1x1 with x_fire

Vlad watched Maddie take off to go get slathered in sunscreen and smirked. He glanced away for a moment, only to be tackled by the small girl.
"Silly Maddie" He said, catching her up, "Now I've got you" He growled playfully, holding her tightly and wandering a bit deeper into the water, though Maddie would still be able to touch if he set her down.
"Hmm, what to do, what to do?" He said, "I could dunk you in the water? Nah, that wouldn't work" He smirked, looking thoughtful, as if he were thinking up horrible torture.

Demitri watched Maddie getting covered in sunscreen.
"Think he likes water?" He chuckled, looking down at Zach whom was sitting up, his back rested against Demitri's taunt stomach, watching Maddie and Vlad intensely. He smiled at Kristen, his one arm wrapped around Zach, holding him up, his other hand was currently being clutched by his son, whom was trying to bite his finger.
"Ouch" Demitri muttered suddenly, glancing down to see a small pinprick of blood on his fingers.
"Brat has sharp fangs" He grumbled, chuckling lightly.

Keith shrugged, "I have a way with everyone" He muttered, "But he is adorable' He said with a small smile.
"Hurry up so we can go join them' He put his empty coffee mug down.

Maddie gasped and shriek as Vlad caught her up and half dragged her into the water. "Nooo!!" she laughed, kicking and splashing as Vlad kept his arms tight around her. She wasn't worried though. Actually she was laughing though Vlad was threathening to drunk her in the water. She knew he wouldn't really let her go since she couldn't exactly swim yet. He'd keep her safe, and since Maddie knew that, she didn't mind making it diffcult for him to hold her.
"Vlad!!" Maddie half whined, trying to wiggle out of his iron-like grip, though she was still laughing and already half soaked.


"Ouch?" Kristen echoed, since that was a word she rarely heard out of Demitri's mouth. She was rubbing sunscreen down her arm, and she stopped to look down at Demitri and Zach. Her mouth fell open slightly.
"Did he just...he sure did." Krsiten said, as her own question was answered by the sit of blood on Demitri's finger. "That's my boy." Kristen chuckled, leaning forward to stroke Zach's cheek gently. "He's not a brat." Kristen protested with a soft laugh. "Right sweetie? You're just testing out those fangs of yours huh?"

Alayna laughed. "I'm done." she murmured, taking one last sip from her tea and putting the empty mug in the sink. She turned to face Keith and smiled. "Before we go though..." she murmured, wrapping her arm around Keith's neck to pull him down to kiss him lovingly. Smiling at Keith, Alayna laughed softly before nodding. "Ok, we can do now." she said with a wink, heading towards the back kitchen door.

Vlad laughed as Maddie thrashed, trying to get away.
"Nope, I have you, all the stuggling in the world won't free you from my clutches" He said, twisting Maddie so she was upside down, her head precariously positioned above the water. He'd done this with her before, and knew she'd be fine.
"Ahahaha" He laughed, tryihng to sound malicious, though he failed.

Demitri smirked, "Nope, he's a brat, testing his fangs on his dad" He chuckled, letting his son suck on his finger, getting the blood.
"Definately a little vampire" He said with a small grin, removing his finger once he could tell the wound had healed.
"Shall we go see if he likes water?" he asked Kristen. He figured they could sit in the shallows with the baby, let him splash his hands or what not.

Keith smiled as Alayna kissed him, "I like you're thinking" He teased, following her outside. He glanced around, laughing as he saw Maddie and Vlad.
"Nuts" He teased.

"Whooa!" Maddie laughed as Vlad turned her over. Honey blonde curls tumbled into the cool water, causing Maddi to shiver lightly. She had somewhat of a giggling fit though, and when she turned crystal blue eyes back at Vlad, she laughed.
"You're not scary." She claimed.

Kristen couldn't help but laugh. "Yes he is." She murmured, watching Zach eagerly suck on Demitri's finger. She shook her head before looking up as Alayna and Keith arrived. She loved closer to Demitri so that Alayna could sit on the blanket in the shade. Kristen turned her gaze back to Vlad and Maddie afte hearing Keith's comment.
"I don't think I've ever seen your brother like this..." Kristen murmured.

"Mm, you, me and Maria included." Alayna said, rubbing sunscreen on her arms and stomach. "We had been talking about it yesterday actually." She murmured with a smirk and a shrug.

Demitri sighed, chuckling and shaking his head.
"Come on" He rose, still holding Zach. Snagging the baby's tiny sun hat, he slid it on, stretching for a moment.
"He gets like that with kids, he's actually really affectionate, it's just not noticable" He murmured, looking at Kristen.
"We're going swimming" He teased, walking down to the shore, and flopping down in the sand, letting Zach's feet trail in the warm water. The baby grinned, wiggling as much as he could, Demitri slowly lowering him down into the warm water. Zach shrieked, amused, his hands splashing eagerly, though he wasn't able to move to much.

Keith sighed, taking Demitri's spot, watching father and son goofing around in the water. He chuckled, "Well, he was certainly good for Maddie, she was really attatched to him while you guys were gone" He said, shaking his head.

"I'm not scary?" Vlad growled, tilting Maddie so she was face up again. "Not scary" He growled, shaking his head and chuckling.
"Look, your dad has Zach in the water, wanna go say hi?' He asked, winking at her.

"Huh..." Kristen murmured. "I would have never guessed." She said with a grin as Demitri stood up, putting Zach's hat on in the process.
"Damn where's a camera wen you need one?" She asked, watching as Demitri walked off with the baby.


"He's strong for a newborn." Alayna noticed, hearing Zach shrieking and splashing, though she couldn't exactly see the father and son.
"He is half a vampire." Kristen said with a soft shrug.

Maddie giggled. "Not scary, she repeated with a sigh as Vlad picked her upright. She wrapped an arm around Vla's neck, resting her head on his shoulder, shivering lightly as her dripping wet hair rested on her semi dry back.
"Yea." Maddie said with a nod and a grin.

$"There's one in the bag" Sven pipped up, digging it out and handing it to Kristen. "I got some pictures of him last night for you, after you went to bed, Maddie was holding him" He said, chuckling and shaking his head. He listened to Zach, "He's also a bit older then a newborn, he'll age fairly quickly in comparison to a human" He explained to Alayna.

Demitri glanced back up the beach, gesturing for Kristen to come down, laughing softly at Zach's antics. He smiled, glancing up as Vlad and Maddie approached.
"Hey, come to see the amazing swimmer?" He teased, smiling at Maddie as Vlad set her down.
"Of course, though, I think when the time comes, Maddie'll be the one teaching him to swim" Vlad said, grinning.

"Oh sweet!" Kristen said grabbing the camera. Hearing that Sven had taken pictures last night, Kristen flipped through the digital memory with a grin.
"Huh, maybe you should take up photography." Kristen said before getting up to joing Demitri and the children. She grinned taking a few quick pictures before Vlad and Maddie joined. Kristen laughed as Maddie splashed down next to Demitri with a happy laugh.

"Will he gow faster then Maddie?" Alayna asked softly. "That would be a bit strange." She chuckled, watching the family as the waters edge. She smirked, resting her head on Keith's shoulder.

Maddie blew her hair from her face as she played in the sand. She grinned, looking up at Kristen with a grin as her mother snapped a photo.
"Is your swimming getting better?" Kristen asked, to which Maddie shrugged.
"Kinda." Maddie said.

Demitri smiled as Kristen came over, and Zach seemed to be happy as well. He shrieked again, splashing his hands up and down in the water, his green eyes wide as he looked up at his mother. Demitri laughed, grinning at his son, before looking up at Vlad and Maddie.
"You wanna show us?" Demitri asked, "We wamma see some of your swimming" He said, looking at his daughter curiously.

Vlad grinned, "You wanna show them? I'll hold you" He said with a small smile. He knew Maddie could swim a bit on her own, and she was getting better, but she didn't have very much confidence.

"No, he won't age quicker then Maddie" He smiled, "He'll probably age quickly to the age of four or five, then settle and age normally, until eighteen or nineteen, after puberty, and then he'll freeze at the age" Sven explained.

Kristen was laughing as she took a few pictures while Zach splashed in the water. She rubbed her stomach gently, which she was thankful showed no signs of Kristen ever being pregant. Though she was a bit pale...

Maddie chewed her lip gently, looking from Vlad to Demitri before up at Kristen. Her mother nodded encouragingly.
"You can do it." Kristen said, nodding to the water. Maddie took a deep breath before looking around and standing up.
"I do it better with Missy..." Maddie murmured as if to herself.
"Maddie." Kristen said, softly, but with a strong warning.
"I know." Maddie sighed before a wave hit her and brought back her good mood. It surprised her, which made her laugh, and the water rolled all the way up to Kristen, who was standing behind Demitri.

"Oh that's good." Alayna said with a soft nod. "So after nineteen he'll stop growing altogether?" she murmured, rubbing her lips gently. That was an interesting though, since Demitri appeared to be nineteen...Alayna rubbed her eyes and muttered in annoyance. Her vision was getting better, but certain things were still blurry to her.
"I think I'm gonna need glasses Doc." Alayna muttered with a soft chuckle.

Demitri frowned, "Missy?" He murmured softly to Kristen, knowing she'd hear and Maddie wouldn't. He chuckled, scooping Zach up before the wave hit the baby, not wanting to drown the child. He smirked, kissing Zach's forhead and leaning back , letting his son sit on his stomach, banging his hands around, seeming to be rather overjoyed. The baby's bad mood from earlier was all but forgotten. Demitri glanced up, looking up at Maddie, wondering if she was going to try swimming.

Vlad frowned, looking at Maddie curiously, "You wanna show them?" He asked, having not understood the conversation between Maddie and her mother. He sighed, looking at Maddie and chuckling. He held his hand out towards him, smiling.

Sven smiled, "Alright, well, we'll look into that in a bit" He said, 'I don't really carry glasses on me" He chuckled.
"Yea, eighteen or nineteen, about the same age as Demitri, though, it'll take him awhile to get there" He smirked, "Though, for the next few months, he'll age like crazy"

"Her husky." Kristen explained softly to Demitri, taking a few more pictures as the large wave rolled in. "At that age...the animal feels more like a friend then an actual part of you, so younger children tend to name the animal. Maddie's husky happens to be Missy." Kristen murmured with a soft chuckle. "She'll grow out of it, it's almost like having an imagenary friend since the animal instincts don't exactly feel like her own yet. Though she seems to be using them more often." Kristen noticed as she flipped back through pictures, notcing that Maddie's eyes were a bright blue in some, and a deep brown in others.

Maddie laughed, since now she was soaked and the taste of sea water was in her mouth. Coughing slightly, Maddie looked up at Vlad as she pushed her blonde hair from her face. Grinning softly, Maddie nodded and gently took the vampires hand.

Alayna smirked. "I figured not. Just thought I'd give you a heads up." she murmured, rubbing her face gently.
"That should be interesting." Alayna laughed, hearing that Zach would be aging practically over night. She shook her head at the thought.

"Ah" Demitri smiled, "So, she feels more confident swimming in her animal form, because dogs can instinctually swim" He said with a small chuckle, looking at Zach.
"Do you think he'll shift? I mean, he's more vampire then mortal, because of my changing you before you were pregnant" He murmured, looking at his son, smirking as the waves came in around them. Zach was seated high enough to not get swamped, Demitri however was being overrun with water.

Vlad smiled, taking Maddie's hand, "Come on, we need to go a little deeper" He said with a small smile, helping Maddie into the deeper water. She could still touch, but it was harder to reach the bottom.
"Ready?" He asked curiously.

Sven smiled, "Practically over night' He agreed, chuckling. "It'll be hard to keep up with his development, education wise, but once he hits four or five, he'll stop, and school will be an option"

"Exactly." Kristen said, taking another picture as the wave took Demitri over, leaving little Zach in a small pool of water on his chest. She laughed as she watched the baby, who was obviously enjoying himself immensely.
"It's a possibilty." Kristen murmured. "He's drinking milk, not just blood so that opens the door really. It's mostly up to him. I'm not really sure how it comes about but I can tell you it's more then genes. Maddie didn't start shifting until she saw me do it for the first time in front of her." She explained, looking back at her daughter as Vlad took her into slightly open waters. The sea wasn't too rough today, but they had caught it at high tide.

Maddie nodded, practically clutching at Vlad's hand while he took her into deeper water. She jumped a bit to stay up above the surface before reminding herself of what she had to do to stay afloat. Keeping her mouth shut, Maddie nodded to Vlad, kicking off from the ocean floor and letting her body float so that she could at least doggie-paddled a little.

"Oh education wise, I'm sure he'll be fine." Alayna murmured, shaking her head gently. "Kristen's practically a genius though she doesn't show it at all. That's where I think Maddie get's it from; she's really...intelligent for a six year old, and I'm sure her gift as an empath only add to it." Alayna said softly, rubbing her lips gently looking at Sven with a smirk before back at the family.

Demitri shrugged, "He drinks milk because he still needs food to survive, but so would a human-vampire hybrid" He murmured, "I suppose we'll see, though I don't think vampirism is compatible with shape shifting" He shrugged, "Well, I suppose we'll figure it out" He said, chuckling and looking at Zach with a small grin.
"Lookit Maddie" He said, nudging Kristen, and watching his daughter with Vlad.

"Good job" Vlad said, smiling and holding Maddie lightly under her tummy. He knew she didn't need him to, but she asked him to, just for her confidence sake. "Look at you go" He said with a small grin, watching as Demitri and Kristen watched Maddie.

Sven smiled, "Not to mention a haord of aunts and uncles with degrees in medicine, history, philosphy, science, engineering, and anything you can think of" He said, "I'm sure he'll get an exstensive education"

"My point being, that he's not entirely a vampire." Kristen said. "And since his mother isn't human, there is a possibility is all I'm saying." Kristen murmured back with a soft smirk. "If vampirism isn't compatible with shape shifting then I'm screwed now aren't I?" she asked, hands on her hips as she looked down at Demitri, though she wasn't seriously annoyance, she was just trying to prove her point. Only time would tell if Zach would be a vampirc shifter like his mother. Even if he wasn't, Kristen would still be proud; he was still her son.
Looking up at Maddie, Kristen grinned. "Woo!" she cheered, clapping her hands at Maddie.


Maddie couldn't help but laugh softly as Kristen cheered for her. She felt a little more confident, and she let go of Vlad's hand, using both now to swim. She was halfway towards the shore before she realized she had swam without Vlad's help at all. Gasping in surprise, Maddie quickly stood up, eyes wide as she looked at Vlad, who was just a foot or two off, before up at Kristen and Demitri.
"Did you see that?!" Maddie asked, grinning from ear to ear.
"Sure did!" Kristen called, smiling in approval. "She's learning quick." Kristen murmured still with the same smile.


Alayna nodded in agreement. "He'll be well off. Both of them will be." she said, sighing gently and laying back on the blanket. The afternoon was arm, and Alayna nearly forgot the time of year.
"Hey, shouldn't we be going back to Russia sometime soon? Maddie starts school in the fall right?" Alayna asked curiously, sitting up on her elbows now.

Demitri ignored Kristen, sticking his tounge out at her, sitting up to watch Maddie.
"Awesome" He called, waving at his daughter, eyes going wide as she swam away from Vlad.
"Of course we saw" He said with a small smile, "You're getting better and better' He said, smiling and looking at Vlad whom was applauding.
"She's a fast learner, and she's been working hard on her swimming" He said, looking at Kristen contently.
"You ready to go home? We leave tomorrow night" He said, smiling. "Poor Zach, nice and warm here, and now he's going back to freezing Russia" He chuckled, teasing his son with his finger.

Vlad caught up with Maddie, smiling. "You did it, you swam all by yourself" He said, scooping her up and kissing her forhead.
"We'll have to practice when we get home, in the summer" He said, tweaking her nose.

Sven smiled, "We leave tomorrow night, and yea, she starts kindergarden next week" He smiled lightly, "She'll be fine though, it's a school for our kind, well, not vampires, but for supernatural children" He said, smiling.

Kristen smiled, grabbing a few more pictures since Maddie looked beyond happy as Vlad picked her up from the water. She sighed and looked down at Demitri. "Am I ready to go home? Yes. To the freezing cold winter...not so much?" Kristen said, grinning at Zach before looking back at Maddie.
"And I'm not ready for her to go to school..." kristen murmured softly. "She's growing up too fast on me." She said, shaking her head and breathing deeply.

"I did!" Maddie exclaimed, jumping up into Vlad's arms as he picked her up. She was soaked completely, but she wasn't cold. She grinned at Vlad and nodded, though her happy expression became thoughtful as she heard Demitri mentioned Russia.
"We're going home soon?" She asked, looking up at Vlad. That usually meant her vacation with him and Sven would be coming to and end. But Vlad had said home...
"Are you gonna stay with us?" Maddie asked quietly.

"Oh boy..." Alayna murmured,hearing what kind of school Madison would be attending in a weeks time. She looked at Sven with her bottom lip caught between her teeth before back down the beach where she could barely make out the family sitting in the sand.
"We'll be having an eventful month." Alayna mused, rubbing her forehead softly.

Demitri sighed, "She'll only be going for half a day" He said, sitting up, holding Zach carefully as he did so, and hugging Kristen. "Besides, we'll have this little one to keep us on our toes" He said, nodding to the baby in his lap who was grinning toothlessly at his mother. Zach made a noise of want, and reached for his mom, his fingers grasping the air, basically saying 'Pick me up'. Chuckling, Demitri handed the baby to Kristen, "I'm going to go wash the sand off of myself" He said, wave after wave of sand had struck him, and he was now coated with sand.

Vlad smiled, shaking his head, "I might come stay for a few days, to help your mom and dad out, and help you with school, but I live in Russia too kiddo, me and uncle Sven live not far from Maria and Alexi" He grinned, "We were just really busy for awhile, we shouldn't be anymore" He smiled, "If its okay with your mom and dad, you can come have sleepovers with us"

Sven nodded, "Yupp, but Kristen didn't want her in a regular school, not with her limited shifting control" He murmured, "It'll be eventful, but good" He said with a small shrug.

"I know." Kristen murmured. She smiled when Zach looked up and her and then reached out for her. She slid the camera's string onto her wrist to free her hands before picking zach up, resting him lightly against her stomach so he was facing her.
"Hello my darling. All done playing in the water with your father?" She asked softly, holding his little hand gently with one arm wrapped under his bottom.
"You're going to need a bath too I'm sure..." Kristen murmured, watching as Demitri went off to rinse the sand from his body.

Maddie smiled lightly and nodded. "That sounds good." She said watching as Demitri walked past them into the water. She grinned before slidding down from Vlad and splashing to her knees in water. She looked around quickly to make sure they were alone on the beach before she leaped after Demitri, shifting in the process. She knew Demitri wouldn't mind a little skirmish.


"Speaking of which." Alayna murmured, hearing the bark of a familiar and eager pup. She smirked before falling back on the blanket.
"Oi, if we're leaving tomorrow, I need to pack." Alayna sighed, rubbing her forehead gently.

Demitri let out a growl of suprise as Maddie barked at and tackled him.
"Brat" He said, chuckling and scooping the puppy that was his daughter up. "What are you doing?" He teased, tapping the puppy's nose affectionately. He held Maddie against his chest, before flopping back into the water, landing on his back, Maddie on his chest. He allowed himself to sink under, though kept her above, not wanting to scare the little girl. Eventually he surfaced, a small smile on his face as he looked at Maddie.

Zach looked at his mom as she caught up his hand. He looked rather stunned, as if he had no idea she could do that. He whined, tugging hsi hand sharply, smiling as he freed it, and began waving his hands madly, seeming to enjoy the attention from his mother.

Sven chuckled, Keith was sleeping lightly beside Alayna on the blanket, and it looked like he'd be staying that way for awhile.
"Yes, I believe Alexi and Maria are attempting to pack as we speak"

Maddie only barked in laughter. Her fur was wet now since she had tackled Demitri back into the water. As he tapped her nose, she flinched backwards out of habit before lurching forward to lick his face affectionately. She barked again before wiggling out of Demitri's arms and running a way towards shore. She turned and barked at him again as a calling before going up to Kristen and Zach, circling her mother once. At this point she was just running around, over excited since she even leaped up towards Vlad.

Kristen laughed softly as Zach pulled his hand away and tried to keep his hands away. "Gotcha!" Kristen said catching his fingers again for a few seconds before letting him pull away again. She laughed and kissed his forehead gently as Maddie came and circled her once. Kristen chuckled as she watched Maddie head towards Vlad.
"Your sister is silly." Kristen said, rocking gently with Zach still comfortably against her hip.

Alayna glanced down at Keith and sighed. "He still hasn't fully recovered." She murmured softly before Maddie's barking drew her attention back down the blurry beach. She rubbed her eyes as she sat up.
"He'll probably be out for the rest of the evening too." Alayna said as she stood up and dusted he sand from herr. She needed to pack, probably for Keith too.

Demitri frowned, rubbing his ears at Maddie's shrill bark. He smirked, watching Vlad's surprise as the puppy tackled him. The vampire flinched, though he caught Maddie, chuckling. He shook his head, sighing and very gently closed a hand over her mouth. "Shh, please" Vlad said softly.

Zachery wrinkled his nose as Kristen grabbed his hand. He whined, watching Maddie with wide eyes before he began to fuss again. Like the other vampires, he had sensitive hearing. He whined again, beginning to cry.

Sven sighed, "Maybe I'll take a look at him later, he's taking awhile to get better" He said, shaking his head. "Maybe Maria will help you pack, though she has to pack for Alexi to"

Maddie whined softly, but she shifted back as Vlad covered her mouth. She could hear her brother crying, and knew she would get yelled at anyway. She sighed and nodded to Vlad, silently saying that she wouldn't shift again. They always seemed to stop her whenever she tried. She was still against Vlad's chest and she turned slightly to look back at Kristen who was now trying to calm little Zachery down.


"Hey, its alright." Kristen murmured as Zach started to fuss. She rocked gentlyto soothe him, realizing after Maddie changed back that her barking probably scared him. "Shh.." Kristen cooed, letting Zach?s head rest against her shoulder as she rocked him gently.

"I'll be alright." Alayna said. She didn't want to bother Maria and Alexi. She knew they were having enough problems. She had noticed the cats back on Alexi's arms the other day. Smiling to Sven, Alayna walked up the beach and disappeared inside.

Demitri walked over to Vlad and Maddie, smiling. "Maddie, your shifting is getting so good" He praised, seeing that she was upset. Vlad nodded in agreement, handing Maddie to her dad, muttering something about going to pack. Demitri smiled, kissing Maddie's hair.

Zachery whined, though quieted at Kristen's attention. He smiled, banging his fists again, looking around curiously. His green eyes sparked, and he shifted around, before begining to cry again. Thick tears rolled down his face, his crying getting louder and louder.