Athos grumbled as the plane touched down on the runway. His legs were completely asleep,and so was the boy next to him. An entire hour of the boy squawking about wanting to go home had earned him a pressure point. His legs were only asleep because he'd been sitting in the same spot for three hours.

But as the plane reached the terminal,he forced the weird tingling and stabbing sensations to go away. Aidan was starting to stir by the time people were getting up and leaving the plane.

"Come on,get up."His hand cracked against the child's arm,and in response,Aidan glared and kicked the blond.

Defiant to the end.

Athos grabbed his red hair firmly and dragged him out of the seat. Releasing the red strands and grabbing a wrist,Athos forced him to behave as they passed through the airport gate.

Aidan looked around him through the crowd for a small space to hide in or an officer to run to...until brilliant red hair caught his eye. Smiling with relief,he waited untill Athos' eyes were focussed on their surroundings...and bolted. The blond was quick to react,though. He didn't have to go very far before his hand locked into a death grip around the child's fragile wrist. Aidan,in response,turned towards Athos,and time seemed to slow down as he lashed out and caught the blond's wrist between his teeth. Athos screamed,and the boy bit down harder,drawing huge amounts of blood.

The pace changed,though,when Aidan turned slightly and a canine pierced a vein.

The blond paled and swung his free arm,knocking the boy in the side of his skull,but failing to free his wrist. The blood pooled beautifully all over the floor,and he dropped to his knees,just watching as he bled out for a minute before he started punching the child as hard as he could,giving one dizzy spell after another.

Aidan gripped the blond's arm firmly,though,refusing to let go. He knew the pool of blood was increasing in size,and he didn't intend to let go until Athos had passed out. Drops of sweet salty crimson slipped into Aidan's mouth and down his throat,motivating him to bite down until his jaws actually hurt.

Sounds of shouting and running swirled around in the background,locking Aidan's mind in a haze,and suddenly the pain from the bruises littering his face seemed to fade as his eyes darkened. He could hear someone shouting,and then someone painfully grabbed his arms.

Athos and Aidan were forcibly pulled apart by airport security,but as soon as Aidan's teeth released their grip on Athos' arm,the blond bled out even more. As bad as he'd been bleeding,the redhead's teeth were actually keeping more blood in his wrist,and the blond passed out shortly after they'd been separated.

As EMT's rushed in to take Athos to the hospital,Aidan's body went weak in the arms of the security guard that had grabbed him,but he did feel himself being passed to someone else,though he didn't even bat an eye. He just hung limply in the stranger's arms,listening...and waiting for the one voice that would pull him back to the real world,and since he didn't hear it,he closed his eyes.

...

Horatio had struggled to shove through the crowd during the whole ordeal. By the time he managed to get to the pools of red,Athos had been hauled off and Aidan was lying on a stretcher near the phone booths. Jay had unsurprisingly boarded the plane. He still needed to chew Mac and Danny out,but more importantly,he had a mate that needed his presence.

Sighing and wishing he had been a little faster on his feet,Horatio walked over to the stretcher where his grandchild lay. Band-aids and stitches had already been applied,and the blood had been wiped away from his cheeks. Walter came up from behind him and gave a gentle chuckle.

''Is there something funny?''Horatio asked as he brushed the child's red strands away from his bruised face.

''No. I saw the damage he caused. Kid's got some sharp teeth. Willing to bet he got some skin in his teeth?''

Horatio smirked and carefully parted the child's lips with his thumb. ''He got plenty. He would. Genesis taught him how to use his teeth. It's not training that I would teach,but it proved useful. ... ...''

Walter removed a pair of tweezers from his kit and gently opened Aidan's mouth. Several small shreds of skin were caught between the boy's canines and incisors,and it wasn't until Walter saw Aidan's canines that he fully understood just how sharp they truly were.

Just a bit sharper and the boy would pierce his tongue anytime he closed his mouth.

''How much meat does this kid eat?''Walter questioned as he freed multiple bits of skin from the young redhead's blood teeth.

Horatio chuckled and leaned against the wall near the phone booths. ''Plenty. Genesis allowed the dentist to file them into points at Aidan's request.''

''Yikes... ...Well,I got what I came here for. You want me to call you when I get everything analyzed?''Walter asked.

''Pass your information to Calleigh. I don't want to be tangled in this anymore than I already am,''Horatio replied as he gently lifted Aidan up from the stretcher.

Nurse Shales sighed as she stepped into Genesis' room. Time was moving too slow,and she wanted to go home. But,she still had three and a half hours left. Checking the redhead's vitals,she scribbled numbers down on her clipboard, and was about to leave when the youth in bed started to stir.

"It's about time you woke up,"she stated harshly.

Genesis sighed and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "Nice to meet you,too,"he all but spat,"Where the hell am I?"

"Samaritan Hospital. Don't move too much. Your body is under a lot of stress,"Mary ordered.

The redhead relaxed against the pillows,not because he was told to,but because he felt a familiar weight inside of him,and a familiar twinge. Looking up at the ceiling,he smiled inwardly.

"Strange... I miss that feeling..."

The woman in his room paused. "What feeling,hon?"she asked,rather curious.

"The kicking... It's been so long since the last pregnancy."

Mary looked at the youth and her eyes narrowed. She hadn't even told him,but he knew. "How far along do you think you are?"

Genesis closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around his stomach. "Far enough that I should have noticed three months ago."

"Well your child is doing fine,and coming along quite nicely."

The redhead yawned and pulled his legs close,as if shielding his unborn child from the rest of the world. He was tired,but not enough to sleep.

...

Nurse Shales seemed to calm down as her shift crawled by. She liked Genesis. She had expected him to by a bit of a grouch at the very least.

But the young redhead was far from her assumptions. He was sweet,albeit rather stubborn though. ...But he was being a pleasant patient. Sitting at her desk,she smiled and began logging information into her computer. Nearly an hour passed by before the familiar sound of the elevator ding at the end of the hall reached her ears.

She shrugged it off,until the sound of heavy boots striking the pristine floors began to bother her,and then suddenly someone was in front of her desk.

Mary looked up and almost cowered. A lanky yet powerful figure stood before her,eyes a perfect shade of blue and unhappily glaring at her.

''Genesis Caine,please,''he all but demanded.

"Friend or family,sir?"Mary asked.

He seemed to be ticked off by the question. "Jay Vistov Vendadi Caine. I'm married to him. Now where's his room?"

"Alright,relax. End of the hall."

She watched Jay dart off towards Genesis' room,clearly desperate to see him. So this was the husband of the Rose of the South. Lovely.

Genesis was resting his eyes when he heard heavy leather boots and buckles clanking. He sat up,one arm still resting against his stomach. Jay came in as soon as he had situated himself,and both males were delighted to see eachother.

Genesis yelped as he was pulled into a sudden heart-stopping kiss. His hands caught the angel's coat as he tugged on it,wanting to bring him closer. Though,being as weak as he was,he couldn't.

Jay kept their mouths locked until they both needed air. When he finally let go,he buried his face in the redhead's shoulder,inhaling the sweet vanilla scented shampoo that was slowly fading. He managed to maneuver his body onto the bed as his head remained in the same spot. It was nice. He relaxed against the bed and released a pleased sigh.

He was tired...and sore. But he forced his train of thought back onto the rails and closed his eyes.

"Aidan's with Horatio,"he whispered.

"What's he doing in Miami?"Genesis asked curiously.

Jay snarled softly. "Long story short,Athos." He slid a hand down to rest on the redhead's stomach. "This is what I'm more concerned about..."

Genesis smiled. "Mm. You should be."

Jay sat up and looked down at him. "Oh?"

Genesis relaxed at the touch of the hand on his stomach,and even gently lay his own on top of it. "You kicked the protection."

The angel glared playfully and lifted the redhead's chin up. "If I recall correctly,it was you who insisted on kicking it."

Genesis chuckled softly and gently took a firm grasp of Jay's wrist. The angel took notice of this and blinked several times. Genesis applied some pressure,causing the angel to visibly wince.

"Fine,we're both at fault. Is it bad that I'm not fond of the latex feeling?"

Jay smiled softly and jerked his wrist free. "No,that actually makes perfect sense...and I'm quite happy to hear that."

Horatio sighed as his foot gently pressed down on the brake,bringing the hummer to a gentle and complete stop. He pulled his keys from the ignition,killing the engine,and lay his forehead against the steering wheel.

He was exhausted. But he imagined that the eight year old boy in his back seat would be even more so. Aidan had stirred on the ride home and simply watched buildings pass through the window with an emotionless expression plastered on his face.

He was limp as he sat,leaning against the seat of the car,and remained that way even as Horatio unbuckled him him and brought him up towards the house. He had to stop though,as his arms were full and the door was shot. Horatio gave one solid kick to the door and it was opened,revealing Eric,who had been stuck in conferences all day.

''What the hell happened?!''

Horatio pushed past him without hitting Aidan's had against the doorway. ''Not now! Pull the futon out and get a few blankets!''the elder redhead ordered.

The Cuban set about completing the task immediately,starting with shutting the door behind Horatio. He quickly pulled the futon out for a makeshift bed,and paused as Horatio delicately lay Aidan down on the soft surface,resting his head against a few couch pillows.

They both watched as the boy's eyes shut to welcome sleep,and soon the child's breathing relaxed to a steady rise and fall of his chest.

Eric,suddenly realizing that he had yet to bring some blankets down,darted upstairs and opened the linen closet. Horatio gently opened the youth's mouth to inspect his teeth,and he saw that the once white fangs were stained a sinful red,and at the point he knew that the child would have to empty his stomach upon waking up. He knew the child had swallowed a fair amount of blood.

...

Hours passed,but the slow tick-tock of the living room clock made it seem like days as Horatio sat in the recliner reading. Aidan had moved once or twice in his sleep,but he hadn't really woken.

Horatio found that he was watching the child more than he was reading his book,which made sense. Aidan was young yet,and already had to deal with being kidnapped. But,the sight of the blood staining his teeth made Horatio smile somehow.

Maybe it was because it was a sort of trophy for the child. He'd fought back like an attack dog. The bruises,though...they were going to be there for at least a week. Maybe longer. He wondered how Aidan would deal with the trauma. Would he lock it up and throw away the key? Or would he shut it out completely and move through life in a haze?

Only time would tell.

The sound of nails clawing at fabric made Horatio shudder with nausea,and he watched as Aidan suddenly bolted upstairs to the bathroom. The elder chased after him,abandoning his book,which hit the floor as soon as he jumped up from his seat.

He got upstairs to find Aidan gripping the edge of the sink,holding himself up off of the floor as he wretched,blood and stomach acid tainting the white glass and splattering all over the counter and his hands.

Horatio reached a hand out to comfort him,and Aidan swung an arm at him,causing him to slip and crack his jaw against the counter. The fall made him bite the skin below his lip,and the taste of his own blood caused the boy to lurch and puke again.

He finally stopped after a minute and collapsed,both hands over his mouth as he whined and screamed at the pain. It was then that Horatio was finally able to assist the child.

Snatching a tissue from a box that had been knocked to the floor,he pulled the boy into his lap and started wiping the pale cheeks that were stained red. Aidan calmed down and moved his hands away and let the elder examine his jaw,and winced as the tissue was slipped into his mouth to draw out the blood from the new wound his teeth had created.

He relaxed as the suddenly red cloth was removed and thrown into a small trash bin.

There was a sigh,and Horatio lifted the child's head to make eye contact. Tears were still streaming down the child's face,but he wasn't actively crying.

Blue eyes were dilated from the fall,concerning Horatio. Aidan wasn't even aware of the concussion.

''Come on,you.'' Horatio picked the child up bridal style and carried him downstairs. Aidan snuggled close in the warmth of his arms,completely ignoring the blood that had stained his hands and clothes.

The blood did not go unnoticed by Horatio,however,so as soon as he set the boy down on the futon,he went back upstairs into Genesis' and Jay's room. He retrieved two shirts,one from Genesis' dresser,the other from Jay's.

Running right back downstairs,he helped the youth out of his shirt and torn jeans. He wrapped the two couch pillows in Jay's shirt while Aidan pulled on Genesis' shirt.

Horatio's thought process was that the scent of both parents would help him sleep properly.

"I want you to sleep as much as possible,understand?"Horatio gently asked. The youth grunted in response. Horatio smiled and helped him lay down before pulling a thick comforter over the exhausted body.

Aidan settled against the futon quickly,feeling the desire for sleep claw at his eyes. He heard a gentle "Goodnight," and then soft footsteps made their way up to the bathroom to clean the mess.

Still,the comforter was not enough,and the young redhead slowly crawled onto the floor from the futon to retrieve a blue blazer that had been hung up on a hook near the front door. He held it close and inhaled the scent,finally feeling his heart slow to a pleasant beat.

Movement upstairs warned him to get back to his propper place,and he went back to the futon and curled up under the blanket as he clung to Horatio's blazer like a life line.

The combination of the three scents dragged him underunder to the beautiful world of sleep within moments,and for the first time,nothing hurt.

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