Amelie's Point of View

The door knocked and my bodyguard came in. "Founder."

"Yes?" I asked, not looking up from a sheet of paper in my office in Founder's Square.

"We've found Myrnin."

I looked up then. "Bring him in."

"We can't... He been through the sewers and smells like something that has died." The guard who had effectively replaced Gerrard, said.

"What on Earth was he doing in the sewer?"

"Hiding," he said. "He was meant to keep Claire there, but she wanted to go and find a shower."

"I'm not surprised. So where is he?"

"Outside the building, Ma'am."

I thought for a moment. "I'm not seeing him, until he changes his clothes and has a shower. Spray him with a hose pipe, I don't care just make him clean."

"Yes Ma'am."

I went back to the sheet of paper and signed it, accepting more employees at the university. As soon as I handing it to Bizzie, the door knocked again. "Come in."

"Hi." I looked up and saw Claire. I would say it would be surprising, but she could never stay away from me for long.

"Claire. Taking a stroll through sewers, only to come back up and see me."

"Oliver suggested it. I'm not staying in the sewers." She shivered and rubbed her arm nervously.

"Bizzie, bring a chair. Claire sit."

"Your still bossy..." Claire said, under her breath. I ignored her and closed the folder. Claire sat down and stared at the floor.

"I've come to realise, that my treatment of you has been a little harsh as of late." I started. "I won't keep you locked in your room, but you can't leave the house. The only exception is to go and work for Myrnin and you will have an escort."

"I don't think 'a little' covers it."

"I apologise for what happens outside Common Grounds." That is all she is getting from me.

Claire looked up. "Did the ghosts tell you to say this?"

"The ghosts have gone. I can find Christopher by myself." Looking into Claire's eyes I could see she still has strong affection for me, but she knew I had none for her. She looked down to the floor again.

"Have you made any progress?"

"The guards have found some people who might be him, but they were just ordinary people. One is being held until he is cleared."

"I'm... I'm sorry... For escaping from you and everything. Every bad thing, I've done I guess." Claire fiddled with her hands.

"Its fine. Just stay in the house for now. Maybe later you can see Michael, if you wish."

"I don't want to see him. I-I need you to agree on something for me." Claire looked everywhere except me. What was making her so nervous?

"What is it? You're very nervous."

"I haven't been listening in on anything whatsoever, I need you to understand that."

"What do you want?"

Claire took a breath then said, "Oliver wants to meet up with you. To apologise for what happened, when Myrnin came to take me away."

"I thought you hated him?" It seemed strange Claire would be speaking to someone she tried to kill more than once.

"I do. But his house was the only house you wouldn't think to look. He let me use the shower, if I could make you agree to meet him." Claire fidgeted even more, doing anything to avoid looking at me.

"What would happen if you failed?" Whatever threat Oliver had said, must be what's making her so nervous.

"I don't know... he just said to arrange a meeting."

I sighed and got up and went around the desk and held Claire's hand, so she would stop fidgeting. "He can meet me to apologise, then I only want to see him when he's summoned." Claire nodded, then placed her hand on mine. I pulled away at first, then lightly squeezed her hand. "Go then."

Claire seemed reluctant to leave, but she eventually stood up and with a last look at me, she left.

XXXXXXXX

Claire's Point of View

Walking down the hall from Amelie's office I felt a surge of hope, which I hadn't gotten in a long time. I wasn't nervous about about what Oliver would do if I hadn't got Amelie to see him; I was plucking up my courage to hold Amelie's hand. After previous experience, I was more than a bit scared of what she will do if I held her hand, but maybe now I could start slowly working on a way to be with her again.

"Claire?"

I turned to see one of Amelie's guards. Whether he was new or not I didn't know, but I hadn't seen him around before. "Hi... Um, can I help you?"

"Yes actually." He grabbed me by the arm and dragged me into what looked like a storeroom at the bottom of the stairs. "I saw you getting quite intimate with the Founder, in there."

"I thought guards weren't supposed to listen in." I took my arm out of his very tight grip.

"I'm her bodyguard. It's my job to listen in. The Founder can't be distracted, she has a lot of work to do. I advise you leave her alone."

"I wasn't doing anything. None of the other guards have a problem with me." I was going to report him to Amelie. Maybe he wasn't a bodyguard after all.

"I'm not the other bodyguards. Leave her alone and you won't be hassled by me again. If you don't... Well, things won't turn out well for you."

I stared at the guard for a long while then eventually said, "Fine. Just get out of my way." I pushed past him and went out of the door, then made a split second decision to run back up to Amelie's office using vampire speed and opened the door and closed it before the bodyguard knew anything.

"What are you doing here?" Amelie asked.

"Amelie, I know you probably not going to believe me but..." I went up to the desk and lowered my voice. "I think your new bodyguard is Christopher."

"Excuse me?"

"After I left, he took me into a storeroom and said that if I didn't leave you alone, something bad would happen."

"Claire, the bodyguards have already been checked. He can't be one of them."

"You know when he was in his original body? He could make himself appear human. That's what he's doing now. He wants to keep us apart."

"Claire, I've already told you, we aren't... together anymore." Amelie stood up and put the paper she had been working on in the folder. "Now go and I will talk with the guard, if that makes you feel any better."

"Just stay away away from him. You know-" I was cut off by the door opening and the bodyguard or Christopher came in.

"I overheard your conversation. Is there something the matter?" He asked.

I sent a pleading look to Amelie. I know vampires aren't telepathic, but right then I just wanted to show her what he had said to me, or to convince her to stay away from him.

"No, but I would like a talk with you. Claire you may leave now and don't come into my office without an invitation again." Amelie didn't look like she got the message, but she was the queen at hiding what she was feeling. So on the presumption that she had gotten the message, I walked cautiously past Christopher and closed the door behind me.