A/N: All the apologies in the world. Here you go:

Claire was woken from her fitful sleep by a sudden presence in her room. She knew it wasn't her roommates: she could hear Shane's snores and Eve's tossing and turning, and Michael would have made his presence known or joined her in bed.

Her heart beat faster as she sat up and slowly looked around her room. Her eyes fell on a shadow by her window and her heart broke into a sprint.

"Calm down, dear Claire."

The voice hit her ears and her heart slowed in relief. "Myrnin."

Now that the fear was going away she could see his outline better. He was facing the window with his back facing her and looked as he did normally, ie dressing in the dark, but Claire could see by the stiffness in his stance that he wasn't in a normal mood.

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to bid you farewell." He hadn't turned toward her and had spoken so softly that she wasn't sure she had heard him right.

"What?" He glanced back at her and the look in his eyes spoke to Claire although he didn't give her much time to see it. He faced the window again and spoke.

"I've come to tell you goodbye."

"Goodbye?" She whispered. When he didn't say anything, she clambered out of bed and went to stand at the window with him. "You're saying goodbye?"

"Indeed I am."

Claire stared at his face for a long moment, dread and sadness filling her heart. "Why?"

"As you know, Oliver has beat Amelie. He will rule. Neither he nor I have made it a secret of how much we despise one another. I am sure you can deduce why I must leave."

Claire could guess. "He'll have you killed."

"Yes." Claire could see the anger wash over his face even though he still wasn't looking at her. "Despite his talk of preserving our kind, I doubt he will hesitate since I am Amelie's oldest friend and ally. I cannot be swayed and he knows this. He also knows that I will go through any measure to free her and set her back in power so he wants me gone."

"But you're not going to set her free: you're leaving."

"I am grossly outnumbered, Claire. Most of Amelie's supporters are cowering in fear of what Oliver might do to them. I would not be able to do it regardless of how old I am compared to the others. Amelie is my oldest and dearest friend but she will understand."

"Will she?" Claire couldn't think about how or why she would be able to.

"She will. She is a vampire and has lived many years and understands because she knows. Vampires are selfish creatures and we think of our own survival over others no matter how near and dear we hold them to our hearts." Claire remembered him telling her this once before but had not time to think on it as Myrnin took a deep unnecessary breath and continued. "Oliver will call a town meeting that will be mandatory for all in the town. There, he will announce his victory and will deliver punishment to those he feels deserves it. I will not be here for him to demand my death."

That made sense but… "Why haven't you left then? I'm sure the clock's ticking." He sighed in a way Claire was sure she'd never heard before from him.

"I have been alive for many years, Claire, many human lifetimes. I have been a vampire in every sense of the word. I grew selfish and uncaring over the years with those I've cared for few and far between. Yet there have been a few I've cared for and many of them I've lost because of other's actions or because of my own sickness or madness. Many I never got to say goodbye, a luxury time rarely afforded me, but I am happy that I get to have that luxury with you."

Claire was gobsmacked and didn't interrupt.

"Over these past years, I've come to appreciate you as many things: an apprentice, a partner, a caretaker, a friend, a fellow intellectual, and a person. I cannot say the same for countless others. It is very sad to know that the days of us working together and creating together are over." Claire found herself sad at this also.

She didn't know when it had happened but somewhere along their path together Myrnin had become a constant in her life and everyday thoughts. Somehow she had come to think that he would always be there to scare her, to surprise her, to annoy her, to encourage her, to shock her, to amaze her.

"I would take you with me now but I know you would worry about your friends and the safety of this for your children." Throughout his whole speech he hadn't looked at her but now he turned suddenly, taking her face in his hands gently. "It may not appear to be true but I do care for you and I will miss you truly, my dear Claire."

Tears sprung to her eyes at the thought of this actually being goodbye. "I care and will miss for you too." He caught her tears and his face transformed into a sad smile.

"Don't cry, dear Claire. I'm sure we'll meet again whether it be in this life or the next." He leaned forward and she felt his icy lips press against her forehead. Her eyes had closed so she was very surprised to feel his lips press against hers. She was stunned for a few seconds and by the time she gathered her wits he was already pulling away. Opening her eyes, she looked up to see his sad smile again.

"Just wanted to do that at least once."

For some reason, this admission broke the dam inside of her. She flung her arms around him and cried for a bit as he embraced her back. He ended up being the one to pull back.

"I have to get going."

She pulled away nodding and wiping her face. "I know. Take care of yourself."

"You too, my dear Claire. Take care of yourself and your little ones." He then cracked a smile, the one Claire was so used to that made him look so handsome and young. "Don't forget about me."

A little laugh escaped her as she smiled back through her tears. "As long as you don't forget about me."

He pulled her into another embrace before pressing his lips to her forehead again. "Never."

Holding each other for a few moments more, he moved back.

"Goodbye Claire."

"Bye Myrnin." They smiled at one another until Claire blinked and he was gone.

It hurt. Thinking that that had been the last time she would ever see her crazy, genius, nerve wrecking, awe inspiring boss hurt her heart a lot. He'd become a close friend and now he was gone.

Slipping back into bed, Claire was sad but happy. She may never get to see Myrnin again but at least she knew he was alive. She had no doubt he would get out of Morganville unharmed and could only hope that she could soon follow.

True to Myrnin's words, there was a notice all over town the next morning. At sunset there would be a town meeting and attendance was mandatory.

Claire's worrying skyrocketed and she spent the whole day spending time with Shane, Eve, and Michael no knowing if she'd be able to later.

The time came and Claire was so nervous. Oliver could be so unpredictable at times and Claire had no idea what to expect.

The residents of the Glass House was silent as they loaded in Eve's car and made their way to the town hall. Eve ranted about having no where to park and the mood lightened and Claire calmed a little. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

The square, usually empty at this time of day, was filled with people, a lot of whom Claire recognized but some of which she'd never held an actual conversation with. Spotting Eve's parents in the middle of the crowd with her babies, Claire rushed over and was happy to find them both in one piece and hugged each to her chest. When she looked up, Eve was there waiting and Claire allowed her to hold Natalie as she continued to hug Nathan.

"Mama." He said and she held him closer.

The square was becoming more and more packed as the street lights came on and illuminated the night. Claire could see vampires sprinkled between the humans and wondered if they were trying to blend in with the humans or there to control them. Claire knew someone had mounted the stage when a sudden hush fell over the crowd. She turned to see Oliver standing at the podium.

"You may all be wondering why you have been summoned here and I am all the happier to tell you why. There has been a change in leadership." Oliver's voice boomed out. This statement was met by a silence so complete that Claire could almost hear the heartbeats around her. "The founder is no longer in charge: I am." Murmurs started among the humans and some of the vampires shifted. "Things are about to change. I am in charge now and I will handle things a lot differently than Amelie. I will not tolerate dissent or any uprisings. Anyone who dares to challenge me will be dealt with and punished swiftly, this goes for humans and vampires alike. To show you that I am true to my word, I shall set forth a few punishments now starting with those who fought against me. Starting with…" His eyes roamed the crowd before setting on one person in particular. A cruel, devious smirk appeared on Oliver's face as he spoke the name:

"Sam Glass."

A/N: Thanks for reading such a short and late update! I'm grateful for those who have continued reading after such a long time. I have typed up the rest of the story (I always like hand write it first then type it up but I always forget I'm typing things so updates begin to spread out) and I shall be delievering it you lovely people over the next few weeks/next month. Thanks again! I also wanted to know your opinions because I'm a little torn: bloody punishments? death? or just kind of mild punishments? My original had a few deaths (hence the Possible character death in the summary for a while) and my revised had not so many but the story works/has similar endings either way. I'd just like to know what you might prefer (I've typed up both versions). Let me know!

R&R Please
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