A/N: Hello everyone! It's been a while. A very long while. Sorry about that. Here's the update for those of you who have stuck around for it. Enjoy!

OOOOOOOOO

Iona guided Roma to their usual spot at the boardwalk with Gage offering minor assistance. She handed her small bag of clothes to the older man once Roma was comfortably situated on the boards. A whispered warning was issued to keep an eye out for danger from anyone on the boardwalk – a reminder that if something should go down, that one of them should come find him, if possible. Iona knew that Gage would prefer to have her run away from the scene, leaving Roma to fend for himself and provide a distraction so that she could live. He meant the boy no harm and he loved Roma, but he knew that Iona's chances for survival were greater than Roma's.

She nodded, but said nothing to him about it.

She listened to Roma tune his guitar and glanced around the boardwalk, shifting her golden bangle bracelets so that they clinked together. Her eyes roamed over the tourists with their weird outfits and their brightly colored hair. There were a few locals screaming over each other, seeking to sell their "I Survived Santa Carla" merchandise to these rich tourists. Families were being pulled around by their children, eager for this and that at the expense of their parents' wallets.

Iona let her breath out in a small sigh, noting that the dark man and the redhead weren't around.

Who am I kidding? Iona asked herself. I want to see that guy. I want to see him and thank him for helping me out with that drunk. I want to see him so…so…

She shook her head and turned to look at Roma. She knew better than to think about him – that mystery man. It was a hopeless wish for her to think that she meant anything to him. How could she even think that she would ever matter to someone like him? She was only a gypsy dancer on the boardwalk, who danced to keep money flowing into the household. There was nothing too exotic or interesting about her. Why should he even look her way again?

"Iona?" Roma's voice broke through to her when he plucked a chord. "Are you ready?"

The gypsy teen nodded and struck her beginning pose. "Yeah…" It's going to be a long night.

OOOOOOOOO

Dwayne pulled his motorcycle up beside his brothers' motorcycles. Laddie jumped off of Dwayne's motorcycle and headed off on his own after listening to Faith's orders to be safe. The redhead sat on the back of David's bike, ignoring David's hands on her thighs as she looked at the two blonds. They hadn't stopped talking about how they hoped that the gypsy dancer would start another fight so that they could get close enough to get a whiff of her perfume again.

"Hey Paul," Marko said from behind his thumb nail. "I think Dwayne doesn't want to share the exotic babe with us…"

Paul laughed and tossed his long mane of blond hair back. "Aw…Come on, Dwayne! We won't bite her…much."

Dwayne glared at his brothers and climbed off his motorcycle, intent on getting to them. "You won't touch her," he growled through his teeth.

Faith appeared between him and the two blond brothers. Her gray eyes looked up into his as she pressed her hand against his ever-bare chest. The contact had Dwayne startled, stopping his advance on the two laughing jerks. The redhead shook her head at him, pushing him back towards his bike.

"Dwayne, don't," she ordered. "They're not worth it."

"Aw, Sis!" Paul complained, putting his hands on his hips. "We're worth at least a good fifty bucks."

Marko nodded in agreement, though his Cheshire grin faded a little.

"You two leave him alone," Faith ordered, turning to look at them with her hand still firmly pressed against Dwayne's chest. "And don't you dare go around the gypsy. If you do, I'll –"

"Spank us?" Paul asked, smiling and wiggling his eyebrows.

David pushed Paul away from the group and growled. "Don't even think about it! Or you're going to wake up to the sunshine for the first time in years – outside of the cave. Understand?"

The smile fell off of Paul's face and he shut his mouth. Yet, Dwayne could feel the barely hidden thoughts of his brother and knew that he still wanted to joke around about Faith and all the females in the local area. He felt a smaller flame of anger towards Paul than David did, but didn't let himself dwell long on it. It was in Paul's nature to be an ass.

Faith gave David a look and reached into her pocket, fishing out a small handful of money. She slapped the money into Marko's hand. "Take this and take Paul with you," she ordered. "There's gotta be something more fun for you to do than this. Go."

"We're gone, Sis!" Marko said with a salute, taking off with Paul howling with laughter behind him.

Dwayne watched the two wild blonds tear through the crowd. People made sounds of disapproval and surprise in the wake of their antics. He was glad to see them gone, hoping that he wouldn't have to see them again until they were on the hunt.

"I'll keep an eye on them for you," Faith said, breaking into his thoughts as David slid an arm around her waist.

"Shouldn't have to," David muttered, pulling a cigarette out from behind his ear. "There are plenty of skirts for them to chase. They'll be busy…"

Faith elbowed him, but it was playful. Her gray eyes sparkled as she looked at Dwayne. He could still see some of the humanity lingering in those eyes, even after the year that she had spent living as one of his kind. "We'll see you in a few hours, okay?" Then her eyes turned back to David as he propelled her away. "You and I need to talk, Mister."

Shaking his head, Dwayne watched his sister and brother walk away to do whatever they did when they were alone on the boardwalk. The crowd of tourists instantly swallowed them up and let him relax for the first time that night. His brothers' voices still rang through his head, but they weren't as loud as they could have been. Shoving his hands in the pockets of his jacket, the silent vampire moved through the crowd, eyes searching for something interesting.

The sound of a guitar led the way.

He didn't want to be that creeper that stared at someone for long periods of time – that was something that he let his more annoying brothers do. Yet, as he stood across the boardwalk from the gypsy girl and her guitar-playing friend, he couldn't help but stand still and watch her. The way that the faux gold discs glinted under the low lights of the area and the fluid-like movements of her abdomen. He could see her muscles shifting under her tanned flesh, the gracefulness of her hands moving through the air as she danced to the guitar- sometimes fast, sometimes slower. There was something captivating about the way that she could manipulate her body into moving like that, something that kept his eyes focused on her, until the song ended and people came forward to throw money into the hat at her feet.

Dwayne heard her thank a few of the children that came forward before the next song started up. He leaned back against the boards separating the boardwalk from the fall into the dark ocean below and glanced around at the people watching the gypsy dancer. What he saw, he didn't like.

Men of different ages were staring at her as she danced. Some were a good distance away from her like he was, but others were closer. Dwayne could see the lust in their eyes and smell their hunger for her. True, he hungered for her too, but that was different than what these pathetic creeps wanted. Dwayne didn't need to get into their heads to know that they wanted to claim the gypsy as their own in fashions that he didn't want to think about. They saw her for her body and nothing more. If they had her once, they wouldn't think about her again afterwards. She was just a slab of attractive meat to them that could be used and then thrown away once the illusion was gone.

Dwayne crossed his arms and watched the dancing gypsy, waiting for any moment that she may need his help.

OOOOOOOOO

Iona let her body relax as the last of Roma's guitar music faded away. She was still pretty tense from the sickening pressure of the lustful eyes of man, but she couldn't let it show. She smiled at Roma as he set the guitar aside and reached for the hatful of money. The gypsy dancer quickly scooped the hat up and poured the money into a secure bag, feeling the need to protect it. The eyes of creeps were still on her and her cousin – she didn't need them to take away her earnings and hurt Roma in the process.

Tying the bag shut, Iona let herself straighten slightly and helped Roma to his feet. The guitar was slung onto his back and the hat placed on his head. Iona looked around at the people still watching her and Roma, but made no comment. She knew that they had to get back to Gage, so that he could take Roma home before the creatures of the night became too active.

Iona gripped Roma's elbow as she headed further down the boardwalk, ignoring the catcalls that some creeps sent her way. She was careful to stay out of their reach. If they touched her, she wouldn't scream. No, she'd lived long enough in Santa Carla to know that screaming did very little good on the boardwalk at night. She wouldn't be saved by anyone – she had to save herself.

Her dark eyes scanned the crowd as she guided Roma to Gage's booth. She didn't know what she was looking for, but she knew that she would know that she had found it if she did. Her heart fluttered under her breast as she caught a glimpse of what she thought was the dark mystery man, who'd saved her.

Stupid girl, she thought, blinking and looking away when the image proved to be false. Stupid girl, grow up and smell the roses. There is no way that anything can come from this. Just let it go.

"Hey there, honey!" someone called as she guided Roma away. "Wanna party with a real man?"

Iona kept her eyes focused straight ahead and did her best to ignore the jerk. Roma gripped her arm and leaned closer to her.

"Are you going to let them talk to you like that?" he demanded in a low voice.

"They're not doing anything but running their mouths," Iona replied in kind. "It's just a bunch of words, Roma."

"Well, they shouldn't talk to you like that," Roma muttered, narrowing his eyes. "I'd kick their asses if I could."

Iona nodded slightly and allowed a brief affectionate smile to cross her lips. "I know you would, but let's not waste any more thoughts on them. They're nothing but cowards with alcohol and drugs in their systems. We'll be fine."

She left Roma with Gage and headed out onto the boardwalk after changing into more comfortable clothes. Dressed in these more covering clothes didn't make her feel more protected from the lustful eyes of man than when she was in her traditional garb. It just meant that it would be harder for men to undress her with their eyes and easier to keep her clothes on should a fight happen. Her hands squeezed into fists in her pockets as her eyes scanned the crowd for any sign of danger.

For any sign of the mystery dark haired man who had saved her.

Oh stop! Iona told herself. He's not going to come around for you just because you want him to appear. That's just crazy. Just move on with your life and chase some real dreams.

"Mommy," a little girl called out, bringing Iona's attention back to the present. "Mommy, I really want that one. Please Mommy, please. You said I could get one thing. Please Mommy!"

Iona saw a little blonde girl pointing at a doll that looked kind of like the little girl. Her mother looked at the price of the doll and her expression saddened. She knelt down next to her daughter and wrapped her arms around her.

"Honey, I wish I could get it for you," she whispered to her daughter. "I just – I don't have the money for it right now. Maybe we can get the doll next week? You know money's tight right now, honey."

"But you said –" the girl began, tears filling her eyes.

"I know, honey. I know, but I don't have the money…"
Iona couldn't stand to see the little girl looking so sad and the mother looking so sorry. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a handful of cash. "Hey," she said, approaching the two. "How much do you need for the doll?"

The mother looked up, clearly startled. "Um…The doll's thirty dollars and I have twenty…"

"I got this." Iona smiled and picked up the doll, moving over to the attending cashier.

"Oh, no! You don't – you don't have to do this!" the mother said, straightening as Iona handed over the money.

"I want to do this," Iona told her, taking the tag off of the doll and handing it to the little girl. "I know what it's like to go through something like this and I had someone show kindness to me. So, please take the doll and buy your daughter some ice cream." She held out some more money to the mother. "Please, it's my treat."

The mother hesitantly took the money from her hand, tears welling up in her eyes. "Thank you, thank you so much."

The little girl hugged Iona around the waist and smiled. Iona waved them off with a warm smile and shoved the rest of her money back into her pocket. A sudden feeling of being watched came upon her, leaving her stomach to twist into a painful knot. She looked around and saw the Video Max's owner looking at her from across the boardwalk. When she blinked, it turned out that he was talking to some older woman.

Creep, Iona thought, heading away from the area.

She bought herself a triple-dip cone from the local ice cream vendor and snuck in a payment for the family of five behind her. The vendor tapped the lip of his hat in recognition and Iona moved on. Her pockets were considerably lighter than they usually were, but she didn't mind. It was her money to waste and if she could get a decent amount of random acts of kindness in one night, that was perfectly fine with her.

Leaning her hips against the rough wood of the boardwalk's railing, she helped herself to her ice cream. The cool salty wind brushed over her skin and soothed her. The sounds of the world faded into a blur and she closed her eyes for a moment, savoring the sensation.

"Mind if I join you?" someone said from behind her.

Iona opened her eyes slowly and sighed, licking up some of the melted ice cream before it could get onto her hand. "It's a free country," she said.

The person moved into her line of vision and she quickly looked away with heat flooding her face. It was the mystery dark haired man and he was leaning against the railing beside her. She forced her composure to come back and mentally yelled at her heart to stop beating so quickly.

"I saw what you did back there," he said, looking at her.

"Oh!" Iona frowned and stared ahead. "It was nothing, really."

OOOOOOOOO

Dwayne hadn't intended to talk to the gypsy dancer that night, but he had seen the way that men were looking at her and knew that he had to step up to protect her from them. He heard her heart race for a few moments when he moved next to her, but it slowed back to a normal rhythm and allowed him to regain his own control – the hunger was only strongest when the blood was moving faster. That's what made his victims the perfect meal because a person is always afraid to die and that sends their blood flooding through their bodies with fresh adrenaline that vampires find irresistible.

"Why'd you do it?" he asked.

"Just looking out for the world, I guess," the gypsy said, shrugging a shoulder. "My grandmother told me that good deeds done earn good rewards in the future." She glanced up at him. "Why do you want to know about this, um...?"

"Dwayne," the vampire said, offering a hand.

"Iona," the gypsy responded in kind, taking his hand awkwardly and shaking it.

A wave of heat went through Dwayne at the touch of the girl's hand, but she pulled it back before he could figure out what it meant. Iona tilted her head to the side and looked at him. That's when he realized that she was still waiting for him to answer her question.

"It's just strange to see someone care so much about strangers," Dwayne answered, folding his arms over his chest. "You don't see that kind of thing around here."

"And that's sad, isn't it?"

Dwayne nodded and looked out at the world that the gypsy was turned away from.

"I haven't seen you around here before this week," Iona commented. "I mean, I've lived in town for all of my life and I've been dancing for two years – why haven't I seen you before?"

It was Dwayne's turn to shrug. "I just haven't been around the boardwalk during the times that you dance until now."

That was a lie. He had noticed her months ago and had watched her dance for just as long. He had made it so that he could watch her from a distance without her knowing. This wasn't the first or the second time that he had seen her help someone on the boardwalk without expecting something in return. He had witnessed the acts many times before. It had surprised him and made her look different than all the other girls he had seen on the boardwalk of Santa Carla.

"Oh," Iona said, bringing her ice cream cone to her lips and taking a bite off of the top scoop.

Dwayne felt the irritating touch of his brothers talking in his head. Frowning, he mentally told them to shut the hell up. He didn't need them getting into his business.

"D-Man, you may want to listen to us," Paul said with no real laughter in his voice.

"Someone is watching you and the dancer," Marko added.

Dwayne's eyes scanned the area around them, looking for what his brothers were trying to warn him. One of the new vampires?

"No. Worse."

That's when Dwayne saw it and his eyes narrowed.

"Is something wrong?" Iona asked, looking at him with concern in her eyes.

Dwayne shook his head and said, "No."

He just didn't know who he had said that to and that scared him.

OOOOOOOOO

A/N: I feel like there are some rough points in this update. Like it's a bit choppy in parts and that I may be making things happen a little too quickly…I'll let you decide and please, remember to review this. We authors work hard on these updates and reviews let us know how we're doing. So please review! Thanks! – Scarlet