A.N. Firstly, I know I promised to update OTE first, but I was in a M&MV mood. I didn’t proof read this, as always I was lazy…

On this note, I would like to warn you that this chapter may not make sense after a certain point if you haven’t read COA. In this case, feel free to tell me this in a review, with a mail attached and I will send you the complete synopsis if you so desire.

Also, this is probably the last chapter of M&MV. It’s cliffie-ish, but never fear, it’ll continue in OTE.

PLS REVIEW, tell me what you think! Very important 4 me!

And as always, lots of hugs for everyone who read and reviewed M&MV! I love you all!

Disclaimer: All the rights to the song Rubber Room belong to Chris Angel etc etc. Don’t sue me!

Chapter 32

A few months later…

Keenan watched the crowd surreptitiously, careful not to lose track of his pet. “Are sure about this, Cassandra?” He glanced towards the female vampire, now sitting by his side, examining her nails.

“Oh, calm down, Keenan!” She said, as she lifted her eyes to look at him. “You know this must be done. You can’t hunt for him forever!”

“But he’s only a fledgling!” Keenan protested.

Cassandra scowled at him fiercely. “I know he’s only a fledgling, Keenan. I sired him, remember?”

“Of course I remember.” Keenan gritted out. “I just wish you took your responsibilities more seriously.”

Keenan knew he’d crossed the line a second before Cassandra’s hand hit his face in a powerful slap. “Don’t you dare tell me I don’t know how to take care of Eric! For your information, tonight is necessary, because he needs to learn how to feed and hunt by himself. And if anything goes wrong, well, that’s why we’re here.”

The brunet gave her a dark look. “Yeah, but it still doesn’t make me feel any better.”

At this, the red head just chuckled. “You’re just jealous of whoever lucky person our little fledging will bite tonight.”

Keenan growled at the female vampire, even if he knew she was right. He was indeed, very possessive of his pet. He never missed the appraising looks Eric got whenever they walked into a public place. Even now, as his graceful silhouette moved sensually on the dance floor, Keenan knew that there were several humans watching the blonde, no, stalking him, lust burning in their veins. His pet was just too beautiful for his own good.

Luckily, Eric had been an extremely capable student of vampirism. Between Cassandra and him, the blonde had learned to control his abilities at least to some extent, although he still had a long way to go in order to fully master them. His shields still weren’t powerful enough, especially since the transformation had multiplied his psychic abilities several times over.

This was why Keenan had gifted a special wardrobe to his pet. There seemed to be a general tendency among humans to grab Eric’s arm or neck, or attempt any sort of skin contact – which, of course, caused the blonde to see into their heads, a most unpleasant reaction. Therefore, Eric was now wearing long leather gloves covering his hands and a tight leather suit, matching Keenan’s, with the difference that Eric’s was cut open in several strategic places , where the material was transparent and of course, the fact that it was electric green.

The clothing hadn’t actually been meant for seduction of prey, well not from his point of view. Knowing how much Keenan liked his pet’s body, Lucca had proposed most of the designs. Being that he was an incubus, he’d managed to create the perfect clothes that emphasized Eric’s best features. The electric green matched Eric’s emerald eyes and made him look inhumanly beautiful; and this was, of course, was an adequate expression, since Eric wasn’t human anymore.

It was so tempting, the way Eric embraced the music, the way he flipped his hair and extended his hands, as if attempting to catch the colors of the lights illuminating the club.

We’ll come into my rubber room.

You hear me coming

I’m getting; closer

I want inside you

I want to enter you

You feel me pushin’

Pushin’, pushin’

The push and pulling

You feel me stretching you

I want to enter you

I will caress you

I will obsess you

I will possess you

I will enter you…

Keenan inwardly groaned as Eric moved his pelvis in tone with the music, imitating the pushing and pulling. He suddenly wanted to hunt down Chris Angel for writing that blasted song. The way Eric followed the song drove him crazy with lust.

Obviously, Keenan wasn’t the only one who had this reaction to the blonde’s dancing. The siren’s call that the young vampire was practically broadcasting made several humans step forward, swallowing Eric’s frame with their own.

Keenan gritted his teeth in annoyance as one of the humans approached his pet from behind, while the other pulled him close from the front. Eric just smiled at the human, never stopping the sensual motions of his body.

The dark-haired vampire wanted to go rip the stupid humans to pieces, prevent them from laying a finger on his pet. Luckily – or unluckily – Cassandra stopped him just in time.

“Oh, stop your fretting, Keenan! He’ll be fine, you’ll see!” Cassandra told him in a irritated voice, that held an undertone of comfort.

Of course, the female vampire could do next to nothing to calm Keenan down. Keenan was thankful for her help, of course; although in the beginning he’d been totally freaked by the change in attitude, he’d gradually come to the conclusion that the female vampire genuinely cared about her fledgling. Hell, she’d even moved at the von Klein Tower, since according to her, Keenan wasn’t paying enough attention to Eric’s feeding and training.

But, in truth, Cassandra was the one who most spoiled Eric. If the blonde gave her one of those puppy dog eyes looks, it was impossible for her to say no to anything. It had been Eric’s idea to go out in the first place and, of course, he’d managed to blackmail them both into agreeing. His pet was evil!

“I’m not evil, Keenan, just a little manipulative.” Eric’s chuckle ghosted inside his head. “But anyway, Cassandra’s right, Keenan. You know I can handle myself just fine.”

Of course, the older vampire knew this; logically, he knew his pet could take down the two humans if he wanted to. But he was jealous, God damn it! Eric was his and those idiots had no right to touch him!

Keenan took a deep breath struggling for control; it wouldn’t do to kill humans in a public place. No, it would be very bad; and it would defeat the purpose of training Eric into the fine art of vampirism.

Luckily for Keenan’s sanity of mind, the song soon ended. As the last tones echoed through the club, Eric whispered something in the ear of one of the two humans and Keenan grinned as the two men nodded enthusiastically.

The blonde gestured in the direction where Keenan and Cassandra were waiting. As he exited the dance floor, the two men obediently followed.

Cassandra gave the older vampire a telling look, “See? I told you so.”

Keenan glared at the red head. “You do know that has to be the most irritating phrase in existence, right?”

The female vampire just shrugged and resumed analyzing her nails with nonchalance. Well, might as well play along… With that in mind, the vampire returned to his drink and waited for his pet to bring them his prey.

Eric was feeling enthusiastic tonight. The hunt had been successful and the two men had easily fallen prey to his seduction. He inwardly giggled at his own thoughts. A few months ago, he’d never have thought he could ever see the world like this, feel so many things, hear so many distinctive sounds.

He was thankful to Cassandra for having turned him, not only because it had saved his life, but because it had granted him a new vision over the world itself. Every day he saw something new, even in places he’d often frequented in his past as a human. And all he learned and all he felt reflected in his paintings; for the first time in his life, his canvases actually showed bright colors, a symphony of fuchsia, scarlet, amber, jade and aqua. His last painting was a pair of midnight black eyes, framed in ethereal clouds of crimson and sangria.

And those black eyes were watching him now, watching him as he confidently headed towards their table in the VIP section, his victims in tow. Eric knew Keenan was jealous of every touch that the humans had tried and in his heart this made him feel happy. It meant that Eric was important for Keenan. And despite the fact that in the past few months, the blonde had lost most of his insecurities, he still felt the need sometimes to ensure Keenan’s love for him.

Eric smiled at his lover as they got to the table. “I found something nice, Keenan.” He purred in the vampire’s ear as he seated himself in Keenan’s lap.

“Oh?” The vampire arched a brow. “Is that so?”

Eric assented with a nod and gestured for his prey to come forward. A discrete chuckle sounded to their right and Eric arched a brow at the antics of the vampire who had sired him. “Don’t mind me.” Cassandra gave him a look that radiated approval. “I’m off to see to my own… business.”

With that the red head swiftly departed, leaving the two vampires and the two humans alone at the private table. Keenan gestured for them to sit down, “Would you like a drink, gentlemen? To make you feel more comfortable…”

The humans hastily assented. “Yes, please, sir.” The tallest one said.

Gesturing for the service to come to the table, Keenan looked into the human’s eyes. “So, you like Eric, do you now?”

Eric nearly chuckled at the way the human got flustered because of the intensity of Keenan’s gaze. Of course, he wasn’t that much better. Sighing in contentment, the young vampire placed his head on Keenan’s shoulder, allowing his lover to decide whether his prey was good enough for dinner tonight.

“Umm… we were hoping that maybe, we could you know, have some fun tonight?” The man laughed awkwardly.

“Give the man a break, Keenan. “Besides, it’s not his fault I’m so hot.”

The young vampire mentally giggled, while Keenan tightened his hold around his waist. “Looks likes you’re getting a little spoiled, pet. Maybe I should cut the evening short and teach you some manners?”

The words seemed harsh, but the tone of voice was teasing. “If you want to, Keenan, I’ll be happy to oblige.” Eric purred. “But we have to eat first.”

Keenan showed no sign of having heard him, but Eric suddenly found himself feeling the ghost caresses of the older vampire’s astral projection. He gasped, hiding his face in Keenan’s shoulder in embarrassment as the distinct sensation of a finger penetrating his back side nearly made him squeak. “Keenan! Not here!”

The vampire mentally chuckled. “See, pet… Newton’s law of physics: Every action has a reaction.”

Turning to the humans, the brunet smiled seductively. “We’d like that very much. Especially Eric… Isn’t that right, pet?”

At this point, Eric couldn’t manage a coherent answer, as the ghostly fingers played with him. Instead, to his shame, a muffled moan escaped his throat.

“Keenan, please…” He begged shamelessly. God, he suddenly needed to be filled, to feel Keenan’s fangs at his throat, to feed off his lover. The humans were no longer of importance.

Obviously, the vampire picked up on the thought, because the next thing he knew, Eric’s mouth was being ravaged by Keenan’s. The blonde wrapped his arms around Keenan’s neck, surrendering to the pleasure of feeling his senses overwhelmed by his lover.

All of the sudden, a weird melody interrupted their impromptu make out session.

The blonde rolled his eyes at the vampire’s ring tone; it was in times like these that the brunet truly showed his eccentricity. Keenan gave Eric a sheepish look as he picked up the phone. “Wait a minute, pet. Jacob…”

Eric nodded, although he did wonder what Jacob could want from Keenan. He hoped it wasn’t something urgent, because quite honestly, he had other plans.

“Yes, Jacob? What is it?”

“Bad news, Keenan.” The vampire made a face. Of course, he’d expected that, but he still wasn’t happy about it. “The demons are acting up.”

“The demons? What did they do now?”

“Well, apparently word is out about Pierre and Jean Luc’s departure. The demons think they can beat us now and they seem to have attacked several sectors we control. It’s not too bad yet, but I think we should pay them a visit.”

Keenan growled in irritation. “Fucking idiots. Truly, can’t they just crawl away some place and not talk?”

The vampire didn’t like demons very much. With the exception of Giovanni and Lucca, who were strangely nice people, demons were generally very arrogant and tended to act impulsively and cause all sorts of trouble because of that. Normally, that wouldn’t have bothered the vampire; but last time the demons had been left unchecked, they’d caused a nuclear disaster.

“Fine. We’re coming. Where’s the meeting point.”

As Jacob gave Keenan the address for the demon coven, Keenan considered how to tell this to his pet. There was no way he was taking Eric along in such a dangerous situation.

“Forget about it, Keenan! I’m coming!” Eric growled in his head.

The vampire turned around, only to realize Eric had disappeared from the table. He felt a moment of alarm, but scanning the crowd, he realized the young vampire had only gone to look for Cassandra.

Indeed, in mere minutes, Eric reemerged from the crowd, followed by the female vampire. Cassandra stopped by their table and swiftly worked on the minds of Eric’s prey, erasing their memories and sending them along.

“So, what’s the deal with this Keenan? This little vamp won’t tell me a thing.”

“Demons. They’re up to their old tricks again.”

Cassandra arched a brow. “Truly, they are so irritating. I wish they would just go away.”

“My thoughts exactly.” Keenan took Eric’s arm and led both the blonde and Cassandra out and to the Lexus. The New York traffic was busy even at that time of night, but from Jacob’s voice, Keenan didn’t think the demons were causing too much of a problem.

“Pet, you should be staying at the tower.” The vampire said as they got in the car.

The blonde shook his head stubbornly. “No way. I’m coming with you.”

“Eric….”

“Keenan’s right. This isn’t a game.”

“I know it’s not a game! I can help, damn it!”

Keenan gave Cassandra a helpless look. The female vampire looked as stumped as him. When his pet got angry, neither of them knew what to do but relent. “Ok, pet… But you’re staying close to me or to Cassandra at all times.”

Eric nodded happily and gave him a peck on the cheek as the car started navigating through the New York streets.

The meeting place Jacob had described to Keenan was situated in one of the most dangerous parts of Harlem. Eric made a face as they walked through the dirty streets. They’d left the Lexus several blocks back, because apparently it would have attracted too much attention; not only this, but it was most likely that Keenan’s ownership over the vehicle would not have lasted the trip.

However, Eric was not pleased with the result of their abandoning of the car. As they passed through the streets, prostitutes and drug dealers on the side emerged, tempting them or whistling at them. The young vampire inwardly sighed; even if they’d left the car behind, both Keenan and Cassandra radiated old money. And apparently, there were only a limited number of reasons for a rich person would bother to come here.

Naturally, Keenan ignored the humans who were trying to attract his attention. Cassandra just gave them an evil glare and they backed down. “Are you sure you still want to come, pet?” Keenan whispered in his mind.

Eric growled in irritation at his lover, releasing Keenan’s arm in a show of distaste. So Keenan wanted to convince him to go back. “Yes, I’m sure.” He barked back and rejoiced in the vampire’s wince.

Noticing the obvious lovers’ spat, Cassandra promptly intervened. Taking his hand, the red head said. “There now, we’re only worried for you.”

“I know! But I’m not a child!” Eric spoke out loud, so that both older vampires could hear him at the same time.

“We’re well aware of that, pet. But we can’t help it.” Keenan said softly.

Eric glared at the vampire at the obvious attempt to placate him. “Fine. But I’m still going with you.”

Both vampires sighed at the same time, knowing nothing could convince him. Pleased with the outcome, Eric smiled to himself, ignoring the humans that were staring at him.

Sooner than Eric expected, Keenan took a turn on an alley and the young vampire instantly knew they’d arrived. He could see that in the shadows, several silhouettes were waiting and recognized the shifters and the incubi, who’d obviously assembled to raid the demon coven as well.

The young vampire suppressed the feeling of regret that appeared every time he saw the members of the council together. There were people missing there, and it bothered him immensely. Despite the fact that most members of the Council, including Cassandra and Keenan, resented Jean Luc for his deception, Eric still couldn’t find it in his heart to hate the Sidhe. In fact, there was something that told him that Jean Luc was in trouble, and he didn’t know why that was. He wished he could help somehow, especially since the silver-haired paranormal had saved both Matthew’s and his life. But Jean Luc had disappeared along with Pierre and Giovanni’s inquiries as to his location had been met with silence.

Well, at least Matthew was ok… Slowly, but surely, his friend had come to terms with what had happened in the past. True enough, Aidan had insisted quite a lot to earn this forgiveness, but it had been worth it. They had both left to Japan a week ago, since Aidan had business to attend in his own city.

Eric willed his thoughts away, as his mind strayed to Keenan’s parents. They hadn’t taken too well Cassandra’s decision of having turned him. But right now, it didn’t matter. Right now, they had a job to do.

“Oh, hi guys! Good thing you finally showed!” Giovanni said merrily as Lucca smiled at them.

Elis just nodded his head in greeting and Jacob shook Keenan’s hand. Eric couldn’t help noticing the fact that they were no longer sitting side by side and for some reason, that bothered him as well. Well, it was none of his business anyway.

“Come on, let’s go!” Keenan immediately urged.

Lucca whispered something under his breath and gestured with his hand, as if chanting. Indeed, fire symbols appeared above the door and vanished in a poof of smoke seconds later.

“Hurry!” Lucca urged. “The spell won’t neutralize the wards for long!”

The group hastily followed Lucca’s indications and they moved inside the dark building. Eric wondered where their targets were; it was eerie that even his vampiric hearing couldn’t pick up on a trace. Perhaps he should have gone to the Tower after all. This suddenly seemed out of his league.

Shaking his head at his own uncertainty, Eric silently followed the group as they walked through the darkness. Everybody froze when they heard the distinct sound of a struggle nearby. Elis gestured for them to be quite and they stealthily moved in the direction of the sound.

As they got closer, the young vampire began to distinguish the words uttered by the persons involved. “Stand still, little bitch! I finally caught you, you’re mine!”

Another voice followed the first one. “No! Never yours! Don’t touch me!”

The words sounded strange, not quite right. Eric guessed that the person speaking had to be a foreigner of some sort, because he had a strong accent that modified the shape of the sounds.

But Eric didn’t have time to contemplate this. The sound of the struggle intensified in the room and through the fact that he could hear several curses uttered in rough voices, Eric guessed that the foreigner was fighting against his attacker.

Well, he wouldn’t be alone in the fight. Elis’ and Jacob’s forms blurred as they turned into their animal form. Keenan gestured with his fingers: 1… 2…3… GO!

The Council of the Paranormals of New York burst into the room they’d identified as the scene of the attack. Indeed, as Eric followed Keenan inside, he could see several demons, surrounding a smaller person, who was futilely trying to defend himself with a piece of wood that seemed to be part of a chair. He was dressed in some old rags that didn’t fit his small frame and his hands, face and black hair were dirty. Even so, Eric could easily guess that the stranger was very beautiful.

The demons turned their attention to the new intruders, losing sight of their former prey. They growled menacingly, obviously recognizing the attack for what it was and not bothering with diplomacy. Claws and fangs appeared, fire emerging from their finger tips. Eric dodged a fireball, barely avoiding getting singed. Unfortunately, Keenan wasn’t so lucky, because as he was dispatching a demon, the vampire was hit in his side by another bolt of fire.

Eric’s psychic powers emerged at his anger and the demon who had dared to attack Keenan flew across the room, crashing against the wall with a powerful thud. Objects starting flying around, hurling themselves at the demons. While the vases weren’t perhaps enough to hurt them, they served as distraction for tables, chairs and armoires. Several demons fell under the assault of their own furniture.

As he controlled his telekinesis, Eric took a look around, realizing that all the members of the Council were doing their own damage. The shifters tore into necks and arms and dodged the magic with amazing speed. Cassandra was just slashing into the throat of an enemy, while feasting on the blood of another and Eric was amazed that such a violent action could be graceful. The incubi had manifested their own fire magic, that was apparently just as strong as that of the demons. And Keenan, well, Keenan was doing the most damage and the demons fell in his path like flies. It seemed that the previously received fireball hadn’t even affected him.

It was only a matter of time before the demons would be beaten. Unfortunately, just as Eric thought this, one of the demons roughly shouted, “Stay back! Stay back or I’ll kill him!”

The shout had barely overcome the racket in the room, but nevertheless it had drawn the attention of the fighters. Eric remarked in dismay that the demon had the foreigner in his grip, threatening his neck and at his stomach. “I’ll kill him and his kid, I swear!”

Eric gave Keenan a look of confusion. What kid? He couldn’t see any child around there. Nevertheless, the threat to the foreigner’s well being was real; behind the dirt covering his face, his countenance had gone pasty and he turned midnight black eyes to Eric, giving him a pleading look.

Eric felt his anger flare and suddenly wanted to hurt the demon terribly. At his anger, the demon’s wrists turned into an awkward angle and his hands twisted back with a nauseating crack, thus releasing the dark haired stranger. Instantly, the brunet disappeared from the location, dodging the demons that were still standing at an alarming speed and strategically placing himself at Eric’s side. The blonde blinked in confusion, as the brunet gave him a thankful look. How had the stranger gotten there so fast?

“Clearly, he isn’t human, pet.” Keenan whispered in his mind.

Eric nodded absently and pulled the youth out of the room as the other paranormals finished dealing with the demons.

Immediately, the brunet hugged his neck, whispering slowly. “Thank you much. I was in trouble; they hurt us if not you.”

Eric struggled to understand the brunet’s words, despite the fact that they were practically incoherent. He guessed that the stranger didn’t know English too well, but that was all right. The first urgency was to find out who he actually was and how he had ended up in the demons’ clutches.

He broke away from the hug and looked into the black eyes of the stranger.

“Tell me, what’s your name?” He asked softly.

The brunet tilted his head for a second, as if processing the question. “Name, yes. Know name. Gabriel.”

“Ok, Gabriel, I’m Eric. Now, how did you get here?” The brunet gave him a look of confusion as Eric spoke. “Do you have family, relatives?”

Gabriel gestured for him to speak slower. “Family?” The blonde repeated. “You know, people close to you.”

The brunet’s eyes lit up in understanding before going sad. He nodded his head. “I have my svathean. But I lost him.”

“Svathean? What’s that?”

“It’s the Kaldorian word for mate.” Eric turned to see Lucca exiting the room that had been the scene of the battle. “Isn’t that right, little one? You’re from Kaldor.”

Gabriel nodded, giving the incubus a confused look. “You demon? Why not with them?”

“Long story.” Keenan smiled at the young brunet as he situated himself behind Lucca. “Anyway, I don’t think you want to hear it now. You must be exhausted, especially taking into account your state.”

“His state?” Eric tilted his head.

“Pet, listen. Listen to his body.” Keenan whispered mentally.

Eric turned to the brunet and focused his senses on him. He was still young and hadn’t yet mastered the control over them. Nevertheless, he gasped as he realized something. “Two heartbeats! There are two heartbeats.”

Lucca arched a brow at his shock. “He’s pregnant, Eric. Stop freaking out, ok?”

Eric took a deep breath, trying to grasp how a man could be with a child. Ok, these days it wasn’t impossible… But still…

“So you are going to have a child, huh?” He asked awkwardly.

“Yes, a son.” Gabriel gave him a sad look. The young vampire wondered why that was. Obviously, the brunet wanted the child. Maybe he missed the child’s father? His svathean?

As Eric contemplated this dilemma, another person joined the group in the hallway. Cassandra’s eyes were sparkling as she enthusiastically spoke to the brunet. “Well, anyway… We’ll deal with the details later. Come on, fledgling, you need to rest and eat. A baby needs a lot of food you know.”

As Cassandra took his arm, the brunet let out a sound of panic and anger. He broke out the female vampire’s hold and glared at the woman. “Not touch! Leave me! What you want?” He was even more incoherent as before and obviously in panic, since he’d placed a hand over his stomach protectively.

Cassandra gave Eric a confused look, as if asking what she’d done wrong. The blonde looked at the poor youth, who was obviously looking for exits, panicked at the idea that someone might hurt his son.

“Everything ok out here?”

Jacob and Elis emerged from the doorway, their nude forms covered in blood. Obviously, it was enough for the brunet to decide that they were dangerous, since seconds later, he burst in the direction of the door. Eric wondered how he’d know that the door way had been that way, but he couldn’t waste time with that. Gabriel obviously needed help, but he didn’t trust them with the safety of his son. It was entirely understandable, taking into account the circumstances.

“After him!” Giovanni shouted.

Eric was already following Giovanni’s suggestion, when the shadows of the two shifters in animal form passed him. He felt himself being lifted and recognized Keenan behind him.

“It will be faster if I fly you, pet.”

Eric assented with a nod, since he was well aware that he had not yet mastered all the gifts that came with vampirism. The three vampires launched themselves in the night sky, scanning the streets for the silhouette of the brunet.

Cassandra clucked her tongue in irritation, when all of them failed to detect Gabriel.

“He’s resourceful, I’ll give you that. I can’t see him.”

“Just follow the shifters. It’d be easier, since surely, they have his scent by now.” Keenan proposed.

Indeed, Eric could see that the were cat and the werewolf were hot on the trail of the brunet. The vampires followed them from above, until they reached a little park. The shifters were panting hard, since they’d run at an alarming speed to get here. Obviously, the little brunet was quite fast on his feet.

Just as he thought this, Eric observed a lone figure standing on the ground, looking distinctly ill. “Oh my God! Do you think he’s hurt himself by running so fast?”

“I don’t know, pet… It’s possible.” Keenan answered glumly.

All the paranormals slowly made their way into the park, so as not to startle the young brunet further. Eric was suddenly aware of how this must seem to Gabriel, all of them hunting him, cornering him, like he was prey.

“Wait!” He lifted his hands in a placating gesture to the paranormals. “Let me talk to him for a minute!”

Keenan gave him a reluctant look, but nodded. They stopped and Eric stepped forward by himself. “Gabriel? Gabriel, are you all right?”

The brunet’s eyes snapped towards him, narrowing in suspicion. “Stay back!” He whispered menacingly, rubbing at his temples.

“Gabriel… We only want to help. You’re not in any condition to roam the streets alone. It’s dangerous.” Eric took another step forward.

“No! Stay back!” Gabriel shouted at him; the next thing Eric knew was that something hard hit him across the chest and he flew across the park landing on the ground with a thud.

What the fuck? Keenan cursed, not believing his eyes. He hasted at his pet’s side, carefully checking him for injuries. “I’m fine Keenan. What happened? What hit me?”

“A plant.” Keenan answered, still in a daze. “A huge root.”

“Say again?” Eric arched a brow.

“Apparently our little Kaldorian has some hidden gifts.” Giovanni said from the edge of the park. Obviously, at some point they’d arrived here as well.

Keenan took a look towards the brunet who was still standing alone, facing them. The plants around him were twitching as if with a life of their own. So weird… But it reminded him a lot of Eric and it made him want to protect the brunet.

Well, in this situation there was only one thing he could do. “Cassandra, stay with Eric.” He whispered.

As the red head nodded, the vampire lunged towards the brunet at super human speed. The plants reached for him, but they didn’t have time to catch him; and before they could attack, Keenan was already behind the little brunet and placing his hand on his forehead.

With a sound of protest, the brunet fainted in Keenan’s arms. Immediately, the magic in the plants faded and the herbs fell lifeless – or back into plant life – to the ground.

Giovanni and Lucca advanced to the vampire and took the brunet’s hand. Eric gave them a concerned look. “Will he be all right?”

The incubi sighed. “From what we can tell right now, he’s just exhausted. But we do have to take care of him, make sure. If by any chance something happens to this kid, we’re all going to be in serious trouble. The ancient ones are not someone you want to have angry at you.”

“Are you certain the ancients are involved?”

Lucca nodded. “There is a limited number of races on Kaldor that have males capable of bearing a pregnancy. Obviously, he is not a merman, nor is he a sprite. Ergo, the kid belongs to a demon.”

Keenan rubbed his eyes tiredly. Seriously, was it so much to ask to have a little time for himself? Just him and his pet… A little holiday, somewhere nice, perhaps Europe, the Alps? He sighed, knowing there was no way that would happen any time soon. Last time the ancients had been involved on Earth was commonly known as Cernobyl.

As Keenan cursed his bad luck, Cassandra joined them and knelt on the ground. “Poor thing! Don’t worry, we’ll take care of you…”

She removed a handkerchief from her coat and wiped Gabriel’s face of all the grime. “He really is beautiful, isn’t he?”

Keenan nodded absently, focusing on his pet who seemed entranced by the sight of the Kaldorian’s face. What the hell? I mean, sure, he was pretty, ok, he was gorgeous, but Keenan wasn’t so bad himself, right?

“Keenan?”

“Mmm? What?” He growled.

“Doesn’t he look awfully familiar?”

Keenan looked at the youth again and blinked. “Oh fuck! No way! You have got to be shitting me…”

Eric gave him a sympathetic look. “Well, at least we found Pat’s son.”

Keenan groaned, burying his face in his hands. Nelson’s cousin, pregnant with the kid of an ancient demon… Splendid! His life had just gotten 10 times more complicated.

FINAL A.N.

So what did you think about the new and improved Gabi? REVIEW!