "Does he have an army?"

The smaller man snorted and shook his head. "Servants? He must have a great number of servants then."

"Nope." Henry realized he was giving a picture of a loner, which would make the vampire across from him see his king as vulnerable. "He has friends; very powerful friends." Well Helen was his friend and she was powerful, and who knew who else Tesla was buds with?

Rene sat back and said "Ah" and looked thoughtful. "So on the surface one does not have minions, one wields power less directly?"

Henry finished his banana and picked up a pear. "One can have employees, or a private army, or influence with important people, or a lot of money, or political power, or be famous, or a lot of different things that could end up as what somebody might call power."

"And does Teslat have these things?"

"I don't know." At Dramelin's frown Henry elaborated. "I really don't. I only see him when he visits the Sanctuary run by Doc Magnus and he invents things for her. But they are, um, seeing each other you know? She pays him but they're more like equals than employer and employee."

Rene waved a hand "The relationship between Teslat and his woman does not interest me nor do whatever favors he does for her. What about when he is not at this Sanctuary?"

"I haven't a clue. One time Sanctuary personnel ran into him running a drug clinic in Mexico and turning humans into vampires. Another time he was in some caverns in Brazil messing around with an army of super-sized overly intelligent bugs. He could be literally anywhere doing anything at all. He's got this huge brain and he's always thinking and he's not shy about putting his thoughts into action, as ill-considered as some of them are. Can I take some of this fruit back with me?"

Lord Dramelin gestured for him to take what he wanted and frowned "He can turn humans into vampires? That can't be possible" he said, his frown deepening. Impatiently he added "I thought you were his dog. He does not keep you with him?"

Henry restrained himself; vampires just didn't see things like everyone else, at least not yet. "I'm not a dog, I'm a HAP and I work with Tesla in his lab and I work on my own too. He doesn't own me; people don't own each other on the surface, at least not legally. Haven't the bodyguards who work up there explained anything?"

"A few things but they haven't really penetrated to the true centers of power yet. Power is a complex web on the surface and we are still learning. Unfortunately, you don't seem to be able to tell me anything useful. Tell me, have you bred any of my females yet?"

"No. I'm a married man in case no one has mentioned it and I love my wife. I will not cheat on her no matter how long you keep me here, so you might as well just send me home."

"Hmph. Well we will see about that. Guards! Take him back to the pack."

Henry carried as much fruit as he could in his arms and followed the guards back to the other HAPs. They were still asleep, so he put most of the fruit in the food trough and just kept a couple of pieces with him as he returned to his sleeping platform. The woman on the platform next to him didn't waken when he hopped up on his, so he snuggled down into his bedding to go to sleep. But sleep eluded him for a while; he had a nagging suspicion he had said something he shouldn't have.

/

Nikola spent another night in the containment cell. But he felt nervous and jittery and paced back and forth in the small space for hours. He needed to get a good night's sleep before going back to visit the vampires, but every time he lay down and tried he just couldn't stay in bed and shortly got up again.

It wouldn't be the first time he went without sleep. He wouldn't be at his best without at least four or five hours, but the harder he tried the less he succeeded. Nikola thought it might be the result of coming completely off of the diazepam; if that was the case, he was definitely not taking any more of it if he got this kind of reaction when he stopped.

It would put Helen in a dilemma if she found out. On one hand she would want to get Henry back safely as soon as possible, but if Nikola was tired and he was challenged she would feel guilty at pushing him to go. So he couldn't tell her or act tired, he had to pretend he had slept well without the medication.

When she came to let him out in the morning he was dressed and gave her what he hoped was his usual smile. She let him out and asked "How did you sleep?"

"Fine" he replied, afraid to say too much; she was good at spotting his lies. "When do you want to leave?"

"An hour? You need to shower and change and I still haven't had breakfast. I want to check my E-Mail before I go as well."

Nikola nodded and just said "Meet you at the gate in an hour then."

When they went through the gate and out of the gate room, one of Ana's servants was standing in the hall waiting for them. He bowed to Nikola and said "Your Majesty, her Majesty the Queen requests that you speak with her at your earliest convenience."

Nikola exchanged a look with Helen; she gave one nod and headed off down the hall the opposite way while Nikola followed the servant to Ana's quarters. Ana was seated in her chair with an old book in her lap, but she looked up when he entered.

She gestured to a chair across from her own and as Nikola seated himself she said very seriously "I have heard something about you and I must know the truth."

"Ask, I have nothing to hide."

"Your dog, the HAP named Henry has said that you can turn humans into vampires. Is this true?"

Nikola sat back in his chair and looked at her carefully, not sure how to answer. Ana looked angry- no, not just angry, frightened too? That was alarming; he hadn't thought there was anything that could scare her after so many centuries of living. What had Henry been thinking to tell them something like that?

Nikola considered lying, but rejected the idea; one exchange of blood would prove him false and then they would be enemies. He said carefully "Long before I came here I thought I was the only vampire in existence. That made me very lonely, thinking I was the last of my kind. I found a way to change over a few humans to be vampires, but it was a mistake so I changed them back."

"Sorcery!" the vampire Queen spat.

"No, science."

She waived her hand dismissively. "It makes no difference what it is called, you engaged in a black art- very black indeed."

"As I said, I discovered my mistake and corrected it."

"But you could do this again if you chose?"

"I could, but there's no reason to."

Ana sat back and shook her head. "I misjudged you. I missed this entirely when I tasted your blood, when I felt it in my heart. You are a fearful thing, Teslat. Could you change a vampire into a human, or a dog?"

"I . . . probably but I don't know for sure I'd have to examine vampire and HAP DNA more closely. But it's not something I would want to do."

"What one chooses to do changes over time; what one is capable of doing only grows. You are very young and already you can do such things- I do not deny that at this moment I fear you, Teslat."

Nikola sat forward, realizing he had to convince her that he was harmless; he had a conviction that Ana did her best to destroy what she feared. "My daughter, you have nothing to be afraid of. I wouldn't hurt you or any of our people except in self-defense. That's not going to change."

"So you say now, but you cannot see the future any more than I can."

"Ana, I came here today to push through the law to free Rene's HAPs and any other intelligent beings vampires have imprisoned or enslaved. You're right, neither of us knows what the future holds, but will you help me today?"

"Or what? If I oppose you will you turn me into a human?"

Nikola had to admit to himself it was an interesting idea; he wondered if he did if she would become an old woman or if her age would overtake her and she would turn to dust. But no vampire would willingly become anything else so he would probably never know.

"Of course not. We are each entitled to our own opinions without being coerced by the other. And I seriously doubt I could do anything to you against your will; you are a very old, very powerful vampire."

"I am what I am, but you are not what you were yesterday, Teslat. I think it would not be wise of me to allow you to leave here, to work your scientific arts unsupervised."

"I already said . . ." Nikola cut himself off; there was no point in repeating himself. "You know if you try to keep me here I'll fight you. And I already have someone supervising me. Ahelena is the one who insisted on me turning the vampires I made back into humans, and she brought me my device to do it." Well that was partly true anyway; he'd decided himself he'd made a mistake long before she showed up, but she was certainly against the idea as soon as she found out.

The door opened suddenly and one of Ana's household stood on the threshold and said "Your Majesties! Forgive my intrusion, but High Lord Dramelin's pack has broken loose and is running wild!"

Nikola smiled a little. Queen Ana said calmly "So tell Rene to go get them, they are his responsibility. And see that we are not disturbed unless someone is killed."

The servant said "The High Lord is in pursuit now, your Majesty." She bowed deeply and closed the door behind her.

Ana looked at Nikola and tapped on the arm of her chair. The silence grew and Nikola thought he should say something, but useless chatter would only reduce his stature in her eyes. He met her gaze and waited.

She finally said "The Council meeting begins soon. We will talk again afterwards."

"Will you support the new law?"

"I think yes. If you can change one sort of being into another, I do not want any more species here to confuse things. To have a vampire who was once an animal or a human would be intolerable."

Nikola nodded and smiled a little; at least she hadn't lumped the humans in with the animals. They rose and went out to a waiting golf cart. Helen was standing demurely nearby and she rode in the front with the driver while the King and Queen sat in the back.

Rene Dramelin wasn't at the Council meeting at all, but his assistant handed out copies of the proposed law. Nikola saw some frowns around the table as the other High Lords read it, but there were also heads nodding. Nikola announced that he was sponsoring the law and Ana chimed in with her support. There were still unhappy faces around the table but it passed unanimously with no argument.

There were a few more items on the agenda which were taken care of speedily. Nikola looked around when they came out of the meeting but saw no sign of the HAPs. They rode in the golf cart back to Ana's mansion; she went up the stairs to the front door and waited for Nikola who paused at the cart to talk quietly with Helen.

"The law passed so you can legally take anyone who isn't vampire or human out of here. Where are Henry and his pals?"

"I piled their clothes behind that barn they were living in. Once they're dressed they'll join us at the gate."

"Good. Something's come up; I may not be able to leave right away so go ahead without me."

"Nikola? Is everything all right?" Helen asked. He was being much too serious for such a successful outcome. "What's going on?"

"It's just something Ana and I need to discuss." The Queen was still standing at the top of the stairs and she had a half dozen of her guards with her now.

"Don't lie to me."

Nikola gave her a quick kiss and said "Just get the HAPs out, I'll be home later." He trotted up the steps to join Ana and they went inside together.

Helen wanted to go after him and make him tell her the truth, but it was her responsibility to get Henry and the other HAPs back to the surface safely. She had to trust Nikola, which wasn't something that came easily in spite of how much she loved him.

But she went through the large house and out the back to find the HAPs waiting for her already dressed. Helen passed out "free" symbols to all of them just in case they were challenged and led them back to the gate.

As they walked Henry asked "Where's Nikola?"

Helen motioned him close and said quietly "I don't know; something is going on. He won't be coming with us."

"Maybe we should . . ."

"He wants us to leave without him Henry, so for now we're going to London."

Helen took them all through the gate. In London she directed the local Sanctuary employees to provide appropriate street clothing and money to the HAPs and see that they got safely to their respective London embassies so they could get the appropriate papers to go home.

Henry changed into jeans, sneakers and a tee shirt, and he and Helen gated to the Sanctuary. Once there Henry said "Okay Doc, it's just you and me. What's up?"

Helen said worriedly "I really don't know. Something is going on between Nikola and Ana. I'm sure he'll call me the first chance he gets and explain everything." But she said it more to convince herself than her friend.

A/N: Thank you epichlexi, Elizagoth, and :Kotah for the reviews.