The mountain was alive with the sounds of celebratory vampires, drinking and dancing at the festival's traditional ball. Larten spent most of his evening with Seba while Darren was off with Gavner.

The dances started as they usually did, and Seba and Larten danced alongside everyone else. After the first song was over, Seba approached Larten and pulled him aside. They walked out of the ballroom and strolled through the near empty halls.

"Is everything alright?" Larten asked, concerned by the solemn look on his mentor's face.

Seba nodded and spoke calmly, "I have decided to leave Vampire Mountain after Council ends."

Larten looked at his former master sadly, knowing that he intended to leave without return.

"I never intended to return at all after you took on my position," he continued, "I only retired so I could see the world one final time before I die, but I wanted to assist you after learning about Darren. Now that he is getting older, I think it is time I depart before time gets away from me more."

Larten was shocked. "You stayed because of me?"

"Of course I did," Seba replied, "Why else?"

Larten smiled. "I thought you had grown fond of Darren and stayed for his sake."

"I do care for Darren," Seba said, "But I was more interested in helping you."

"Darren will be sad to see you go." Larten paused, then added, "So will I."

"You can manage without me," Seba replied.

"I am feeling more confident about performing my duties," Larten agreed, "And I want to thank you for all you have done since returning. I do not know what I would have done without your help."

"You would have figured it out," Seba said, "I believe that you could have managed just fine without me."

"Have you told Darren of your plans to leave?" Larten asked.

"Not yet.I will find time tonight to talk to him," Seba said, then continued, "He is growing to be a fine young man," Seba commented, "I'd hoped I would stay alive long enough to see who he turns into, but destiny has other plans for me." Seba stopped walking. "My time is running out."

They stood where they were, and Seba stretched, wincing as he put one hand on his lower back. "I am not the young man I used to be," he said, "but you do not wish to hear an old man gripe. Let's head back to the festivities." He winked, then lead them back to the ballrooms.

After spending several hours dancing and enjoying the music, Larten decided to have a meal and some ale in the hall of Khledon Lurt. As he was leaving the ballroom, he ran into Arra and they decided to go to the dining hall together.

"So," Arra started, "where is the kid?"

"His name is Darren," Larten replied, "and he is with Gavner."

Arra nodded. "Good," she said, "I wouldn't be with you now if he was with you."

"You do not wish to meet him?" Larten asked.

Arra made a sour face. "I have no patience for children," she retorted. "I don't know how you manage it."

Larten chuckled and let that matter rest. He wasn't surprised by Arra's feelings towards children. When female vampires are blooded, they know that they will never be able to bear children. So, like most other women of the clan, Arra never wanted kids at all.

After they ate, they stayed in the Hall to catch up on each other's lives and speak of days since passed.

.

Darren recovered from his shock and bolted in the opposite direction. He ran as fast as he could through the halls and looked for Larten. He found him in the Hall of Khledon Lurt, talking with another vampire that Darren didn't know. The balls were over by this point and vampires were back to games and challenges. Larten didn't notice Darren running towards him until he felt something clinging to his side. He looked down at Darren, who had his face buried in Larten's cloak.

"Darren?"

He didn't look up. He only hugged Larten tighter as tears started to flow and he was sobbing fearfully into Larten's side. Arra rolled her eyes, but Larten ignored her.

"What is the matter with you?" Larten asked, growing concerned. Darren felt a hand on his shoulder and as Larten was about to pry Darren away from him, a stout man in a yellow suit walked into the hall. He was accompanied by two shorter, hooded figures on either side of him. Every vampire in the room froze, including Larten.

Mr. Tiny walked straight over to Larten and Arra. "Larten," he greeted, then turned to the other vampire. "Arra."

"Hello Mr. Tiny," she said stiffly.

Next to Larten, Darren had moved behind him and covered himself with Larten's cloak. Now, only Darren's feet were visible. Larten could feel the child grip his side tightly.

Larten ignored Darren and spoke with Mr. Tiny, straining to make his voice sound casual. "Mr. Tiny," he said, "to what do we owe the pleasure?"

"I'm just passing through," Mr. Tiny said, picking at something under his nail. "I have some time before an earthquake will hit this island and completely devastate the colony there. It is going to be glorious." His eyes glowed evilly, making anyone who viewed them uneasy. He continued, "So, I just wanted to check in on the vampires."

"Check in?" Larten repeated, but Mr. Tiny continued,

"Don't worry. I know the rules regarding discussing 'official business' during this ridiculous festival of yours, and I have no intention of interrupting anything. You will not even notice I am here." He peered around Larten and looked at Darren, who didn't detach himself from his father's side. Smirking, he looked back up at Larten. "I will not be too long here. I will be leaving in 2 days."

"You are…" Larten hesitated, "staying?"

Mr. Tiny nodded. "For the time being. I know it is short notice, but it wouldn't be too much trouble getting me a room, would it?"

Under his cloak, Larten felt Darren start to tremble. When he replied, his voice started to lose its' composure, "Of course not. I will see right to it." He nodded curtly and swiftly turned to leave, guiding Darren to come with him by placing a hand on his back.

"Oh, and Larten," Mr. Tiny called him back as the pair reached the door. Larten turned around, keeping one hand on Darren's shoulder. "We must find time to talk about the child," he finished, meeting eyes with Darren. "I find him very interesting." The evil glint reappeared in Mr. Tiny's eyes and Larten felt a twinge of worry for Darren.

Darren felt Larten's grip on his shoulder tighten. Larten stayed silent and pushed Darren out of the hall, following close behind. As soon as they left the hall, Larten rushed Darren through the tunnels by his hand. As they worked their way quickly through the halls, Darren started asking questions,

"Dad," Darren said while Larten pulled him ahead by his hand, "what was the bad man doing here? I thought he wasn't real! And how do you know each other? Are you friends?! And why-"

"Darren, please!" Larten cut him off roughly. They turned the corner into the hall where Darren and Larten's room was and went inside. As they were walking, Larten had already sent a telepathic message to Gavner instructing him to meet him in his room, so they were only there for a few seconds before Gavner came in.

"What's going on?" he immediately asked.

"I need you to watch Darren for me," Larten said. He had already started to leave the room as Gavner nodded. He sensed the seriousness in Larten's voice and didn't ask any questions-he would find out what this was about later.

"Can't I stay with you?" Darren asked, clearly still shaken by Mr. Tiny's presence.

Larten leant down and put a hand on Darren's shoulder. "I will be back as soon as I can. Gavner is going to stay with you until I get back, alright?" He straightened out and finished, "First, I must prepare a room for our new guest."

"New guest?" Gavner asked, unable to help himself.

Larten stared at Gavner seriously. "Mr. Tiny is here."

Gavner's eyes widened, first in shock, then in realization. "And he's staying?!" he blurted.

Larten sighed. "Just watch Darren for me, please? I will be back soon." Then he left.

Word of Tiny's appearance spread quickly. Everyone was in a frenzy. The games stopped and everyone searched for the Princes to give them answers. Mika was sitting against the wall of one of the gaming halls, recovering after a particularly brutal fight against one of the clan's best Generals, when a vampire he remembered being named Yanish approached him.

"Sire," he said, alerting the Prince with the concern in his voice, "have you heard?"

"What is going on?" Mika asked.

"Desmond Tiny is here." His voice lowered as he said the name, as if afraid to speak it. "And there is a rumor that he requested to stay here."

Mika jumped up immediately. "What do you mean, 'stay'?"

"I don't know Sire," Yanish said, "All I heard was he asked Larten Crepsley to prepare him a room."

Mika nodded, then left the gaming hall, in search for his fellow Princes and Larten Crepsley.

Larten ran into Seba on his search for the Princes. Seba approached him with concern and confusion written all over his face. "Is it true?" he asked, "Mr. Tiny wants to stay here?"

Larten nodded. "He asked me for a room." He hesitated before continuing, "He also seems to be interested in Darren."

Seba's expression hardened. "Desmond Tiny showing an interest in anyone is never a good thing."

"I know," Larten replied.

"Where is Darren now?" Seba asked.

"In my room with Gavner," Larten replied, "I need to alert the Princes of Mr. Tiny's arrival before the rumors get out of hand."

"I will inform the Princes," Seba said, "You should focus on getting a room ready for Mr. Tiny. Do not keep that man waiting."

Larten nodded, and rushed to the storerooms to grab a coffin.

It didn't take long to set up a room for Mr. Tiny. He brought up a coffin in a room that was farthest from his and Darren's. As he was finishing up, Desmond walked in.

"There are some things I wish to discuss with you. Would you join me for a walk?" he requested.

Larten nodded. "Of course," he said pleasantly.

As the pair left the room, Larten sent a quick telepathic message to Gavner, asking him to watch Darren longer. They began walking towards the edge of the mountain and Mr. Tiny spoke, "You seem to be doing very well for yourself."

"Thank you," Larten responded tensely, "I am."

"And you are pleased with the decisions you've made?"

Larten's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

Mr. Tiny shrugged, a sly smile creeping onto his face. "Taking over as quartermaster, being stuck in here all the time. I remember when these stone walls made you feel crazy with boredom."

Larten could tell Mr. Tiny was baiting him, but he knew better than to fall for it. "That is all behind me now," he said certainly, "I am dedicated to the clan completely."

Mr. Tiny frowned, clearly hoping to get more of a reaction from the vampire.

"You've gotten boring," he commented dryly.

Larten squinted suspiciously. "What did you wish to discuss with me?" he asked bluntly.

Mr. Tiny rolled his eyes. "Always to point, aren't you?" He suddenly grew very serious. "The child, then," he stated.

"Who is he?" Larten immediately asked. He had been worried about Mr. Tiny growing an interest in Darren for the past few years. Darren's origins were always a mystery, but Larten sensed that Mr. Tiny knew what they were, and was fairly confident that it wasn't good. It wasn't until he found out about Mr. Tiny being in Darren's nightmares that he suspected that Mr. Tiny was already involved. Larten was certain that Mr. Tiny knew where Darren came from and he suspected that Mr. Tiny may have even had something to do with Darren's suddenly appearance.

Mr. Tiny ignored Larten's question and said simply, "are you planning on blooding him?"

Larten answered hesitantly, "I was going to leave that choice up to him. He could become a vampire, or he could venture out and join the human world."

They reached the outskirts of the mountain. Larten hadn't noticed how far they had walked until he felt the rush of cold wind hitting his face.

"Where did Darren come from?" Larten asked.

"You will find out," Mr. Tiny said, then added mysteriously, "if everything goes to plan."

Mr. Tiny turned to head back into the mountain and Larten called him back. "What are your plans for Darren?" He wasn't able to keep the worry out of his voice.

Mr. Tiny stopped, but didn't turn around. When he didn't speak, Larten stepped closer. He felt worry for Darren and rage for the stout man in the yellow suit.

"You want him for something." It wasn't a question, and Larten was ready to stop Mr. Tiny if he tried to walk away before answering him.

When Mr. Tiny finally spoke, it was with such a sweet tone that someone who wasn't familiar with Desmond Tiny's reputation might mistake him for a kind man. "He will find his destiny when he is no longer by your side."

Larten stepped around to look Mr. Tiny in the eye.

Mr. Tiny continued, "If he becomes a vampire and travels on his own, his future will be sealed."

Larten froze and Mr. Tiny stepped around him and returned to the halls without another word. Larten stayed where he stood, pondering Mr. Tiny's message. When he finally returned to his quarters, Gavner and Darren were waiting for him.

Darren rushed to Larten as he entered. Larten bent down and wrapped his arms around the boy as he flung his own around Larten's neck. Larten lifted Darren up and held him while he spoke to Gavner,

"Mr. Tiny will be staying for 2 days," he said.

"Why?" Gavner asked, looking horrified.

Larten could only shrug.

"Why is he here?" Darren asked.

Larten looked at Darren and said, "Darren, listen to me. For the next two days, I do not want you going anywhere unless Gavner, Seba, or I are with you. Do you understand. You will go nowhere by yourself."

Darren nodded and Larten put him down.

"I should go," Gavner said. "The princes are holding a meeting to talk about the sudden visit. They may need generals to help manage the crowds."

Gavner left, leaving Darren and Larten alone. Darren noticed how upset his father looked despite his attempts to hide it. He was more scared of the bad man than anything else, but he knew that both of them being scared wouldn't do any good. So he pushed his fear aside the best he could and gave his father a smile.

"It's only two days," he said, "Don't worry. And I won't go anywhere by myself. I promise."

Larten looked down at the boy and smiled. "Thank you, Darren." He put a hand on Darren's head and ruffled his hair.

The next two days were stressful to say the least, but relatively uneventful. Mr. Tiny kept true to his word on not interrupting any of the remaining festivities. He never even spoke. He walked around the halls, observing. It made everyone in the mountain uneasy. Sometimes, he would pick one or two vampires and just stare at them for a while- showing no emotion- then would move on.

By the time Mr. Tiny left, the Festival of the Undead had made its' close and vampires began to depart. Soon, Gavner and Seba were the last visitors to leave. Seba had took Darren aside and explained that he was leaving and that Darren won't be seeing him again. Darren cried and hugged Seba goodbye. Larten said his goodbyes to his former master and made the death's touch sign. Then, Seba was gone.

Larten didn't tell anyone about his talk with Mr. Tiny. He had no idea what Des Tiny had planned for Darren, but he knew it wasn't good and he was going to do anything in his power to make sure Darren's life didn't go according to Mr. Tiny's sadistic plans…