1x1 with x_fire

Demitri nodded.
"Yupp" He said, scooping the little girl up. He sighed, not bothering with his jacket, or her's for that matter. Kristen had them anyway.
"Baggage claim" He murmured, holding Maddie with one arm, her head on his shoulder as her arms found their way around his neck. He kissed her lightly, sighing and following Kristen off the plane. It was easy to find baggage claim, it was the waiting that would prove irritating.

Alexi smiled, "Yea we are" He said, grabbing his stuff they followed Demitri and Kristen off the plane. He smiled, watching Demitri and Maddie, who would have thought his youngest brother would be such a good father.

Keith sighed, "Well, only a mage or a witch has magic like that, unless they have an angel captive, but that's not angel magic. Or, potentially a demon, it's a more a demon's style to control someone" He murmured, looking thoughtful.
"Everytime you remove magic from him, I want you to feed it into an energy ball, I doubt you want this stuff in your system" He said, shaking his head and frowning.

Kristen nodded, stepping off the plane with a deep sigh of relief. She absouletly hated airplanes. She followed Demitri down to the bagge claim, muttering to herself quietly as the crowd from the plane gathered around to find their own bags. Kristen watched as the machine kicked into gear, sending out suitcase after suitcase.

Maria smiled, lacing her fingers with Alexi's as they followed Kristen and Demitri. She found her suitcase, along with Alexi's bag, grabbing them quickly before they passed by. Kristen had found her suitcase, but she was still looking for Demitri's and Maddie's.



Alayna sighed and nodded, rubbing her forehead gently. "No, a demon is much darker..." she murmured, remembering the attack at the school. Alayna shuddered gently, sighing again.
"Yea, that might work.." Alayna said gently, beyond tired, settling for nodding at this point.

Demitri sighed, holding Maddie against him, watching the baggage claim with sharp eyes. He stepped forward, finally seeing his bag, and he grabbed it, setting it down as he waited for Maddie's, soon it came tumbling down and he was able to grab it. Alexi had commandeered a cart, and he was putting all the bags on it.
"Let's get a taxi, we're at the Hotel Roma" Demitri said, he knew Alexi spoke Italian, so that was helpful.

Alexi wheeled the luggage outside, gesturing for a taxi. He sighed, relieved at managing to get a van one.
"Come on" He said, nodding for everyone to pile in. Demitri slid into the back, Maddie still asleep in his lap.
"Hotel Roma" Alexi said, sitting in the front with the driver, Maria and Kristen in the middle, Demitri in the back with Maddie.

"Go to sleep Alayna, I'll stay here, make sure he doesn't wake up" He sighed, he could always see if he could take the magic from Nicko, that way she didn't have to.

Maria smiled at Alexi, handing over everyones bags as he piled them onto the cart. Kristen followed Demitri outside, slidding into the seat next to him, letting Maria had the seat behind Alexi. She sighed with relief, resting her head gently on Demitri's shoulder near Maddie's head.

Once at the hotel, Kristen helped Maria and Alexi pull the bags out of the back, rubbing her forehead gently. By now, she was exhausted, the cab ride having nearly put her to sleep.
"Demitri have the rooms already?" Maria asked quietly, her's and Alexi's bags over her shoulders since Alexi was helping Demitri. Kristen nodded.
"Yea, I think so." Kristen murmured, walking into the hotel tiredly.


Alayna sighed looking over at Keith for a long moment. "Alright, but wake me up if he does." she murmured quietly. She sat back against her chair, resting her head on a fist and letting her body relax, willing herself into a light sleep.

Demitri walked inside, straight the main desk, having a quick conversation, two room keys were handed over.
"Here" He tossed one to Alexi, smiling.
"Thanks bro, we'll meet you in the morning, down here, tenish?" He called, leading Maria to their room on the fifth foor.

Demitri smiled, "Come on sleepy head, bed time" Her took Kristen's hand, leading her towards the room, there's was on the sixth floor. It had two beds, a large bathroom, and a state of the art entertainment sytem. Demitri placed Maddie on the bed she would use, getting her outdoor clothes off before tucking her into bed.

Keith nodded, eyes resting on Nicko. He sighed, walking over to the side of his bed, placing a hand on his hand, feeling the magic, he frowned, the control magic and Nicko's magic were basically fighting with one another. He sighed, focusing, this wasn't good stuff for Alayna to have in her system, it felt nearly demonic, but not as powerful, perhaps someone who had made a deal with a demon? He focused, leeching the magic out, letting it roll into his body.

"Oh shut up." Kristen murmured, laughing quietly. She waved tiredly to Maria and Alexi before letting Demitri lead her upstairs. She blinked a few times, thinking she must be dreaming because the room was aboulsetly luxurious.
"You spend way too much on us." Kristen murmured as Demitri settled Maddie down for the night. Kristen took off her thick jacket, long sleeved shirt, and boots, leaving her tank top and loose jeans before sliding under the cover of her's and Demitri's bed.

"Wow..." was all that Maria could say when Alexi opened the door to their room. "Demitri has very good taste." She smirked, the room was simple but elegent, much to the style Maria liked. She had lived through the victorian age, and was simply in love with anything that resemebled that time frame.


Nicko could feel something leaving him. Whatever it was, it had been keeping him asleep this whole time. His eyes flickered for a moment before opening lazily. Seeing Keith, wasn't exactly what he had been expecting. He frowned, looking at the angel before his eyes fell on Alayna, who was asleep in the chair. His eyes flickered back to Keith before looking around the room; he was in the hopsital.
"What happened?" he asked, groggily.

Demitri smiled, but slid into bed next to her, all clothes except hsi boxers on the floor in a heap.
"Love, I have more money then you could possible imagine. I make Bill Gates look like a pauper, get used to being spoiled" He stated simply, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her to his bare chest.

Alexi smiled, "I thought you'd like this place, I suggested it, Demitri's stayed here a few times, as have I" He walked over to the balcony, pushing the doors open to step outside. The scent of his home country struck him and he sighed, leaning on the railing, staring out over the still active, despite being midnight, city.

Keith glanced down at Nicko, still struggling to adjust to the magic.
"Something spelled you, you went psycho, almost killed everyone I care about, er, then Alayna did something, and then you're here. You wre being controlled, we don't know by who, but the magic has left your system" He sighed, wincing, he should wake Alayna up, but she was finally sleeping.

Kristen sighed quietly as Demitri slid onto the bed next to her. "Mmm..." she answered then smiling tiredly as Demitri pulled her towards him. She sighed quietly, cuddleing against him, almost childishly. His chest was cold, but it was the cold she was familiar with. Kristen opened her eyes gently, kissing him gently before closing her eyes again and falling asleep.


"I love it." Maria said, grinning and setting down her's and Alexi's bags. She watched him open the doors, the wind blowing back her hair. She looked at him contently walking up behind him and wrapping her arms softly around his waist. "Welcome home darling." Maria whispered, brushing her lips over his cheek gently.


Nicko frowned, listening to Keith. "What?" he asked, coughing then, the heart monitor he was hooked up to steadily inscreasing in it's beeping. He took a deep breath, unable to move due to the wires and needles in his arms. Damn whatever happened was serious.

Alexi smiled, "Me too" He murmured, despite all the changes, Rome had never lost it's familiar scent. He sighed, still leaning on the balcony, "It's changed so much though" He murmured, sighing as his mind's eye re-painted Rome as he knew it. It had changed a lot, it was a bit painful to see, stuff he held dear had long since been moved or renovated to hold new buildings, shops, hotels. He sighed, smiling at her.

"I'll let Alayna explain. It's all for show, the wires and stuff. The doctor's faking that they know what's wrong with you" He walked across the room, nudging Alayna.
"Your brother's awake. I took away the rest of the magic. He want's to know what happened" He didn't want to tell Nicko about her putting him in a coma.

Maria smiled, keeping her arms around Alexi. "Times does that to a lot of things mi amor." she murmured quietly. "Everything except we vampires, thank goodness there's more than one of us to share the pain." she rubbed his chest gently then, kissing him again, gently, softly.


Alayna inhaled sharply as Keith nudged her. "Huh?" she blinked then, realizing that Nicko was awake. She realized what Keith had said then and sighed deeply.
Nicko blinked, looking at Alayna. She looked stressed, and a bit annoyed. Nicko tried despritatly to put the small peices he had together as Alayna stepped closer to him, taking his hand gently.
"What's the last thing you remember?" she asked quietly. Nicko sighed, thinking for a moment, looking up at the ceiling.
"Sending you off with Kristen." Nicko murmured then. "You look a lot better than you did then..." Alayna sighed deeply, pulling her hand away.
"Get some rest alright? The doctors might come in to check up on you, just be honest with them." All Nicko could do was nod; when had his little sister gotten so authorative? Alayna looked over at Keith then.
"He should be ok for the night. Would it be alright if I spend the night with you?" she asked quietly. Now that Nicko was alright, Alayna needed time to think.

Alexi sighed.
"I know" He murmured, shaking his head and leaning over the railing. He glanced out over the city. "It's weird, I can look out and see my old home, see everything, where it was, the painful part is seeing what replaced it. Like, a temple to Mars, our god of war used to stand there. Now, now it's a coffee shop" He said, frowning.

Keith sighed, glancing at Nicko, a small frown on his face.
"Yes, I suppose you can" He shook his head, trying to clear it. The magic was still bothering him, but his was slowly overpowering it. He pulled the keys from his pocket, handing Nicko a phone number.
"My cell phone, call us if you need anything, or if you're released before we return" He said, shaking his head and glancing at Alayna, seeing if she was ready to go.

Maria nodded in understanding. "It's the same with me, back in England. Sometimes when I got to Spain too. Only my memory is a little fuzzy from those days." she murmured quietly, her arms still wrapped around Alexi's waist.
Maria couldn't help a small smile. "Oh dear, I don't think Mars would like that very much..." she said quietly, pulling her hands back to rub Alexi's shoulders gently. She could tell he was upset, but Maria had firgured that would happen. It was always painful, returning to the place you called home after hundreds of years of being away, only to find that your home was gone, changed, different.


Alayna gave Keith a light smile. "Thank you." she murmured quietly, looking back at Nicko. The soilder took Kieth's number with a stiff nodd. He looked back at Alayna for a long moment. Alayna sighed, seeing the concern and worry that Nicko always looked at her with. His eyes weren't cold and hard like before. Alayna smiled; he'd be alright.
"I'll see you in the morning." Alayna said, kissing his forehead gently before walking out of the room with Keith.

Alexi sighed, nodding his head and leaning on the railing, hands dangling over the edge. Maria's arms were wrapped around him, which was comforting. He sighed, smiling half-heartedly at her.
"Thanks love, I'll be fine. It'll just take awhile" He murmured. He had seen Russia change, but it had been slow, in his mind, a day to day thing, so it had almost seemed natural. However, he hadn't been back to Rome since the day he had left.
"I haven't been back here since I died" He laughed softly, though it was a bad joke. "It's been awhile" He murmured, shaking his head and sighing. He stared out, letting his eyes turn Rome back into his Rome. He sighed, "No Mars wouldn't like that" He said softly.
"Gods" He cursed gently, this was weird, very, very weird. This would take some serious adjusting to. He let Maria try and comfort him, he was relieved knowing she had experienced this shock, but as she was younger then him, it was a smaller change. He sighed, wondering if anything, besides the large monuments, from his time still existed. He stared out at the large, runes of the Coliseum, a small frown on his face. "I wonder if it's still the same" He said, staring out at the place where he had spent so many years of his short human life.

Keith nodded at Nicko, shaking his hand and sighing.
"Bye" He murmured to the soilder, though he had a hard time thinking of Nicko as a soilder. He supposed Soilders from this time periode were differeng then soilders from heaven, which, Keith technically still was. He shut the door behind him as Alayna headed out the door a few steps in front of him.
"Do you wanna stop and get something to eat? I think we're out of food at Demitri's house, and well. I haven't gotten a chance to go grocery shopping"

Maria nodded as she listened, still letting her hands pass over Alexi's back gently. She smiled at him gently, nodding again to show him that she was paying attentiong. "I know mi amor. I went to Spain once after Keith brought me to England...I nearly fainted." she murmured quietly.
"I haven't gone back since. At least not to the town I used to live in..." Maria sighed, trying not to shudder at the memory. Maria's eyes flickered up to the world just outside their window then. She sighed in amazement and wonder, curious as to what Alexi was seeing. She saw the bustleing city below them, and the Colloseium along side them.
"I doubt it holds all the glory it once was..." Maria said quietly, not wanting to give him any fasle hope. She wrapped her arms around his neck then, gently kissing his cheek. "We'll have to find out in the morning." Maria said, tugging his collar softly before pulling her arms away and walking back inside.


Alayna swallowed and shook her head. "No, I'm not hungry." she murmured quietly, pulling her jacket around her tighter as she lead the way out of the hopsital. The idea of eating any kind of food right now made her sick. She shuddered at the cold evening air, zipping up her jacket and shoving her hands into her pockets. It was still snowing light from the magic she had released earlier. Alayna shuddered, glancing over at Keith.
"How'd you take the magic from him?" she asked as they walked towards the SUV.

Alexi sighed, listening to her for a moment, and nodding.
"Mhm" He said, listening to her and sighing. He felt her tug on his collar, but shrugged it off.
"I'll come in a bit" He said, still leading over the railing. He wasn't ready to go inside just yet, he needed to think. He sighed, staring out at the city, shaking his head and frowning.

Keith nodded.
"Alright" He said, sliding into the car.
"Ability I have, all angels. It's not as powerful as yours, but I was able to take the rest of the magic from him, much like you did. It's interesting, feelis demonic, but not powerfully so, so I believe it's someone who made a deal with a demon of some kind"

Maria nodded in understanding, going to the room by herself. She pulled open her beg, searching for clothes to where to sleep. She quickly changed from her jeans and blouse to a comfortable pair of shorts and a loose tank top. Tossing her previous outfit to her opened bag, Maria pulled back the made-up bed sheets and comforters before lying down. She wasn't tired really, but lying down left nice. Maria turned, staring at Alexi's form on the balacony contently.



Alayna nodded as she listned, sitting in the passanger seat and quickly buckling herself. She sighed, leaning back against the seat as Keith started driving back towards the house. Alayna sucked in a breath then, looking over at Keith. "You don't think he made a deal with a demon do you?" she murmured quietly, concerned and worried.

Alexi sighed, shaking his head and stepping back inside, shutting the doors behind him and letting the curtains fall shut.
"Now what?" He wasn't tired, but he wasn't ready to go wandering. He lied down next to her, cuddling with her, needing to feel better right now.

Keith sighed, "No, no he's not the one who made the deal. If he had, I would have known" He said shaking his head.
"No, someone who made the deal placed the control magic on him" He explained, shaking his head.
"Believe me Alayna, if he made a deal with a demon, you woudln't have been able to touch the magic inside him.

Maria smiled, watching him walk into the room and lay down next to her. "I'd thought you would never ask." She murmured quietly. She rolled over, gracefully slidding her arms around his neck, pulling him close enough to kiss him gently. Maria laughing quietly. "Oh Lexi, you worry too much sometimes. Things may be different but not everything is lost." She kissed him again.


Alayna sighed. That reassured her a great deal. "Ok.." she murmured tiredly, rubbing her forehead gently.
"Thank you." she said again. "You didn't have to take the magic from him..." Alayna gave him a light smile before turning to rest her forehead against the window.

Alexi shrugged.
"Maybe I do" He murmured, cuddling against her, letting her sooth his frazzled nerves.
"So, what do you want to do?" He asked softly, resting his head on her, curling around her comfortably. He wasn't tired, but he wasn't sure he was ready to explore Rome just yet.

Keith smiled. "Yea I did, I wanted to see the magic for myself, in it's true form, before it mixed with your magic. It gives me a greater understanding of what I'm dealing with" He explained, pulling into Demitri's drive way.
"So, you alright?" He asked, frowning a bit.

Maria smiled, wrapping her arms around Alexi, holding him tightly against her. She glanced over his shoulder at the digital clock and smirked.
"Well, not a lot one can do at three o'clock in the morning. Even in Rome." Maria said, laughing quietly, kissing his forehead gently, running her fingers through his hair softly. "I'm content with just laying here till morning. Unless you want to take in the sights early." she murmured. Maria wouldn't push Alexi, she could tell he was still shooken up at the changes that had occured in the place he had once called home.


Alayna sighed, smiling despite herself. "Alright." she murmured, too tired at the moment to fully understand what Keith was talking about now. She felt the truck stop, and looked up, seeing that they had arrived back at the house. Alayna stared distant out the front window, her mouth set in a straight line, her face giving nothing away except her exhuastion.
"I guess. I honestly don't know." Alayna said then, sighing and closing her eyes.

Alexi sighed, relieved.
"Can we just stay here for a bit?" He asked sighing and resting against her. He sighed, he wasn't sure if he could handle this just yet. He frowned, he should probably go out before they met up with Maddie and the others, as Maddie would pick up on his emotions and what not.
"We should maybe leave before going out with the others, I don't want Maddie being upset by my feeligns right now" He said, shaking his head grimly.

Keith sighed.
"Come on Alayna, go inside and go to bed" He opened her side of the door, helping her out. He was still angry, they still needed to talk, but right now, this was more important. He led her inside, straight to the bedroom, before leaving her be. He went into the kitchen, rummaging through the cupboards, finding them basically bare. His stomach growled in protest, and he sighed, calling a pizza place and placing an order. Demitri had left him money, so he was fine with that, in fact the vampire had given him a credit card with access to the Draq brothers various bank accounts. It was incredibly generous.

Maria smiled. "Of course." she said quietly, laughing quietly. The way Alexi had said that, it was almost like he was as young as Madison. She kept his arms around him, tunning her figners continuing through his hair, kissing his forehead every now and then.
Maria nodded, frowning a bit at the mention of the young child's gift. "Alright, we can do that." Maria said, smiling lightly. She couldn't see why not. "Though, you said we'd meet them at ten." she reminded him gently.


Alayna nodded numbly, letting Keith help her out of the truck and into the house. She was half asleep at this point. Once in the bedroom, Alayna sat down on the couch and unlace her boots, and pull off her thicker and extra jackets. She could hear Keith rummaging in the kicthen and sighed, falling back against the couch. She was asleep the next instant.

Alexi nodded.
"We can leave at say sixish? And then we'll be able to get back here in plenty of time" He sighed, thankful she was so understanding, though she as correct , any vampire would. He sighed, closing his eyes, not tired, just frazzled. He rested against her, appreciating the attention.
"Thank you" He murmrued, sighing softly, and leaned against her.

Keith shook his head, waiting for his pizza. He flicked on his TV, quickly finding a movie in english. He frowned, something old, but it looked interesting. He nearly laughed, Dracula, the old, black and white version. He sighed, settling back, waiting for his food.

Maria nodded. "Alright, that could work." she said quietly, glancing at the clock then. That gave them about three hours to kill. Maria sighed then, closing her eyes for a moment as Alexi leaned against her. She chuckled quietly.
"Don't worry about it mi amor." she murmured quietly, leaning back against the pillows, zoning out for the time being.


Kristen gasped shrewdly then, her heart skipping a beat, causing her to cough. She burried her face into her pillow to muffle the coughs, hoping she hadn't woken up Maddie. Kristen blinked, frowning. It was still dark. She rolled over half frantically then, looking around as best she could in the darkness.
"Demitri?" she murmured quietly, seeing him next to her. The bed felt off then. Kristen sighed, pressing her hands into her eyes. Right, they were in Rome. Kristen took another deep breath, this one of relief.

Alexi nodded, setting his alarm clock on his phone, just in case. He sighed, letting himself rest against her. He was also begining to zone out, a bit tired.

Demitri sighed, looking over at her.
"Hm?" He murmured, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He shifted, wondering what was wrong, he was awake, but tired.
"What's wrong?" He asked, rolling so he could see her. He yawned, rubbing his head trying to force himself awake.