I had been sitting in this club for nearly a half an hour, and no one had approached me yet. I felt a little depressed, usually I've had several dances with several men. No sooner have I thought this, did a man settle across from me. I looked up smiling, taking in his appearance; shaggy brown hair, bright green eyes, slight, yet muscular build. "Hello, my name is Logan."

"Hi, I'm Sarah," I said, biting my lip as I gave the fake name. "And you're . . ."

"Vampyre," he said, flashing me a large smile with pointed teeth. "Is this your first time at Fanged Heart?"

"Uh, I've been here once before. I'm, just human." I smiled, then looked at the clock up on the wall. " Oh, I've been here a while, I should be heading home." I looked nervously at the vampyre, biting my lip again. "Um, you're welcome to come, if you want."

He smiled at me once more, flashing his fangs again. "I'd like that. Let me take care of your tab. Wait here, I'll be right back." He walked up to the bar, gestured to me, and handed over some bills. Then he was back next to me, offering a hand to help me up. I took it, smiling, and let him lift me to my feet. He brought me to his car, since I had taken a taxi. "So, your place or mine?" He asked, after buckling his belt.

"Mine." I winked at him. "That way I can kick you out if I need." We smiled at each other, both understanding the slight joke. I gave him the directions to my house, and we set off. The ride was short and quiet, neither of us speaking. Soon we were parked outside of my house, a quaint little one story.

We stood on the porch awkwardly while I looked for my keys. After I held them up triumphantly, I opened the door, stepping inside with a wry smile. "Please come in."He stepped in with a grin, and I ushered him into my living room. "Wanna watch a movie?" He nodded, and I picked one out randomly, tossing it to him. "This ok?" He nodded and I pushed it in.

I settled next to him in the couch, curling up underneath a cover. A little while later, I rested my head on his shoulder, and then hesitating. He looked down at me. "Don't worry, you can't hurt me. And I don't bite," he winked, "too much." After biting my lip again, I leaned in, kissing his neck softly, then bit. He jumped up, "Hey!"

I locked a small drop of blood from my lip. "You said I couldn't hurt you." I watched in amazement as his wound half healed over. "You're not human."

"You're not either. You said you were human!" He exclaimed.

"Most vampyres don't go parading around as they are!" I yelled back, curling up on my couch. I started slowly scratching at my couch, and would likely put a hole through it if I wasn't distracted soon enough. I had lost a few couches that way, or cushions at least.

"I showed you my fangs! How could you mistake that?" As if I hadn't seen them the first time, he bared them again. I gave him an impish glare, as if telling him that he was an idiot. Which I was, but he didn't really need to know that.

Luke's POV

"It's called inserts! And you don't smell like us." She yelled, twitching her nose.

"Of course not, I'm of royal bloodline." She stared at me, and I stared back, only I was a hell of a lot more amused than she was. She seemed to finally realize what I just said. I could practically see the thoughts running through her head right now. 'He's of royal bloodline? What?'

"What? Wait, wait. Then you must be . . . crap. I just bit the Prince. As if my day couldn't get any better!" She was thinking aloud, and seemingly mentally hitting herself for doing so. But still, she had just bitten the vampyre Prince, her superior in every way; stronger, especially since she was female, I was pure born, not bitten, and going to inherit a whole lot of cash, not to mention power.

"What were you thinking?" I raised an eyebrow at her.

She frowned, "That I was hungry." She closed her eyes against a small spasm of pain, panting a little as she answered next. "And that you smelled deliciously different." She licked her lips in appreciation.

I watched with interest, "How long has it been since you last fed?" I dropped a hand in front of her unseeing eyes.

"Usually three months. How often do you feed?" She flopped her head back on the couch, narrowly missing the armrest.

"Once or twice a week." I replied, wondering why she hadn't fed until now.

"But, you know, this is my fourth month, since I've been running a little behind schedule. Wow, it's almost my fifth month without food . . ." She lifted her hand. "Come here. " I complied, and her hand found its way to my neck, over her bite. I felt a tingling, and her bite mark healed.

As I looked at her in amazement, I saw her hand shaking. "Poor girl." I offered my neck to her. "Drink." She pushed my head away. I growled at her, "Drink." She still refused, so I bit my thumb, smearing it on her bottom lip. Her tongue flicked out automatically , and I offered my neck again. This time, she drank. She thankfully drank eagerly, putting my mind at some rest. It was dangerous to not feed for that long. After she pulled away, she slept.

As I looked at the small girl, I thought she looked uncomfortable there, so I picked her up, carrying her around the house until I found the only bedroom. Now, I had never slept on the floor, and was definitely not about to. I stripped down to my boxers, climbing into bed with the girl, and, after looking at her for a second, pulled off her jeans gently. I soon joined her in the realm of dreams.

-x. be hushed .x-

Sarah's POV

I woke some time later, in the morning. Squinting at the harsh light, I rolled over, curling into something warm and comfy as a pillow. Sniffing a little, I realized that there was someone in my bed. Someone who smelled really, really good. Without thinking, I grabbed the arm that was currently around my waist. After licking a spot on the underside of the wrist, I plunged my teeth in. I soon released them, realizing that I had drunk from this person before. Licked my wound clean, I healed it with an idle touch.

"If you'll excuse me. You didn't have consent that time." I opened my eyes to see a brown haired god in my bed. What was he doing here? Before I could ask him, he leaned forward, nudging my head to the side. I obeyed, still a little confused, then gasped as he bit my neck. My breathing rate increased as he fed from me, and I was short of breath by the time he pulled away. All of a sudden, I felt a pulling on my mind, and then I felt something unusual there. What in the world?

Did she feel that too?

I looked at the male in annoyance. "I am right here, you don't have to act like I'm not. And what are you doing in my room anyway." Ha, I should say she wasn't complaining last night. "I beg your pardon! Again, I am right here, and I don't invite males to my bed."

He looked at me with shock. "You heard that. Oh, no, no, no. Please no." I stared at him with an eyebrow raised in question. Can you hear me?

I scoffed at him, "No, I'm deaf. And I'm a mute." I watched in amusement at his reaction until he punched my wall. "Hey! What the hell was that for? You can't just go around punching my walls!" Idiotic male!

He turned to me with a half smile, "I can do whatever I want in my mate's home."

"What?"

-x. let your tears fall.x-

After an hour of Luke explaining to me what a mate was, and my frantic yelling back that I did, indeed, know what one was, we were now sitting in my living room, staring at the wall. "But . . . how?"

He shrugged, Must have been something we did. Think, what was something that you haven't done before? And stop speaking aloud, I have a headache.

Poor baby, I replied, laughing aloud at him. Well, I usually don't wake up in my bed with an unknown male in my bed. Does that count?

He jumped up, running a hand through his hair in frustration, tugging at it. "Come on, we're going to go see my father." He grabbed my hand and pulled me out the door, sitting astride a motorcycle that wasn't there last night. I paled once he finally let me go.

"Wait, wait. Your father? The king?" I squeaked out, backing away from the bike.

"What did I tell you about speaking aloud? And yes, that father of mine. Now, get on the bike." I glared at him, then took off running down the street. Not a very good idea, seeing as I was barefoot. A rock impale my foot, causing blood to leaking out. Great, now I'm leaving a blood trail for him to follow.

Too late, princess, I've already got you. No sooner had I heard this, then I was tackled to the ground, in the soft comfort of my neighbor's grass. His arms were wrapped tightly around my stomach, to prevent me from getting away. He stood up, hoisting me with him. I smiled and waved at one of my neighbors, to prevent them thinking something odd about the scene before them. They smiled and waved back, muttering something about teens in love. They couldn't be more wrong.

Oh? Don't you love me, my dearest mate?

Shove off! And out of my mind! He ignored me and settled me on his bike, sitting behind me and keeping one arm wrapped firmly around my waist. He took off at insane speeds, and I clutched at his arm. Hey! I think you need both of your hands on the handle bars!

He chuckled at me, What and deprive you of something to hold onto? Nah, I'm good. He gave my waist a slight squeeze, while I squeaked in fear as we rounded a curve. I looked up pleadingly at him, and he sighed, lifting his arm off and setting it on the handlebar. The sensation of air rushing past either side of me was quite frightening, so I shrank back against his chest until there was nothing but cloth separating us. I started shivering from the cold, and I could hear him sigh again, putting his arm back around me.

Hey! I called up to him, in our minds, Put that back on the handle!

You're shivering. I think you need my warmth more than I need both hands on the bars. I felt something briefly touch the top of my head before it pulled away, and I wondered what it was. The rest of the ride was fairly short, mostly consisting of the two of us arguing about where he should put his hands. They're my hands! I'll put there wherever I wish! He said as we pulled past a large iron gate.

I shrank back into him as he passed a large castle. He lived here? Why have I never seen this before? I asked myself as I got off the bike and looked at the front steps and door. He stopped and stared at me, regarding my curiously. I realized that I must have thought something weird to him, but he just shook his head, and pulled me inside the beautiful home.

The halls twisted and turned, confusing me to no end. I knew that I would never make it back to wherever he was taking me, or out, but then again, maybe that was the point. After several minutes of hallways, we stopped in front of a large oak door. Luke took a deep breath, then pushed open the door. An elderly man was sitting on the bed, smiling at the two of us as we entered.

"My son," He said, reaching one hand towards him, and the other to me, "And my son's beloved mate."

Luke stared at his father in shock as I smiled. "How did-"

I interrupted him, "He's your father." Then I saw the twinkle in his eyes and I amended myself, "And he can apparently read minds."

Luke turned to me, exasperated. "And how did you know that?"

His father laughed aloud, a warm sound. "Apparently, she can read people very well. Probably what drew her to you."

"Actually, majesty, we kind've had a question." Ignoring Luke's glare, I continued on. "How do you make someone your mate?"

He stared in question at me, then at his son, "You don't know?"

"Well, you see, your majesty, I don't exactly know who my sire is. I just kind've woke up one day really thirsty after being sick for several days. I had bitten my lip later that day, nervous about something, and the blood that flowed from that eased my thirst some. Then I put two and two together. I figured out that after four months without blood, my eyes would begin turning red, and would be fully red in six. So I ate every three months, with human food in-between to kind've keep my stamina up. That's as much as I know about vampires."

I stopped, blushing at how much I had revealed about me. I saw both the king and Luke staring at me. Quit staring at me, jerk. The king laughed, and I guiltily remembered that he could read minds. "Oh, no, sir, I didn't mean you, by any means. Just your –er –"

"Son? Yes, I hear that from quite a few people." He seemed to be studying something, and, after several intensely silent moments, he relaxed his brow. "So, neither of you know how to create a mate, and you two met each other last night under some . . . . false pretenses."

"It's not my fault! I've never once met a vampire that admits to what he is. I know that I've never done so. And besides, what was the Prince doing at a club? And if you were just there on business, why come and sit by me?"

Because you looked unbelievably gorgeous and terribly lonely sitting there by yourself. He immediately blushed after that and looked away, walking to the window. The King smiled, "My son keeps his sentimental side to himself, but thankfully, you and I can hear it." He took a moment before clearing his throat. "There is no way to undo a binding, so you two are mates for the rest of your immortal lives."

"Come again?" Lucas glanced at me, and answered in his mind, likely because he still had a headache. Come to think of it, I was starting to get one, too. He's saying that there's nothing we can do. We're mates now. And you're probably feeling the results of my headache now. "Wait, I'm feeling your headache?"

The king smiled gently at me, "It is a real shame that your sire didn't stick around to teach you. When two vampyres mate, they share everything. Thoughts, emotions, pain, and themselves. Though you can probably only hear each other's strongest thoughts right now. Later, you should be able to access all of each other's minds. But, since Koen has a headache, you will get one too. And it also works in the reverse." He saw my confused look, and asked, "What is bothering you, child of mine?"

"Um, you said Koen?"

Luke shuffled his feet and cleared his throat. "My name isn't Luke." I finished what I assumed he was going to say. It's Koen. I chuckled to myself and told him my own secret. My name isn't Sarah, it's, I sighed audibly. Emberlynn. You can call me Em, Ember, or Lynn. I'd prefer it if you didn't call me my full name. "It's pretty," he muttered.

I smiled my thanks to Koen, then paid attention to the king, since he looked about to speak. "Please, my dear, call me Father." I smiled again, as he continued. "You'd best get used to being mates. Koen, go show her to your room. And try not to kill him, Ember, we do need him." I snapped my fingers in mock disappointment as he pulled me out. What, don't you love me?

We went over this earlier, I replied. He pushed me against the wall, pushing a knee between my legs to prevent me from moving. "You never really answered." He was dangerously close to my face. "I guess I'll be easy on you. Could you be my lover?"

I choked, "What did you just say?"
He seemed to be even closer than before, and I felt warmth radiate off of him. I bit my lip, closing my eyes and resting my head against the wall. Happy place, happy place, I repeated to myself. I gasped when he kissed my collar bone. "My lover. Are you willing?"

"What are you asking me? You-You're not asking me to- What?!" I managed, completely flipping out. "What-ah, Wh-Wha-"I made a small squeaking sound in confusion. When I saw that he was laughing at me, I let my shoulders drop and I banged my head against the wall.

He put his hand behind my head, gently keeping it off of the wall as he slowly stopped laughing. "Quit that, my father's going to think we're doing something we shouldn't be out here." I gasped, and stared at him. I freaked out again, sadly sounding like I did before. Koen gently kissed me on the lips, then pulled away just as quickly.

"What-wh-a-um?" I tried ramming my head against the wall again, but his hand prevented me from doing so. So I went back to babbling, "You-yo-wh-" I made my squeaking sound again, much to my horror. I just couldn't seem to pull my mind together.

"You are so cute when you do that." I stared at him for a moment before closing my eyes and forcing myself to get a hold of myself. Biting my lip, I took several slow, deep breaths, and counted down from five. When I opened my eyes, I ran a nervous hand through my hair. I'm okay. I'm okay. Nothing just happened, just a-just a normal conversation.

He chuckled, Sure, if you call that a normal conversation. I hit him in the arm several times, as hard as I could manage in the moment. He put on a thoughtful face, If that's the hardest you could hit, then I'm going to have to train you. We can't have our future queen unable to protect herself. "What? You never said anything about being the future Queen of the Vampyres! I did not sign up for this!"

"As I recall, I haven't signed up at all."

He was so cool and nonchalant. "So now you're saying that you'd rather not be with me at all! I cannot believe you!" I stomped on his foot, successfully escaping from him. He limped after me, nursing his foot.

"All I'm saying is that I would have rather gotten to know you before mating! I just don't know anything about you! All we need is a little time." I stopped, spinning around, surprising him with the sudden turn. I pushed him against a wall.

"A little time? No, what we need, is a very large miracle! How do you expect us to manage when obviously we can't stand each other? Ugh! You are so male!" I stalked away again, hopefully in the right direction.

"What do you mean 'can't stand each other'? Where are you getting that idea? And will you slow down?" He was several steps behind me, but I could hear him quite clearly.

"I'm referring to the fact that we can't stand five seconds in a room together without getting in an argument! And no, I will not slow down!" Quickening my steps, I tried to lose him in the vast hallways.

"We've known each other for about three hours, while awake, and we've only been in two arguments. That's hardly not standing each other. All we need is to sit down and work a couple things out, if you're willing. We can make this work out. And you really should slow down, since you're going in the wrong direction." The smugness had crept back into his voice by the time he had finished.

I spun again, pinning my angry eyes on him. "Then why don't you show me the way out of this hellish maze? I would be in debt to you for this small act of kindness!" I felt my fangs piercing my bottom lip, but I only bit harder, trying to control my anger with pain. Before I could blink, I was pushed up against the wall again. Koen's green eyes were stained with red, seeping from the pupil out. I froze, the sight was far too unusual for me not to.

"You really shouldn't let your blood flow around me when I'm feeling strong emotions. I tend to get hungry." He lowered his lips to the base of my neck, teasingly biting the sensitive skin. I gasped, and attempted to push him away.

"Get off, you pig. You fed earlier." No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't seem to be able to push him off of me, his grasp strengthened by that of a vampire entranced by blood. He took a hold on my waist, tightening it to an almost painful grasp, and bit just a little harder than he had the first time, though not quite breaking the skin.

"Now that I think about it, I don't think it was quite enough." He dragged his tongue across my neck, and I shivered. Fear rose up in me, and I pushed, with both of my hands on his shoulders, and a foot on his stomach. He moved enough for me to get a hand up to his face. I slapped him, hearing it echo down the corridor. He shook his head, and touched the red spot on his face, as well as backing away from me. "What is wrong with you?"

"With me? Excuse me, but you were the one who was about to feed from me, without my permission."

"I don't need permission from my mate." Anger flared, and I pushed him roughly.

"You don't need permission to bite me and drink my blood? Since when did I agree to that?" I advanced on him, clenching my fingers into fists, feeling the bite of my nails into the palms of my hands. "I never gave you the permission to drink from me in the first place. Let alone mate to me!" I had him backed against a wall, his bravado half gone.

"Doesn't matter, you're still mine." He said, baring his fangs at me.

"Do you really want to bet that, little boy?" Baring my own fangs, I snarled at him as well. He grabbed my arm, You are mine, whether you like it or not. Looking from his hand, to his face, I pulled back roughly. "I am not yours, and I never will be. You're too much of an ass." With that, I strode off in another direction, opposite of the way I had been.

"You aren't going the right way!"

"Don't worry, I'm sure I can find some kind nice vampire to help me." I called back, angrily stalking away. Once I was sure I was out of earshot, I punched a wall, ripping the back of my hand and likely fracturing bones. I heard someone come up behind me as I was licking the blood away.

"My, my, who made such a pretty lady so mad? It's a shame, though, anger only intensifies your beauty." A smooth voice said, causing me to turn.

"The only reason you came over here, is because you smelled my blood, and wanted some." Daring him to refute my accusation, I lowered my hand, letting the blood drip onto the floor. He watched it with lack of interest, fake, I was sure.

"You really shouldn't let good blood like that go to waste, lady." He then looked back at me, "My apologies, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Kasley." He gently took a hand, the one without blood, and kissed it softly.

"Sarah."

"A pretty name, for a pretty lady." He smiled, still holding my hand, I noticed. I yanked it out of his grasp as he went on. "Would you accompany me to the dining room? It's about time for dinner."

"Sure, seeing as I don't know my way around yet." I smiled sweetly, trying to rid myself of enough anger to keep up a polite conversation with this man before I could dump him completely. Not that he wasn't good looking. He was quite yummy, actually, tall, blond, slightly muscular, bright blue eyes. Even looked around my age, which didn't really mean anything. But, I needed to get my rage out, not flirt with some other vampyre male.

He surprised me with laughter, "Darling, you really shouldn't try to be innocent when you're mad. It doesn't suite well with red eyes." He laughed again at me as I stared at him. "Didn't you know, darling? When vampyres feel very strongly about something, their eyes turn red." He turned away, as if to hide his laughter, but I heard what he was muttering, "You must be a young one indeed."

Ignoring it, I took his arm, letting him escort me to the dining hall. I made polite banter as we went. "So, what is a young lord doing here on this day?"

He laughed, "I am hardly a lord, hardly young, and I live here." By this time we had reached the dining room. I dropped his arm outside the door, and smiled at him, whilst he frowned at me. "You aren't going to come in?"

"I fed not too long ago." He caught my arm, forcing me to look back at him.

"Then let me accompany you elsewhere, milady."

I glared him down, and he released my arm. "I'm attached to someone. He will not take lightly that you seem this fond of me." I mental image of Koen popped up in my head. Pushing him away, I turned my attention back to Kasley. "I bid you a good meal," the polite smile was back in place as I dropped my head a few centimeters in way of goodbye. I walked slowly down the hall, listening for the dining doors to open and close. They didn't open until I was almost all the way down the hall, and they didn't close until I had turned the corner.

Turning back to the corner, I took a few slow steps backwards. Someone ran into me from behind, and I turned quickly, taking them by the shoulders to steady them. "Sorry, miss, I didn't see you." The girl had to be a servant here, with that outfit, and those meek manners. She was wearing a short black dress with a lot of white lace, as well as a red apron and headband.

"No, it's my fault. I shouldn't have been walking backwards. Hey, can you point me in the direction of the gardens?" The girl muttered a few directions, then left me to find it on my own. Shrugging, I ventured off, hoping I wouldn't get lost. Finding them without terribly too much trouble, I slipped in the door, letting it swing shut in silence. The scent of the various flowers around me was soothing, and I strolled along them happily. There was a large fountain in a pond at what I assumed was the center. Around the shores of it were the first roses I had seen. There were all colors, more than I could have imagined. Red, black, blue, yellow, pink, silver, red and black mixes, blue and silver mixes, the list went on and on. I made a mental note to bring a sketch pad here sometime, it would make a pretty, and challenging, drawing.

Sitting on one of the stone benches, I relaxed, imagining the sketch book in my hand, drawing invisible lines with my finger, creating a mind's eye picture. I was so wrapped up in my imaginary drawing that I didn't feel him until he was on my neck, purposefully blowing cool air on the back of my neck. "Where did you run off to, girl?"

I scowled at Koen, "Like it's any of your business." I flipped so that I faced him, pulling my mind back from its creative center. I tended to miss important things when it was there. Like Koen sneaking up on me a minute ago. He sat next to me, only a few inches away.

"You're very much my business, mates always are." He trailed a light finger down my neck before I slapped it away. "No need to be so fierce. Anyways, I came here to apologize, I got a little carried away down there in the hall. It's just, you have really good blood, if you don't mind me saying, and smelling it sent me into frenzy. Kind've like a shark, eh?" He chuckled at his own joke, causing me to stare at him.

"You're insane. I mated to an insane freak. I cannot believe this, out of all the millions of vampyres that I could have accidentally mated to, it has to be the one insane prince." I dropped my head into my hands, massaging my now throbbing head. "Do you have a headache?"

He took my hands in one of his and moved me so that my back was facing him again. Beginning to massage my tense shoulders and back, he let loose a sigh. "No, I don't, but you're giving yourself one by being so tense. It's a stress headache. You really should relax a little." Like that's so easy, I told myself, forgetting that he could probably hear it. "It really is. Try thinking of something that you normally seem relaxed around." I felt him smirk behind me. "And if you're still having troubles, you can come to me and I'll massage the stress out of you."

"Sure, that helps loads." But it really did, I could feel my headache slowly relieving as he worked out each knot in my back and shoulders. I couldn't help but lean back into him a little as I relaxed. As if the world itself was trying to get me to relax, it started raining, a soft, light, spring rain. I tilted my head up to the sky, letting the cool droplets help ease my head as well. A few caught my wound, causing me to flinch.

I heard him smelling the air around us, assuming it was because of the gentle scent of flowers mixing with rain. "Where are you hurt?" I looked back, astonished, then shook my head. "I can smell your blood, now, where is it?" When I didn't answer, he scooted closer to me until he could fully entrap me in his arms. One arm held my arms down, while his other hand gently probed my body for any signs of injury. He was careful about where he touched, I noticed, earning him a few points in my book. He lightly grazed the back of my right hand, and I hissed in pain.

He moved his arm so it was just around my waist, leaving my arms free, and lifted my injured hand to his mouth. He licked it softly, which relaxed me some, though my mind was screaming at me to break away from him whilst he was distracted. Before my mind could convince my body, Koen gently kissed part of my hand. I felt the slight tingling of healing passing through my hand, though only where he kissed. He gradually kissed his way across the back of it, then turned it over, kissing most of my palm. I remained still during this, mesmerized for some reason.

He placed one last kiss on the underside of my wrist, far from my injury, and I shivered. It was one of my more sensitive places. Finally, he let my hand go, and I made to leave, but he wrapped his other arm around my waist, resting his head gently on my shoulder. He pulled me back against him as he moved until he was resting against a stone wall, me sitting almost on his lap, and between his legs. He brought one up, tucking it beneath one of my own, whispering in my ear. "Stay with me for a little while. Enjoy the rain."

I was unable to pull away, entranced by this side of Koen. He was so . . . gentle. It made me want to explore him a little, get to know what made him this Koen, and what made him the other Koen. I gently relaxed into him, still cautious, resting my head on his shoulder. We sat like that for some time, neither of us speaking, nothing moving except for the rain gently falling.

Slowly, he leaned toward my neck, which had been fully exposed to him since I had last moved. Oh so gently, he kissed the base of my neck, causing me to let my eyes drop. I almost moved my head back further, but the small part of my mind that was still functioning put a stop to it. He continued kissing my neck, gently, and didn't try anything else. Eventually even that little part of my functioning mind stopped, and my head rolled back to expose all of my neck to him.

His hand slipped underneath the bottom of my shirt, but just to go back where it had been. Only now he was tracing patterns onto my flesh. He nuzzled the collar of my shirt down so he could kiss along the top of my shoulder and collar bone. Half nuzzling my neck, I shifted a little from ticklishness. He murmured an apology against my neck, but the feeling of his lips moving only tickled me more. He squeezed my waist, though not in a claiming way.

Lightly sucking on a particular spot on my neck that interested him, I dimly realized that he probably wanted to feed again. But, I realized that he was going to ask this time. I also knew that, in this state, I would say yes to him in an instant, not even caring that he fed from me earlier that morn, or even that he was a jerk only a few hours ago. He lightly grazed his teeth over my skin, making me shiver, and had opened his mouth to speak when there were footsteps, and a voice.

"Hey, Koen? I need to ask you some- oh." He stopped when he saw us on the bench, Koen close to my neck, and my eyes partially closed. "Sorry, I'll ask you later."

I forced my mind to start working. "No, don't worry about it, I was just leaving." I smiled softly at the unknown male before gently taking Koen's arms from around me, standing up and brushing myself off, nodding to both of them before walking towards the exit. I was blushing furiously as I turned a corner, feeling like I had just gotten caught doing something that I shouldn't have. But, then again, he was my mate, right? I can hardly be doing wrong when I'm with my mate . . . I silently asked myself.

You weren't in the wrong, darling. He just wasn't expecting for me to have a mate since the last time I saw him, Koen said, and I could slightly hear the conversation between the two males. Hmm, the connection between us was getting stronger already. It couldn't have anything to do with that little . . . whatever it was, could it?

Shaking my head, I finally found the doors, slipping out only to rest against them. What to do now? Shoving away the urge to go back into the gardens and find Koen, I headed off in a random direction, deciding to explore the castle a little. Might as well get to know the place, since I was mated to Koen for forever. I stopped, finally realizing that Koen was always going to be there, whether I really wanted him or not.

I slowly started on my way again, still shocked by my revelation. I was so out of it that I didn't see or hear the large dog until he crashed into me, knocking me off of my feet. He landed on top of me, and immediately started licking me in the face. "Down boy," I told him. I had pushed him off of me, and was dusting myself off when someone else nearly ran into me. Another servant, I guessed.

"Is that your wolf, mi'lady?" He asked me, panting from having to chase the dog, er, wolf, around the place. I looked down at the wolf, who was sidling up next to me, and gave me large puppy dog eyes, trying to look cute and innocent.

Squatting down next to him, I tapped him on the nose. "You've been very mischievous, haven't you? Bad boy, you're not to cause trouble, and you know that." Tutting at him, I stood back up and looked apologetically at the boy. "I'm sorry if he's caused you any trouble."

"Not at all mi'lady, not at all. But, if you could please keep better tabs on him? He caused quite a scare among the staff." I smiled and nodded, still looking apologetic. The boy went back off towards wherever he had come from , and I turned to the wolf with amusement and annoyance.

"You're going to get me into so much trouble. You're lucky I vouched for you, else you'd be sitting out on the curb." I sighed, Koen was going to kill me

-x. let your fears be shushed.x-

AN: Yay, it's been updated and revised with me fixing my little stupid mistakes!! If anyone can figure out what's going on with those silly little breaker things that I've been posting, I'll write you a one-shot of your choice. Or chapter of your choice of any of my stories. It's up to you *shrugs* thanks for reading and please review!!