In Need of Saving

[Demeter]

Noreen scowled at the brick path and inched her foot over. She squeaked as what felt like the fires of hell licked at her sandled feet. She pulled her foot back. Something was very wrong here. She looked up and scowled. She wanted her Leopards back.

***

Sorin stood on his porch. He'd changed into a robe of dark red with gold thread shot through. He could sense Kiyo and Sanura off the shadows. Cezar was somewhere. He grinned down at Noreen. "Poor little Noreen. Have you lost your kitty? I don't think he wants to stay with you. Noreen, you have been a very naughty girl. You been playing with some very nasty magic and violating the trust of our friends. If you were any kind of magic user, you'd know the laws. Just like mortal clinical studies, experiments are only carried out on the willing and never on children."

Noreen growled and strode right through those fire based barriers, grinding her teeth all the way. Her hunters followed her. "What would you know of the magic laws. You are just a vampire."

Sorin rose a single eyebrow and gracefully descended the stairs. "What would I know of magic? Noreen, my dear Noreen, I am over two thousand years old. I may be a vampire but I was born a magic user. You are nothing but a infant compared to me. I was there when the laws of magic were written," as he walked, Sorin raised his arms. "You are weak and I am strong. You have to resort to experimentation to find the results you want. I just do it."

Above the house, the once cloudless sky, the color of a brand new robin's egg, turned dark and clouds boiled into being. The wind shifted from a light spring breeze to a pounding, howling wind that snarled in hair and tore at leaves. Fat streaks of black lightning struck the ground. The moon blacked out the sun and glowed a pulsing, crimson red as it hung low behind the victorian house.

As the shadows grew and lengthened, the number of creatures in them increased. The felines prowling his woods stalked out, mouths grinning, claws glinting red in the moonlight, eyes glowing red, blue, amber and green. The winged folk settled on the eaves of his house, wings shadowing their faces. Cezar sprang into being, screaming the unholy shriek of a banshee as he left the shadows to crouch infront of Sorin. He cackled and plucked at Sorin's robes. "Let me eat them, Master. It's been far to long since I've tasted the juicy flesh of hunters. She'd be tasty, wouldn't she? The guilty are always tasty," his voice was gravely and just a bit whiney.

Sorin reached down and stroked Cezar's hair. "Not yet, pet. I don't think she's learned her lesson yet."

Noreen shrank back against the hunters. All of them were huddled into a small ball, clinging to one another. She'd heard of beings like Sorin Dalca. He was one of the ancients. Beings with amassed powers who had gained immortality in some fashion. He'd gotten himself bitten by a vampire and his power had grown. He could cause death or life with a single look, thought or motion. He knew the Words of Power. He could summon the beings from the pits of hell and bind them to him. Sorin Dalca was an immortal sorcerer. Noreen cowered against her hunters. To matter the faction, sorcerers and their female counterparts were the highest rank, the greatest beings. Only they could change day into night with nothing but a gesture and still have the breathe the talk and the will to walk.

The felines ringed Noreen and her hunters. They growled, snarled, and swiped out with claws unsheathed. Those claws, glowing bloody, passed within centimeters of her bare legs. The winged folk on the house called out in animal screeches and manic laughter. Sorin stood in the middle of the chaos. He cast his eyes upon Noreen and let his magic blast her. It burned her and the hunters. He'd born of fire and to fire. The fire swirled around her, licking at ears, eyes and nose. Cezar hanged close to him, one clawed hand gripping the robes. He leaned close and gave Noreen's ankles a sniff and a lick. If Sorin wanted he could boil her blood.

Sorin leaned in close to Noreen. "Kiyo Mori is mine. Kaylie Mori is mine. Nolan Mori is mine. You are gone from this family. If you come near them again, I will take the lives your parents. If your hunters come near them again, I will take the lives of your parents. If you ever come near another were, be it canine or feline, another vampire, another angel, another Custos, another dragon, another magic user, I will take the lives of your parents. Should you take a life, I will take the lives of your parents. Your actions will cause their death, do you comprehend what I am saying?"

When Noreen faintly nodded, Sorin smirked. It was a cruel smirk, his fangs fully extended and picking up the red glow of the moon. The felines growled and swiped at the clustered group. They wanted revenge. Sorin let the black lightning fall again, the jagged points stricking within inches of their toes. "Remember, Noreen, the lives of Joseph Alexander Andresen and Ellen Rose Andresen are in my hands now," Sorin backed away from her until all but his bloody bright red eyes was hidden by the shadows. The felines backed away until their eyes were just glowing points in the dark. Cezar lingered, gnawing on one finger, a line of slobber dangling from his mouth. He hopped-limped into the shadow, making plantative overtures to his master to let him eat the woman, at the very least. She was so tasty.

Sorin smirked and let his fire flash long enough to illumiante his face. "Leave now, Noreen Andresen, Thomas White, Andrew Fisher, Timothy Fisher and Jason Williams. Remember, the lives of your loved ones are now in my hands."

The lightning struck down again, driving the small group from the yard, shrieking and pleading for forgivness. Cezar chased after them, as did the felines, nipping at the heels. Sorin turned and walked back to the porch. As he did, he brought everything back to normal. As if it was just another early spring day. "You can come out now, Guardian. Nemesis, I know you are there as well."

[Maira]

They had just managed to find a place close to the edge of the property when Noreen crossed Sorin's barriers, four hunters following on her heels. Nemesis had to pounce on Guardian to keep him from leaping on the woman and tearing her throat out. *You fool! Even if you manage to kill her the hunters would slaughter you as well and then your children wouldn't have -any- parents!* The big leopard didn't answer with his thoughts, instead Nemesis just felt his body rumble as an inaudible growl rose in his chest.

When Sorin made the sky go dark and brought down the black lightening, both Nemesis and Guardian flinched. At least Nemesis had know about the man's abilities, Guardian had never found out until that morning and to see the extent of Sorin's skill scared him. The man was doing all of this to keep him and his children safe from Hunters but who was to say that the magic would never get turned on them? Then, as if she could see the trail his thoughts were taking, Nemesis butted her head into Guardian's shoulder reassuringly. *He will never turn his magic on those he loves unless it is to help them.* This she knew in her heart, in her bones, and in her soul. Sorin would -never- turn his magic on Amirah, and as he'd loved Guardian's other half before Amirah was even a blip on the radar Nemesis knew that Kiyo/Guardian would be safe too and with him his children.

The two felines were the only ones that didn't creep in and swipe at the four hunters and Noreen. Guardian desperately wanted to but Nemesis kept getting in his way and reminded him that's she'd had a spell on him for years and would likely recognize the trace remnants of it on him in an instant.

Finally, when Sorin chased the small group off his property with his black lightening and threats, Nemesis let her mate chase the vile woman to the property line with the rest of the felines. At least that way he'd feel he'd had a part in defending himself and the two children inside.

Once the sky returned to normal and Sorin called for them, Guardian came trotting back from the property's edge and Nemesis slipped out from behind a hedge of rosebushes. Both cheetah and leopard padded up to Sorin and rubbed against him affectionately, getting cat hair on his lovely dark red robe. Then, Guardian jumped up and put his forepaws on Sorin's shoulders and looked the vampire in the eyes. Eyes the same emerald green as his other half's looked out of the leopard's face and while his human couldn't do it, wouldn't let himself do it he knew, Guardian rubbed his face along Sorin's in both gratitude and love. Then he licked the man's jaw with his raspy tongue before pushing off of Sorin and going back to all fours. He padded to the front door then and waited to be let back inside. Kiyo was furious with him and he just wanted to let the man out so he could go to sleep and ignore him.

Nemesis watched Guardian's display and would have laughed if felines were capable. Inside her, Sanura was doing just that. She knew Kiyo was likely livid and embarrassed, but Guardian had made it pretty clear that he was now on Sorin's side if the man ever wanted to try and pursue Kiyo again. Animals were much better with expressing themselves than humans were and Guardian's display was a prime example of that.

Not caring if anybody driving by saw her, Sanura once again took over her body sending Nemesis off to rest. Practically fighting a huge male leopard was exhausting work. She opened the door for Guardian then turned back to Sorin and threw her arms around his neck and buried her face in his chest. Her voice slightly muffled by the robe, Sanura said softly, "That was scary as hell but utterly amazing. I hope you never have to follow through on those threats." Then she looked up at her on-again off-again lover and kissed him just a little longer than a "thank you" kiss should have been. She really did love him, maybe not as a wife would love a husband, but as the father of her daughter and one of her best friends. When she pulled away, she smiled warmly at Sorin and then walked into the house herself to get dressed and go have a second breakfast. Shifting always made her rediculously hungry.

[Demeter]

Sorin had a silly grin on his face. Guardian liked him. If he wasn't exhausted from not sleeping and letting his power run wild like that, he'd would have started dancing then and there. He took one last glance over shoulder, watching as the Custoss and angels flew off for home and the felines playfully chased each other back into the woods to fetch clothing. His lawn was as perfect as ever, not even one single scorched blade. Oh yeah, he was good.

He past Kiyo and give the man, who was struggling back into clothing and blushing a bright, cherry red, a smile. He took a moment and pinned the man to the wall. "I meant what I said. You and yours are now mine. 'Nura's probably got a feast going by now. I'm going to go crash for the next several hours."

He stopped in the kitchen, watching as Sanura created a feast out of breakfast foods. "Keep the kids on the property for the day. I'll take down the extra wards in a few days. I'm just gonna sit down for a moment." He dropped, rathering then sat, into a chair and groaned. "Haven't done that in a hundred years. Forgot what a rush, and what a crash, it is."

Out in the yard, Cezar shook himself. He hated the form. He hated being stuck between man and wolf but it was one of the useful talents of being a Shadow Ryder. Cezar stretched and brushed miniscule flecks of dust and hair off his charcol gray Savile Row suit. He ran a hand through the graying hair on the top of his head and wondered if it was time to invest in hair dye.

He groaned. He'd called Sorin "Master" again. The vampire would never let him live it down. Assuming that Sorin would be feeding him, after all, he'd played the part of the unintelligent lackey again, Cezar strode into the house. He found the group gathered in the kitchen. "Sorin, you'd best be feeding me now," he said in a upper crest English accent. "And please tell me that I can use a bathroom. And mouthwash. She tasted nasty. I cannot believe that I licked that woman for you."

He blinked when everyone stared at him, except Sorin. The blonde vampire was sitting in his chair, head tilted back and eyes closed. "Oh, come on. Sorin, did you not tell them about me?"

Sorin opened one eye. "Everyone that is Cezar. Don't worry, he doesn't eat people. Most likely he wants a stack of pancakes. I'm going to bed. Kiyo, are you going to come with me?"

[Maira]

After leaving Sorin out on the porch, Sanura slipped inside and was going to get dressed but Kiyo was standing between her and her clothes. Poor Kiyo about fell over when he went to stand up from reaching for his borrowed boxers and there was Sanura, totally naked, inches from his face. "Holy crap woman, warn a man when you're gonna do that huh?" he grumbled as she brushed past him, kissing him on the cheek causing his cheeks to flare a lovely shade of pink. He hadn't slept with Sanura in years and to suddenly have her, while naked, kissing him even on the cheek was aparently enough to do things to his anatomy he wasn't exactly proud of at the moment. With all he'd been through you'd think his body wouldn't be so willing and eager...

Once Sanura was dressed and gone, Kiyo hurried into his boxers and pants. He'd just pulled his shirt over his head when Sorin came in and this time his cheeks flared bright red. What Guardian had done.... That cat was in trouble when he finally chose to wake up! Getting pinned to the wall was rather reminiscent of their first meeting and the heat in Kiyo's cheeks darkened even more. At least, until Sorin spoke. At the vampire's words, Kiyo's face drained of color. He would -never- belong to anybody again. He now had a vague understanding of why Sanura refused to marry. The disaster that this last relationship had ended in was enough to turn him off of anything permanant. He wanted to say something to Sorin, wanted to explain, but before he could the vampire was off on his way into the kitchen rambling on about Sanura having a feast ready.

It didn't take the loud growl from his stomach to remind him that he'd shifted twice in the last 24 hours and hadn't eaten at all. If he didn't eat soon he'd be looking as haggard as Sorin. As soon as he entered the kitchen he descended on the pile of pancakes (Riko had made waffles for herself but as was totally predictable was hogging them) and decided to forgoe the plate or any condiments. Plain pancakes straight to the gut might help his sudden fit of shaking.

Or at least, if he'd been able to eat the pancakes without choking on them thanks to Sorin asking if he would be joining him in bed, they might have helped the shaking. He coughed for what seemed forever before the pancake was finally cleared from his throat and he just eyed Sorin for a long moment. Then he looked at the children who were already back to playing with Daisy, and then his sister and Sanura. The two women were trying not to giggle, he could tell. "Damnit 'Nura, you told her didn't you? You told her what that traitor cat did didn't you?" Riko snorted then laughed outright. She slapped a hand over her mouth and turned away so that she couldn't see her brother glaring daggers at her.

Sanura, calmly answered, "It was either me tell her or Guardian tell her Kiyo, and you know Guardian will as soon as you shift next. I figured it was better to get it out in the open sooner rather than later." She watched as Kiyo groaned and eyed Sorin again. When he got up, grabbed a plate an threw some more pancakes on it she thought he was going to go join the children but instead he walked toward the door leading out of the kitchen.

"Come on Sorin, we both need rest and food. Plus, we need to talk." Kiyo did his best to ignore the giggles coming from Riko and smirked when Sanura slapped his twin's shoulder in a pathetic attempt to shut her up.

[Demeter]

Sorin blinked and hauled himself out of the chair. He didn't even bother to glare at Sanura. She knew all about how much he loved Kiyo. The week before the Leopard's wedding had involved several cases of Jack Daniels and several drunken confessions. He followed Kiyo up the stairs, blindly following him into the master suite Soren occupied. He dropped face first onto the wide bed. He waved a hand at Kiyo. "Talk, I'm not dead or asleep, yet, but I've got to lay down."

He did listen while the Leopard spoke to him. He spoke about not wanting to "owned" again, about needing to heal, about needing to spend time with his children. Sorin turned his head to look at Kiyo. "What? Do you think I'm going to chain you up in the basement? Kiyo, I'd never hold anyone against their will. What Noreen did was wrong, on so many levels. Obviously, I'm against her ideas. But, I am willing to wait until you are ready. I've made no secret about my feelings for you, Kiyo. I love you. I already loves those kids downstairs. When I say you are mine, I mean that in a...fundemental sort of way. You are mine like I'm not going to give you up without a fight sort of way. I made a mistake by letting Noreen even get near you all those years ago."

Sorin yawned. He wiggled off the bed and climbed out of his robes. Beneath, he only wore his boxers. Once the robe was tossed over a chair, Sorin fell back onto the bed. "Eat, Kiyo, and sleep. You are more then welcome in my bed. And I can assure you that you'd be safe, for now. I'm going to sleep like the dead. That little stunt outside wore me out and I didn't sleep last night. Love you, Kiyo," he said before dropping into sleep.

[Maira]

Kiyo wasn't finished talking with the vampire but when all of a sudden the other man was sound asleep he didn't really have any choice in the matter. He would just wait until they were both rested to continue the conversation. So, since his conversation partner was incapacitated and his own stomach was still growling loudly at him, Kiyo took his plate of pancakes and let himself out of the master suite. As comfortable as that bed looked, and as warm as a fire-gifted vampire likely would be to snuggle with, Kiyo was by no means ready to crawl in bed with another man. Possibly if it had just been a friend and not somebody that had just professed his love for him it would have been different. Hell, if it had been the old Sorin that only liked him for his body it may have been okay. But he couldn't in good conscience crawl in bed with somebody who claimed to love him when he wasn't even legally divorced yet.

Man did that though sting. Divorce. With a shudder, Kiyo stuffed a pancake in his mouth and made his way down the second floor hallway to the room that he'd found the twins in only an hour or so prior. He set his plate down on the bedside table then crashed onto the bed that smelled so sweetly of his children. Their scent had him drifting off into dreamland a happy and content man.

*****

With his final signature on the last line flagged with one of those little sticky indicator flags, Kiyo ended his marriage to Noreen. In their divorce settlement he was only a little surprised when she said she wanted nothing from him, not even their children. She was even crazy enough to sign over her parental rights so that if somewhere down the road somebody came into their lives that wanted to adopt them she wouldn't have to be bothered with it then... He had a feeling she did it more so that all her ties to her failed experiment on controlling werecreatures would be severed.

Not even wanting to wait until the ink was dry on the paper, Noreen got up and left the room that had for the past two hours held her, Kiyo, and both of their lawyers. She hadn't even wanted to say goodbye to the children so they were at home with Riko watching them. Kiyo sighed half in frustration and half in relief to see Noreen's back. He hoped it'd be the last of her he'd ever see.

Looking down at his hand that still held the pen, Kiyo realized there was one last thing to make the divorce official to him. It was already official on paper, but the ring that was strangely still on his finger needed to go. Setting the pen down on top of the paperwork, Kiyo wiggled the ring he'd so happily worn up until recently off of his finger and left it sitting on the paperwork as well before he too got up and left the lawyers alone in the room.

Sorin was waiting for him in the lobby of the law office and while he couldn't jump up and down with joy when he saw the vampire, he did manage a small smile as he told him, "Its over. We're free of her. She even signed over her parental rights to Kayli and Nolan so we never have to worry about her interfering in their lives again either."

He truly was relieved to finally have everything over with so he could move on with his life. Now he just needed to figure out where he was going to live as they had sold the house they'd bout together to pay for the divorce. Kiyo wouldn't touch any of his family money to pay for anything having to do with Noreen ever again, he'd wasted enough money on her already.

[Demeter]

Sorin grinned at Noreen as she walked past. He chuckled when she practically went bone white and ran out of the law office. Yes, his threat was holding tight. It was a good feeling. He stood when Kiyo exited the lawyer's office. He fell into step beside Kiyo, easily falling into pace beside the man. "So, all done?"

When Kiyo nodded, Sorin fought to keep the grin off his face. So, the way was free and, well not clear, but clearer now. He knew the worries on Kiyo's mind. He'd gotten the man to share that much in the sparse weeks between now and the confrontation between him and Noreen. "Now, you just need to find a new place to live. And you have one, if you want it."

When Kiyo came to a screeching halt, Sorin gave him a rare, shy smile. When he'd asked Sanura to move it, it had been because of Amirah and that had been easy. Kiyo had the means to raise the twins on his own. And Sorin had nothing binding him to those children. Yet. Asking Kiyo to move it when the only thing between them was the knowledge that Sorin wanted the Leopard was something else completely. "I've got the room for you and the twins to move in. Amirah would love to the twins around all the time. You wouldn't be a bother to anyone. You'd have the space to run in the woods behind the house and I'd always be available as a baby sitter. And there's my garage. You'd have free reign in the garage. I've got a new truck that needs to be restored. And I haven't let anyone finish the Shelby. The Vanquish is in need of a tune up. So, what do you say?"

[Maira]

Sorin was insane. That had to be the only explination for his offer. The man already had Sanura and their daughter living with him so why on earth would he want Kiyo and the twins to move in and intrude on the family they already had? It wasn't like Sorin and 'Nura would ever get married, she refused and they just weren't -that- compatible according to both of them, but the moment Amirah came along they became a family. Sure the little girl would love having two live-in playmates but somehow Kiyo didn't think Sorin realized just how much of a handful twins could be, let alone the virtual triplets the three of them would become if living together.

Still, as insane as Sorin seemingly was, the idea did have its advantages and playing in Sorin's garage wasn't even the highest on the list (though it -was- in the top 5). Nolan and Kaylie would benifit from having a female figure in their lives, since Noreen had signed away her maternal duties, and honestly Kiyo couldn't think of anybody better than Sanura except for maybe his sister Saiyuri but she already had her own brood. He'd already seen Sanura with the twins and he found him seriously kicking himself that -she- wasn't the one that had given birth to them. In the few weeks that they'd been living with Sorin and Sanura already, to keep away from Noreen, the cheetah had already made a habit of taking all three children to the grocery store because she liked getting asked about her "triplets". Already the twins were more affectionate with Sanura than they had been with Noreen, and they were finally starting to act like Pard children rather than the shy, quiet, little mice that Noreen had been turning them into. In fact, just that morning Kiyo had been rough housing with the twins (a new favorite activity) and out of instinct when getting pinned Nolan had latched onto Kiyo's arm and his sharp little canine teeth had actually broken the skin. Nolan had been a mess when he'd seen the blood on his daddy but Kiyo had been beaming with pride. That's how Pard children were -supposed- to act after all.

After thinking for only long enough to exit the law office and reach Sorin's car, the vampire had driven on account of Kiyo's already shot nerves, Kiyo answered, "I'll take you up on the offer with a few conditions." Looking at Sorin over the top of his car Kiyo tried not to smile at the slightly confused look on the vampire's face, he only partially failed. A half smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth he explained, "First, Nolan and Kaylie have as much say in this as I do and we won't stay if they're not comfortable." As the twins already helped Amirah run the household, he knew that wouldn't be an issue at all. "Second, Sanura and Amirah have to agree to us staying as well. Its their home and I don't want to intrude." Kiyo didn't really think this would be an issue either but he had to put it out there anyway.

The last condition was going to possibly be a deal breaker as it was really a bunch of stuff lumped into one. With his smirk turning into a slight grimace, Kiyo finished, "And last, you need to be patient with me. I'm not an easy guy to live with on more than just a temporary basis. I want to resume my activity in the Pard now that I'm free to do so and that means monthly gatherings, hunts, teaching the children certain things. I think Kaylie will benefit from having a magic user in the house but if you don't know about dreamwalking I'm going to have to find her a mentor and you need to be okay with that and supportive. I would actually love it if you took an active role in helping both of them explore their magical heritage but if that's asking too much and you can't, or won't, that's fine too."

Strangely enough, Kiyo found himself desperately wanting to beg Sorin to take an interest in the children's magical teaching. He was loathe to trust anybody else with his kids and he now knew firsthand that Sorin was extremely powerful and with that power likely came knowledge. Who would be a better teacher than an ancient?

[Demeter]

Sorin's left eyebrow winged upwords at Kiyo's third condition. The first two were a given. He'd already question Sanura on the possibility. She'd said if it kept the idiot man from getting snared by a Noreen Clone, she was all for it. It was the third request that surprised Sorin. He leaned on the Vanquish's roof and stared at the man. "Kiyo, I've waited for years for you. I'm over two thousand years old. I am a very patient man. It hit me somewhere around the first millenia mark. Being patient and waiting for something makes everything better when you finally get what you wanted. Get in the car, Kiyo."

Once they were on their way back to the house, Sorin brought up the subject of magical training. "I have no knowledge in the art of Dreamwalking. I'm more based on healing and summonings. I can handle the basics, when they are old enough to managed the basics. For now, we simply teach right and wrong, much like one teaches a child not to go with strangers or cross the street without looking both ways. I'm training my nephew, Mihail, at the moment, so you, and the children, are welcome to sit in. If you don't mind ducking the occasional flaming arrow. Mihail has control issues and his father is more vampire then magic user by now."

He pulled up the house. "Talk to Nolan and Kaylie, Kiyo. And I don't mind Pard activities. You'll have to put up with vampire and magic user habits."

[Maira]

When Sorin didn't shoot down his conditions, Kiyo was able to relax a bit. He still needed to actually talk with Kaylie and Nolan, even though he knew what their answers would be. And he wanted to make sure for himself that Sanura was okay with the idea.

Once the car was parked, Kiyo asked, "So, umm, since we both know that this means we're likely going to be staying here, where exactly do you want us? The kids sleep with Amirah most nights but should probably actually have their own room. And then there's me, I've just been sleeping in the room with the kids but I'd rather not make that a permanant thing."

Maybe Sanura would be the better one to figure out the logistics of where everybody slept but it -was- Sorin's house. If the man wanted to put it onto Sanura's shoulders he could but Kiyo didn't want to leave the man out of the loop entirely.

[Demeter]

Sorin blinked. He idly wondered if the man thought he didn't have enough room. He pointed at Kiyo. "You can stay in the room I put you in that first night. There are two other rooms on the floor Amirah and 'Nura share. Kaylie and Nolan can have those and they can have free reign in decorating them. 'Nura will probably be back from the store soon. She's taken to going every week now. She actually asked me why I hadn't knocked her up with triplets. I replied that I hadn't been trying to knock her up at all and then she swatted me and said I should have been trying to knock her up with triplets. And she's been looking at me lately. I'm scared that I'm going to find the brocher for a sperm donor center in my bathroom one of these days," Sorin shook his heads. He tossed his keys from hand to hand while walking towards the house.

Once inside, he climbed up to his tower room to assemble the charms he wanted to make for the twins. Protective, he thought, instead of restrictive. They were untrusting of magic. He hoped that once he showed them that it couldn't hurt, they'd warm to the idea of exploring that area of their heritage. Mihail and Amirah would be a help in that. Mihail found it strange that they were afraid of magic. Of course, Mihail was a scamp who drove both father and uncle up the wall.

Once the Sanura and children had returned home, and the new living arrangements had been discussed to death, Sorin took the twins aside and dangled the charms before them. They both gave him a wary glare. He set the charms aside and sat on the floor next to the twins. "What Noreen did was wrong. I can promise you that you'd come to no harm by my hands." He called Amirah to him, grinning when she plopped herself down in his lap. He asked her to show Nolan and Kaylie her necklace. She pulled out the charm from beneath her shirt and showed off the pretty crystal her daddy have given her. She told them all about how it protected her from bad things.

Amirah still perched on his crossed legs, Sorin offered the charms to the twins again and said that when they were ready for them, the charms would be waiting. All they had to do was ask. The first step, he thought, to teaching these two the basics of magic, they first needed to accept it. They may have been three years old but that didn't mean they had to be told what to do.

[Maira]

Kiyo found it very very difficult not to fall over laughing at Sorin's predicament with Sanura. He had noticed how maternal Sanura was with all of the children, not just her own daughter, and he had actually wondered himself if Amirah had been planned or an accident. Apparently Sorin considered her an accident but Kiyo just didn't think Sanura thought of her the same way. She had always been maternal, even with the Pard's youngsters and had always talked about how she'd love to have a large family of her own what with being an only child herself and all.

Once the pair was inside, Kiyo waited until Sorin was out of sight before he started laughing and then went in search of his offspring and their self-appointed caretaker. When he found Sanura and the children, Kiyo's laughing at Sorin turned into a small fit of hysteria. Amirah was shoving a big ball up Sanura's shirt and asking, "Mommy, we want a baby brother for Nolan to play with, can you have another baby now?" Sanura didn't even glare at Kiyo when she heard him laughing at the youngster's question, instead she just eyed him contemplatively. That stopped Kiyo's laughter almost dead, only a few chuckles continuing to escape him as he asked, "So, does that look mean you want us to stay?"

A flash of something more animal came into Sanura's eyes as she answered, "Its been heaven having the children here Kiyo and being able to keep you around wouldn't be so bad either." Then the glimpse he'd caught of Nemesis as she'd made her opinion known faded and only the human part of Sanura answered, "I'm guessing you've already discussed this with Sorin so, unless you really want to go today, we'll get your guys' stuff out of storage tomorrow and get everybody settled in." Then the cheetah turned back to the quasi-triplets and answered, "You'll get a baby brother or sister someday my sweethearts, just not today okay?" Kaylie and Amirah smiled and nodded, Nolan sighed and mumbled something along the lines of, "But a brother would play cars with me instead of dolls."

Walking back out of the sunroom-turned-playroom, Kiyo just shook his head. Apparently Sorin wasn't the only one being contemplated for sperm donation to Sanura's need for more children. At least the idea of sleeping with Sanura didn't totally freak Kiyo out like Sorin's declarations of lust did. How on earth that man thought Kiyo would ever switch "teams" when it came to his choice of bed partners was totally beyond Kiyo.

*****

Shortly after Kiyo found her in the sunroom with the children, Sanura tracked down the leopard. He was moving the few things he had with him to the room he'd been in the first night he'd been free of Noreen's charm. "So, you're leaving me with the monsters huh?" she asked as she leaned against the door jam.

Kiyo looked up from the dresser he was currently shoving clothes into and nodded. "I didn't figure you'd mind considering the scene I just saw in the kitchen." Kiyo smiled when Sanura laughed and then contiued, "Now, Sorin said something about each of the twins having their own room? If you plan on having more kids in the near future you should probably save at least one room as a nursery right?"

Sanura smiled and glided into the room, her hips swaying just a little more than her normal walk, "My bedroom has its own 'den' connected to it that served as Amirah's nursery and it can do the same for any future munchkins so no need to save a room for the nursery. And whenever a new baby is ready for their own room there is still the third floor and two more bedrooms down here. Likely the older children can be moved easier than having a toddler on a separate floor from me."

The way she was talking made Kiyo wonder just how man children she planned on having... Wisely he didn't ask her about her plans but just contiued to chat with her about which of his twins was getting which of the rooms upstairs. Finally it was decided that Kaylie could have the room that was right next to Amirah's and that Nolan would have the one at the end of the hall that the twins had stayed in with Riko that first night. It had a higher ceiling and would be perfect for the bunkbeds that Nolan had always wanted. The room right next to Amirah's had a windowseat that Kaylie would likely pile high with stuffed animals and then snuggle up on herself.

*****

It was almost dinner time, Sanura and Kiyo were in the kitchen and the children were coloring at the table in the breakfast nook when Sorin finally came down from his tower room. Kiyo watched as Sorin pulled the twins just out of hearing range, then Amirah went too. He nearly followed to see what the man was up to but Sanura put a hand gently on his arm. He knew he should trust Sorin, he -did- trust Sorin, but Kiyo just had a feeling about what Sorin wanted to talk to the children about and it made his skin twitch.

Though he couldn't hear what Sorin was saying, he could see the man and the children and when he held up two necklaces with crystals dangling from them he couldn't help but bristle. Even when Amirah, now snuggled in her father's lap, pulled a similar necklace out from under her own shirt Kiyo wasn't able to settle down. This time Sanura had to actually grab hold of Kiyo's arm and growl at him under her breath, "Quit being an idiot, they're protective charms nothing more." Then she pulled out her own charm and dangled it for him to see.

Kiyo still didn't feel much better knowing that Sanura too had a charm because to him, right now, magic was magic. Sure he wanted Sorin to teach the children about magic but it wasn't the same as actually having it used on them. He knew it was something he was going to have to work on later, but for now Kiyo just stuffed his issues away and smiled when the children ran back to him. Luckily they didn't know to what extent their mother had betrayed them with her own magic but they did know that magic could be scary because they had been in the same room as him when Riko had broken Noreen's charm that kept him restricted into his human form. He noticed that they didn't have any strange strings around their necks and his tension eased just a bit. At least Sorin hadn't forced the charms on them, for that Kiyo was very grateful.

[Demeter]

Sorin peered around the corner before scurrying down to his bedroom. Here he was, a grown man of more then two thousand years, forced to scuttle around his own home like a fugitive. All because that damned Cheetah had gotten it into her head that she wanted more children but couldn't decide between him or Kiyo for her first donation. Why she even supposed that he wanted to father more children was beyond him. Oh, he loved Amirah more then anything else and the twins were growing on him but really, how was he supposed to donate when all he had on his mind was Kiyo?

Sorin hurried into his room before Sanura could pounce on him and leaned against the closed door. After flicking the lock, Sorin hauled his shirt off. He had plans with Costica to go out and do the vampire thing tonight. He didn't bother to glance at the mirror. Sorin was always perfect and the twins charms, along with one he'd crafted for Kiyo were wrapped around his own neck. The delicate flower carved from Amber and strung on a black string was for Kaylie when she wanted it. For Nolan and Kiyo, he'd crafted a arrowhead and a sun, respectively, from obsidion. Amirah had a star and Nura a cat's face made from the same hunk of Amber as Kaylie.

After changing his clothes, Sorin slunk back into the hallway and ran smack dab into Kiyo. He heard Sanura coming up the stairs. Whenever she saw them together, a very strange look would come into her eyes. Squeaking, Sorin yanked Kiyo back into his room and plastered himself against the door. He knew that Kiyo didn't quiet understand his fear of the baby-mad Sanura but Kiyo was daddy material. Sorin could handle accidental daddy material. He was a master at being an uncle.

He looked across at Kiyo, who stood by the bed, tapping his foot. The man had been living in his home for six months but he hadn't made much progress. He'd question's Kiyo's older sister's ex-husband's lover on how he'd gotten Dominic to cave. Lysander simply said that he'd been annoyingly persistant. He'd tried that. It seemed that Kiyo was better at ignoring him then Dominic had been with Lysander.

"What?" he asked when Kiyo raised an eyebrow at him. "She freaks me out right now." He glanced at Kiyo. "Have you ever seen her when we are in the same room together and near each other? I get the feeling that she wouldn't mind watching us and then joining in." He grinned when Kiyo squawked. Sorin made his escape by using the balconey attached to his room. He easily leapted over the waist high railing and drifted down to the floor. He could only imagine the look on Sanura's face when she heard the Vanquish roar out of the driveway.

[Maira]

Kiyo found it quite funny how poor Sorin was scared of Sanura. Apparently somebody had neglected to mention that all female werekitties got this way after their first child. It was nature's way of making sure there were enough of them to carry on the species and was why so many werefeline families had at least three or four children. If Sorin was lucky Sanura's baby fever would subside after only two since she was also caring for two others which would make four total.

Of course, the same could be said about Kiyo's luck since the woman was eyeing him almost as intently as she eyed Sorin. And though it made him sputter at the thought, Kiyo too had wondered why Sanura looked at both of them when they were together the way she did. Of course, his theory had been she would want both of them at once giving her twice the chance to get pregnant again. In his theory, him and Sorin being involved had never factored in really, the most 'involved' they'd get in his theory was being in the same bed naked. Even that sorta made his skin crawl. Gods forbid that they touched while naked, Kiyo would probably freak and turn cat right there in the bed.... Fur was as good as clothes when it came to protecting him from Sorin's wandering eyes and hands right?

When Sorin went flying out of his own bedroom window, Kiyo glared after him. When he heard the roar of the Vanquish's engine (freshly tuned) go tearing out of the driveway and heard right outside the bedroom door a very angry growl, Kiyo smirked. Opening the door, Kiyo asked, "What's wrong Nura sweety, did Sorin escape?"

Surprised to find Kiyo in Sorin's bedroom of all places, the cheetah eyed him for a moment before answering. "It appears he has, but you'll do I suppose. I was just wanting to know how long the two of you are planning on going on vacation? If you're going to be gone more than a week I won't have to buy as many groceries. If you're not then I'll just shop like normal when I go in the morning."

Now it was Kiyo's turn to eye Sanura. Vacation? Huh? Since when was he going on vacation? "Umm, well that is definitely something you'd have to ask Sorin because honestly I had no idea about a vacation." Though he fully intended on grilling the man whenever he got home that night. Of course that meant he'd have to actually sleep in Sorin's room (on the chaise, NOT in the bed) until he got back because there was no way in hell after the day he'd had at his shop that he'd be able to stay up past 10pm and whenever Sorin went out with his brother it was -always- a very late night.

Kiyo watched as Sanura walked away muttering to herself about how inconsiderate men could be at times then he followed at what he figured was a safe distance. It was, after all, time to get the kiddos bathed and ready for bed and since Sorin wasn't here to to his routine with Amirah, Kiyo was going to just throw her in the tub with Kaylie and Nolan.

*****

Gods only knew what time it was when the vampire returned home. Kiyo didn't even wake when Sorin came back into his room the same way he'd left it. He'd pulled the spare blanket off the foot of Sorin's bed and was wrapped up in it on the chaise, in a deep sleep and snoring very lightly.

[Demeter]

Sorin tumbled into his room when his foot caught on the window frame. He really had to get around to adding a door to his balconey instead of a window. He remained to sprawled for a moment to see if Sanura would come pouncing out of the shadows. Seeing as it was nearing three in the morning, he was pretty sure that she was snuggled into her own bed. Sorin picked himself up off the floor and switched on a floor lamp and grinned when he saw Kiyo nearly falling off the chaise. Silly feline, he thought as he picked up Kiyo and set him on the bed.

After tucking Kiyo into bed, Sorin wandered into his bathroom to scrape whatever he'd picked up while trolling around with Costica off. He still needed to figure out how to kidnap Kiyo to a isolated tropical island in the middle of no where. For a month. The man was the dictionary defination of stressed. He figured that both Kiyo and Guardian would love to sprawl on sun heated sand for hours on end and not do anything.

Sanura knew and she didn't seem to mind. It put a kink the baby plans for her but a stressed Kiyo was no good for baby making. And Sorin would get away from being stalked for a while. And he used to think that his students were persistant.

Wearing only a baggy pair of pyjama bottoms, Sorin crawled into his bed. He envied Costica right now. The man was probably wrapped around his lovely Custos. Sorin's man was on the other side of the bed and drooling. Sighing, Sorin dropped into sleep.

[Maira]

He had figured that Sorin coming back in the room would have woken him but when sunlight shining through the window eventually brought him out of dreamland, it took Kiyo a moment to realize that he'd been moved. When he'd fallen asleep he'd been on the chaise which was hard and too short for him, and just not overly comfortable for long periods of time. Considering he was now laying on something soft and squishy and plenty roomy for his long frame, Kiyo knew immediately that somehow he'd wound up in Sorin's bed.

What took him a little longer to realize was that the very warm something he was snuggling with wasn't a pile of blankets... He nearly fell off the bed as he jumped back away from the vampire. The only thing that saved him from falling off the bed backwards and landing on his head was the fact that not only was he snuggled with Sorin, but he was tangled in the blanket he'd covered up with the night before.

Once he was able to calm down enough to untangle himself from the blankets, Kiyo quickly climbed out of Sorin's bed and hurried out of the man's room. He had just reached the second floor when Sanura came out of her room and she looked at him funny before asking, "Did you sleep in his room all night Kiyo?" The leopard grumbled and muttered back, "Fell asleep on the chaise, woke up in his bed practically wrapped around him thanks to Guardian's love of being warm when he sleeps." Sanura just giggled and slipped her arm around his waist as they walked downstairs to the kitchen. They both needed coffee and if the coffee pot was actually cooperating the timer would have it just about ready.

[Demeter]

Sorin lolled around a patch of hot sand. After the fight it had been to even get Kiyo on the plane, he deserved lolling. He'd literally had to drag the man onto the private plane. It was only after he'd assured Kiyo that both Riko and Sanura were taking care of the children and that Ceasar was guarding all of them, had the man relaxed. Even though, he had barely relaxed. Even now, he was in the cabin, calling home to make sure that everyone was okay. Sorin rolled his eyes.

Without standing up, Sorin wiggled out of his clothing. He wanted to be closer to the heat. By the end of this month long break, he'd probably bury himself in the sand several times. Dressed in a pair of red speedos, Sorin groaned in pleasure. He loved being in warm places.

He tilted his head back and watched as Kiyo exited the cabin. He waved a hand at Kiyo. "You should relax more, Kiyo. Come on, the sand is nice and warm."

[Maira]

How Sorin had managed to convince him that a month away from his children, after everything Noreen had put them all through, was a good thing Kiyo just wasn't sure. He was still a bit hazy about the plane ride, he'd been a nervous wreck the whole time and it had gone by in a blur. Once they'd arrived at their destination, a cabin on some beach somewhere (Sorin refused to tell him where exactly) the vampire had dropped his bags in the one bedroom and had immediately bolted for the beach leaving Kiyo to call home for the third time, to make sure the kids, his sister, and Sanura were doing alright without them.

When Riko threatened to have his cell phone number blocked from calling, Kiyo had finally relented and had hung up the phone. He wasn't happy about the situation but she hadn't needed to be so harsh!

Instead of immediately going out to the beach where he knew Sorin was, Kiyo had taken the time to put away both of their clothes from their bags. He hung the few things he knew needed hanging and stashed the rest of the stuff in the two dressers in the room. Once he was done, Kiyo looked around the room for the first time really, and sighed with relief when he saw there were two full size beds. At least Sorin had been considerate enough to get a cabin with two beds.

Finally, when he just couldn't delay the enevitable anymore, Kiyo changed into his swim trunks and headed out the back door to the beach. He didn't even bother with flip-flops as he had always loved the feel fo sand between his toes. With his first steps onto the sun-warmed sand Kiyo purred in pure pleasure, he'd forgotten just how good something as simple as warm sand could make a guy feel.

At the wave, and the words, from a lump in the sand Kiyo smiled and walked toward his friend. "I know Sorin, you keep telling me this. As for the sand, I'd already noticed." Once he reached the lump in the sand that was Sorin, Kiyo plopped down next to the older man and said, "Don't let this go to your head or anything, but this may actually have been a good idea."

[Demeter]

Sorin merely raised an eyebrow. "See, I have my uses," he said before closing his eyes and rolling onto his back. "I'm to pale, he muttered. He'd skipped any sort of sunblock and hoped that by wearing nothing by the pair of skimpy swim trunks, he'd avoid tanlines. He also wondered if Kiyo had noticed what he was wearing.

Given that the man had managed some stuttering, awkward crab-scuttle, he hadn't noticed. Sorin sighed and propped himself up on his elbows. "You, me, and a private stretch of beach for a month. Just think of the mischief we could get up to, Kiyo. Ever make love on a beach, with waves crashing over your heated body at sunset, Kiyo? If you haven't, I'd love to show you the proper way to do it."

When the man squeaked, Sorin sank back into the sand with a smile on his face. Having completed his daily dose of teasing Kiyo, he could consentrate on his tan lines. He waved a hand at the leopard. "But not right now. I'm too pale."

[Maira]

As a matter of fact, Kiyo had been trying to ignore the skimpy swimwear of his friend. When the older man started asking him awkward questions about making love on a beach at sunset, and then offered to show him how good it was, the man about bolted for the scattered palm trees he saw a ways down the beach. The leopard inside of him though, was perfectly content to continue lolling in the sun on the nice warm sand.

At Sorin's last comment before getting lost to his sunbathing, Kiyo actually managed to laugh rather that look for a way out. He stood up and even managed to respond, "Fine, you work on your tan I'm just going to go for a run naked on the beach." Before the vampire could turn around to look, Kiyo slipped out of his swim trunks and tossed them on the man's head. Before Sorin could remove them, Kiyo had donned his spotted fur and was racing off down the beach.

*****

By the time the feline returned to their cabin, after an extensive scouting mission around their vacation property to make sure it was safe and secure, both Guardian and Kiyo were famished. Hoping desperately for something to eat Guardian trotted up to the cabin and let his counterpart once again take over their body. Naked, standing on the back porch, Kiyo went to open the back door and grumbled when he found it locked. "What in the hell?!"

Looking around for a peeping Sorin, Kiyo muttered as he walked around to one of the low-hung windows and shoved the screen open before climbing in. "Damn obnoxious vampire," he was muttering quietly to himself as he padded softly to the bedroom. He may have been starving but first he needed clothes. He was sure the vampire had absconded with the shorts he'd thrown at him, and was rather sure they'd never be returned, so Kiyo didn't even bother looking for them. Instead he dug out a lightweight pair of linen pants from the dresser holding his clothes and pulled them on. They weren't his normal style, Sorin had actually bought them for him specifically for this vacation, but he had to admit they were quite comfortable as he left the bedroom and aimed for the kitchen. He was just rummaging through the refridgerator when he heard a noise behind him.