1x1 with x_fire

Kristen found herself sighing in relief as Demitri wrapped his arms around her gently. She glanced at the laptop screen, seeing that he had been looking at some houses for sale around the high school.
"Mm, I like that one..." Kristen murmured, pointing to the screen at a house Demitri was starting to scroll by. The front view was simple, the house wasn't large like their old one, but it looked spacious enough for right now. Kristen had a feeling that Demitri was just browsing now to get an idea for a house, and maybe even one to get for a few years while the kids finished school. After that, Kristen and Demitri could set on rebuilding the old one...or even making a new one to their liking.
"Mmmhm." Kristen murmured, zoning back into the conversation with her husband. "Though, I'm not too surprised." Kristen said, chuckling lightly and trying not to wince as her side twinged.
"Hun...I hate to ask, but what do you remember from yesterday?" Kristen asked quietly. She knew Demitri tended to black out whenever he lost control of himself because of a vampire feeding frenzy. She needed to know that before she told him what really happened. She was going to tell him regardless, but it would start different depending on his answer.

"Breakfast!!!" Maddie called, stopping short as she realized that her mother was actually in the livingroom with Demitri and not laying up in bed. She stopped, her hands on her hips, very much like Kristen, down to the soft scowld on her face.
"You know you weren't supposed to get out of bed." Maddie muttered. To which Kristen helplessly shrugged. "Well, breakfast is ready if you're still hungry that is." Maddie said, rolling her eyes gently and going back to the kitchen to eat and then help Alayna clean up.

-----------------------

Carlos chuckled and shook his head. "No, techincally, I don't own the castle, Keith does." He said, smirking at Sami. "I was just living there for the weekend while Alexi and Maria were in town." He clarified. "Though, I wouldn't mind owning one of the castles out in the county one day." He added with a small thought and laugh.

"Well...." Carlos said with a sigh. "It was a bit of a shock. To be honest, I think Maria and Shaye were about to resort to setting me up with blind dates in order to find my mate." Carlos explained. "It wasn't like I was the only single male vampire without a mate..I was just...." Carlos trailed off, trying to find the words to explain as he switched lanes in the car.
"I was starting to change. It happens to vampires every now and then. We've been in the world so long we start to become very different people than we used to be. Maria and Shaye were starting to worry that if I didn't find a mate soon, they'd loose the Carlos they knew so well." He explained with a simple smile. "A vampire's mate does many wonderful thing for a vampire, some that we still can't explain. One things for certain though as soon as a vampire has a mate, they're less likely to change personality wise, because....well...you wouldn't be here if I was different now would you?" Carlos asked with a small grin.
"So, it was a bit of a shocker for them. That and it happened so suddenly. Which isn't un-heard of among vampires, just rare." Carlos added, reaching over to take Sami's hand and squeeze it gently.

----------------

Maria raised an eyebrow in question as her husband handed over his phone. She opened the text message, and a small smirk formed on her face.
"They deserve the vacation." Maria murmured. "If Carlos is any wise, he'd propose while they're gone." She added quietly, handing Alexi back his phone and stretching as she stood. She started to undo the braid her hair was in as she walked towards her closet to find clothes for the day.

Demitri pursed his lips and looked thoughtful.
"All I really remember besides waking up in Vlad's basement is the scent of your and Alayna's blood. The last coherent, not blood-soaked thing I remember is walking into the kitchen" He said, frowning. "You and Alayna were there, hence the smell of blood, but I really don't recall anything else" He added, rubbing a hand over his lips thoughtfully. He glanced up as Maddie came in and glanced at Kristen, a bemused expression on his face.
"You weren't? You're worse then all of us combined" He grumbled, "One of the kids get hurt or I overdo it and you're all over us to stay in bed and rest, you threatened me last time to keep me in bed, yet you can't stay in bed when you're hurt? Where's the justice" He grumbled playfully, though he knew he honestly didn't care right now, he was just happy to have his wife cuddled into his side.

He nudged his wife lightly, "Do you want to eat in here? Or go sit in the kitchen?" He asked her curiously. He, obviously, wasn't hungry and he knew that Zach wasn't hungry at all, but his wife needed to eat something at the very least.

----


Sami listened intently to Carlos before offering him a small, reassuring smile.
"We sure don't do anything normally hey" She murmured, "Instant mates are pretty rare among shifters as well" She added, rubbing her fingers over his for a moment.
"Blind dates hey?" She teased lightly, "I can just imagine the woman that Shaye and Maria would choose to try and force you with" She chuckled at the imagine.

She felt a small, excited bubble in her stomach as they pulled up to the airport, her eyes lighting up and dancing with amusemant.
"Yay" She squeaked, grinning at her mate, "I can't believe we're here" She said, she knew they were going on vacation, but it hadn't seemed real until now, now that they were finally at the airport. She chuckled at Carlos' amused face as she slipped out of the car and helped Carlos unload their bags.

----

Alexi sputtered in shock and glanced at his wife.
"Has he thought about proposing to her?" He asked, looking at his wife curiously. He sort of hoped that Carlos did propose to the other shifter, because another wedding in the family would be awesome, he knew they could all use it. Plus Carlos and Sami would probably have a very interesting and fun wedding. Carlos was old fashion but Sami was pretty noncomformist and when the two came together only chaos and madness ensued, in a good way of course.
"It'd be nice to have another wedding" He murmured, grinning at his wife.

Kristen nodded as she listened to her husband recount the events of the other day "I didn't want you thinking you'd caused the injuries." Kristen murmured. "Because you didn't. I think you managed to push yourself away before you lost it entirely." Kristen explained quietly.

"Sven said I should." Kristen murmured, somewhat sheepishly. "I was worse off last night than this morning though." She added quietly. Thinking about the breakfast Maddie and Alayna cooked up made Kristen's stomach growl softly.
"Yea, I should probably eat something." Kristen agreed with a nod, though she was so comfortable against her husband it was hard to even think about moving.

"I wanted to be with you..." Kristen murmured softly in defense of leaving her bed. "And I need to tell you what happened yesterday while you were dropping the kids off." Kristen whispered, glancing up at her husband. "The fallen angel showed up. The one that Keith knew, but I'm not sure they got along. She was threatening to kill Alayna if we didn't give her the dagger that Keith gave me for Christmas a few years ago. Apparently it was his personal dagger. When Anna threatened the kids....I lost it." Kristen continued to whisper to that only Demitri would hear her. "I know it was foolish to attack an angel, but I wasn't thinking. She disappeared after stabbing me in the side and knocking me out cold."

------------------------------

Carlos couldn't help but laugh at Sami's excitement. Although he couldn't really blame her. This was exciting. Just the two of them, on vacation. Nothing to worry about, nothing to really do or take care of. Carlos grinned as he parked his car in the extended-stay parking lot. He wasn't too worried about leaving the car in at the airport, and if anything Alexi or one of the brothers could come and retrieve the car.

Going around to the trunk, Carlos pulled out their bags. He handed Sami her carry-on, but grabbed her suitcase, carrying it effortlessly. He gave Sami a grin as they walked into the airport.
After checking in their luggage, and a long-line of security, and a ten minute wait to board the plane, Carlos was finally sitting down in the airplane alongside Sami in first class. There would have been no way they were spending a ten hour flight in coach.

"Well, the worst part of the trip is over." Carlos murmured, grinning over at Sami. "Security is always difficult to get through. I ought to have asked Vlad for the plane." Carlos muttered. Since Carlos was used to planning all his travel-arrangements through his agent, sometimes Carlos forgot he had closer ties to Vlad's family since Maria married Alexi.
"I've heard first-class is renown these days for their in flight meals." Carlos added, reaching along the side of his seat for the menu and handing it to Sami. "Let them know if you want anything. Or are you too excited to even eat?" Carlos asked them, because he could see the joyful gleam in Sami's face.
----------

Maria couldn't help but laugh at the shocked look on her husband's face. "Alexi they've been together for nearly five years now." Maria reminded him. "It's more than enough time don't you think? It only took you two years." She added as she pulled herself out of bed to get dressed.

Demitri frowned, "I know I didn't hurt you two, you would smell of my venom if I had, so would Alayna" he added, "Good to know I managed to get away though" He added, wondering if the house would even be worth rebuilding, or if they should just tear it down and leave the land alone for awhile. They were buying a new place anyway.

He frowned again as Kristen told him what had actually happened.
"The dagger? Why?" He mused, he understood that it was Keith's, but what di that have to do with anything.
"I'll have to look into this, she's poking her head around again and Keith wasn't pleased the first time. She obviously is up to something or knows something about Keith and whats going on" he murmured, helping his wife sit up.
"Lets get you something to eat, I'll talk to Sven and Vlad about this" he murmured, scooping her into his arms as he walked into the kitchen.
"One for breakfast" He said with a grin and carefully set her down in one of the chairs, smiling at hsi daughter and Alayna.

---

Sami was dazed through the entire airport and she finally glanced at Carlos once they were seated on the plane.
She snorted as Carlos commented on getting the private jet.
"You know, before I met you flying first class would have been just a dream and the idea of a jet would have been laughable?" She teased.
"Yes I am very excited, but it's a bloody long flight so I will probably need something to eat" She added with a soft grin, curling up against him. He wasn't kidding, first class had seemingly come a long way, though she still wasn't sure what it had been before.

Glancing out the window, she grinned as she felt the plane lift into the air, she had no issues with flying and actually really enjoyed it, especially the take off and landing which were reminicent of a rollar coaster for her. Smiling slightly, she let her head rest on Carlos' shoulder, letting her eyes wander about the first class complartment. They were, by far, the youngest couple in the area and everyone was staring at them, probably wondering who the hell they were.
"We're awfully popular" She said with a soft chuckle.

----

Alexi snorted, "I wasn't about to let you get away" he said with a grin. "Carlos isn't me, nor is Sami you, five years probably doesn't seem all that long to them. Though even if they do get engaged, it will probably be a long engagement, with you planning their wedding" He added with a chuckle.
"I would like to see them get married though" He really did like weddings, they were amusing, plus all the kids were old enough to enjoy weddings now, unlike before when Demitri and Kristen got married and Maddie was the only one and she had been so young.
"You think they'll have kids?" He mused, glancing at his wife curiously. A pregnant Sami would be amusing and he knew they would both make remarkable parents.

Kristen only shook her head. "Me and Alayna were trying to figure out why she would want his dagger." She explained. "There must be some reason, but I honestly don't know what. I don't know enough about angels to even guess really." She added with a small sigh. She squeaked in surprise then as Demitri lifted her up from the couch in the living room and brought her over to the kitchen.

Maddie was chuckling as she saw her parents come into the kitchen. It was normal for Demitri to pick up Kristen, her or Zach, but it was something that Maddie hadn't really seen in a while. She always thought it was cute though, because in that small moment, anyone could tell how much Kristen and Demitri loved each other. Demitri always held Kristen gently, and Kristen always had her arms around his neck with her head on his shoulder.
Kristen rolled her eyes at her husband playfully as she settled down into her chair. "Thanks." she murmured.

Alayna slid a plate over to her friend which was layered with pancakes. Kristen grinned and nodded a thanks as she poured syrup all over them.
"Maddie did most of the work this time," Alayna said, her voice still a bit raspy.
"Are they that bad?" Kristen muttered with a smirk.
"Hey, you haven't even tried them yet!" Maddie countered. "I think they came out fantastic. Not as good as Alayna's but they're good."

-------------------------

Carlos grinned as Sami rested against him. He wrapped an arm around her gently and kissed the top of her head lightly.
"Yes, even I forget sometimes that we have a jet at our disposal." Carlos admitted with a chuckle. He glanced around as Sami mentioned that they had become somewhat popular amoung first class. Carlos merely shrugged gently.

"Probably because we're so young." Carlos murmured. "Most people our age don't fly first class unless we're a somebody. They're probably just trying to figure out who we are." Carlos said with a small chuckle at that. Vlad, Sven, Demitri and Alexi were more famous in the Europe district due to their dominance in the business world. Keith's coven that Carlos and Maria had belong to were just a few pegs under Vlad's corporations, so they weren't as well known or popular.

"Don't let it bother you. They'll give up after an hour or so." Carlos said with a small shrug. Finding Sami's hand, Carlos laced his fingers with her and a small smile came to his face. He leaned back in his seat, with his mate in his arms as the plane took off.
"And the countdown begins." Carlos murmured, chuckling to himself.

-----------------------

"Like I could get very far." Maria called from her closet as she was changing. "If Carlos does propose, and if they are to get married, I'll certaintly help if Sami asks for it." Maria said as she came back out of the closet, wearing a long blue skirt and a white blouse.
"Let's take it one step at a time." Maria teased, laughing as Alexi questioned about the couple having children. "Let them be married. You know we were lucky to have children, as was Kristen and Demitri....Sami and Carlos might not be so lucky." Maria murmured gently. Vampires having children was rare, extremely rare. They had been lucky in having children, but Maria was sure that thousands of others probably tried and failed.

Demitri settled himself at the table next to Kristen and chuckled softly.
"I'm sure they're fine Maddie" He reassured his daughter, not that he could really have an opinion, he was not interested in trying the pancakes, having eaten enough food that his children and prepeared when they were little. He still had nightmares about Zach and Maddie's attempt at baking a birthday cake for Kristen, food for vampires was already horrible, but badly made food? It had tasted like dirt, rotten dirt if that was even a thing and of course he had had to pretend it tasted amazing. Wrinkling his nose at the memory he carefully moved his chair away from the table and grinned.

"Whats that smell?" Zach asked as he wandered into the kitchen. He had been sleeping and woken to the smell of pancakes, his running around and hunting had worn him out. Wrinkling his nose slightly, he flopped down next to Kristen and looked at her critically. "Aren't you supposed to be in bed?" He asked his mother curiously, ignoring his Dad's snort of amusement.

----

Sami chuckled, "So glad to know that you forget occasionally as well" She teased, if she had a jet, she probably wouldn't forget that she owned one.
"Crazy" She murmured, chuckling softly. She wasn't used to being stared at, it still wasn't something she had adjusted to. Though being with Carlos had meant that she did occasionally end up in the society pages and paparazzi were sometimes known to stalk the different Draq residences, and Carlos and Sami had gotten caught up in some different media events.

Smiling at her mate, she let him pull her close, her eyes settling on the small TV in front of them that had various different channels, but was currently programed to a map that showed where they were and how far they were from their destination. She glanced up curiously as a flight attendant began to make rounds, offering people drinks and inquiring about food orders, interestingly enough first class had their own, personal flight attendant, so they weren't required to wait or anything like that.

---

Alexi shrugged, "Dunno, I'm sure that if they want kids, they'll find a way to have them" He had a theory that genetics played a role in a vampres ability to conceive, and it seemed that both his family and Maria's families were able to have children so he had no doubt that Sami and Carlos would be able to have children if they wanted to. He didn't bother voicing that opinion however, since it was only a theory and instead grinned at his wife.
"What's on the agenda for today then?" He asked her curiously, it had been an exahusting day previously and he knew Maria wanted a break for all of them.

Kristen grinned at Demitri, noticing when he scooched his chair back a bit from the table. The smell of food probably wasn't all that appeasing to him. She took a bit from the pancakes and nodded in approval. Maddie grinned, and continued to eat.

She only looked up when Zach wandered into the kitchen. "I made pancakes. Mom likes them and I think they're delicious." Maddie added. Kristen smiled as Zach wandered over to her and sat down. She ignored his question until she heard Demitri snort behind her.
"Alright yes, Sven put me on bed rest last night." Kristen murmured softly. "But I'm much better now then I was last night. Otherwise I wouldn't have made it out of bed in the first place." Kristen said, though Alayna rolled her eyes gently at that.

As Alayna and Maddie finished eating, Alayna took of their plates and started to wash the dishes. Alayna always felt bad after cooking because she knew that the vampires in the house probably didn't like the smell too much. Since then she'd developed habits of cleaning things right away so that the stench wouldn't become unbearable.
"They were really good Maddie." Kristen said after she'd swallowed three pancakes. She sat back with a sigh while Maddie took up her mother's plate and went to help Alayna with the dishes.

---------------------------------

"I only forget because techquinically it belongs to Vlad." Carlos murmured softly. "Even though he lets others use it..." He added with a small shrug. Glancing at the screen, Carlos nudged Sami gently.
"Why not find something to watch?" Carlos asked. "Perhaps they have some decent movies. It'll make the flight go by faster." He added.

As the attendant's walked around the plane, Carlos recognized one of the women. She came over with a grin and nodded.
"Anything I can get for you two today Mr. Santiago?" She asked curiously.
"Afternoon Janette." Carlos grinned. "I'll have the usual," he added, giving her a smirk, to which Janette nodded in understanding before glancing over at Sami curiously.

----------------------------------------

Maria merely shrugged. She walked over to Alexi while she unbraided her hair. It fell in long waves around her and she smiled lightly as she stood in front of him.
"I was hoping to just relax today." Maria murmured. Yesterday had been so tiring that no one had woken up close to early. It was past noon, and Maria could still hear Nick and Serena sleeping peacefully down the hallway. "After yesterday....I don't want to do much or go anywhere really." Maria admitted with a small chuckled as she wrapped her arms around Alexi's neck. softly.

Zach snorted, looking at his mother intently.
"Mom, you coudl be half dead and still have the energy to drag yourself out of bed" He said, smiling playfully at her as his Dad nodded vigiriously in agreement.
"What are you guys doing today?" Demitri asked curiously, he wasn't sure if the whole family wanted to tag along while he went and looked at houses with his realtor.
"Dunno, what are you doing Dad?" Zach asked curiously.
"Meeting with my realtor to check out some houses and hopefully buy one" Demitri said with a small shrug.
"Cool, can I come?" Zach asked curiously.
"Of course, does anyone else want to tag along?" He asked curiously, looking around at the others.

----

Sami looked surprised as Carlos spoke to the attendant, apparently they knew eachother.
"Erm..." She trailed off, shrugging. "Can I just get a coke for now? I'll get something else in a bit" She added, looking at her mate and shrugging. She was a bit thrown at the prospect of Carlos actually knowing the attendant. It seemed everywhere they went he knew someone, it was a little bit daunting at times.

Settling back, she curled up in her rather roomy chair and began looking for a proper movie to watch.
"You in the mood for anything in particular?" She asked him as she watched previews for different movies.

---

"A day of relaxing?" Alexi grinned, "Sounds like a plan, we could just laze around, watch a movie, get the kids out of bed" He chukcled, they had been sleeping all day and he enjoyed waking their kids up, their reactions were hilarious.
He stretched out, kissing his wife's cheek and rose, pulling on an old sweat shirt, not bothering to dress beyond his comfortable clothes since they weren't planning on leaving the house.

"Only if it was important." Kristen corrected, ruffling Zach's hair gently. As Demitri mentioned leaving to find a house, Kristen raised an eye-brow curiously.
"You sure that's such a good idea?" Kristen asked. "I mean, you made a bit of a mess yesterday....the reporters are probably still swarming for information, and it doesn't look good that our house was destroyed since we're relatively close to the skii-resort." Kristen murmured quietly. She knew that the news could be crazy, especially when it came it things like this. "If anyone finds out your connected to the incident, it may not end well. I know you and your brothers are protected, but I wouldn't wanna push it." Kristen added, chewing her lip in worry.

She knew they needed to find a house, and that they couldn't stay with Vlad long. But at the same time, the incident was only just yesterday. Maddie was quiet as she washed the dishes besides Alayna, but her aunt could tell she was a bit tense. Alayna nudged her gently and gave her a smile of reassurance. That brought something of a smile back to Maddie's face and she nodded as Alayna handed her another plate to dry.
"Well, whatever you guys are doing, I'm gonna stay here. Maybe watch some movies. Vlad and Sven have a great collection." Maddie said as she started to put dishes away.

-----------

Janette nodded gently and wandered away. Once she was far enough, Carlos chuckled. "Janette is like me." Carlos said, giving Sami a small wink. "That's probably why Luca booked us this flight." Carlos mused, nodding in approval to himself. These were the reasons that Luca was always his travel-agent for anything, he knew Carlos well enough to include subtle things like having another vampire on a long flight.

"Movie? Hmm, maybe a good old-fashion drama?" Carlos mused. "Maybe a comedy? Anything love, you chose." He added with a small shrug.

---------

"We should probably wake up the children soon." Maria agreed, taking a step back as Alexi stood up from the bed. She nodded in agreement, running her fingers through her hair as she wandered out of the room. She made it to the kitchen and suppressed a groan as she reached for a bottle from the fridge. She despised having to drink from these things. But she wouldn't have a chance to go out hunting tonight. Not after what Demitri had done. Everyone would be on edge. Bottle blood was the only way to calm her burning throat.

Demitri frowned, "I know the timing isn't ideal, but my realtor is very discreet, and I have no intention of letting the media getting this story. Our family often buys property around the area for various reasons, it wont seem odd, plus our house was destroyed. Vlad's already put a spin on that in the news, he did an interview this morning, saying our family was attacked by these monsters and are recovering" He murmured, "If anything we've garnered the peoples sympathy" He murmured softly.
"We need a house Kristen, we can't stay here, everything will be fine" He added, smiling at Zach.

Zach glanced uncertainly between his parents and sister. Clearly something was up, but he did want to spend some time with his Dad and plus he was looking forward to getting first dibs on his bedroom. If he went to the new house and Maddie didn't, she couldn't argue him out of his choice. First come first served after all.

----

"Oh" Sami said, glancing at where the other vampire had gone. She had had no idea.
"Guess that is handy" She murmured, glancing at the screen again.
"Urgh" She muttered, there wasn't a ton of choices, there were some kid movies as well as some decent new releases.
"Perks of Being a Wallflower?" She suggested curiously, she knew the book had been fantastic. She had wanted to see the movie for awhile, but had never gotten the chance.

----

Alexi rubbed his hands together gleefully.
"You think the kids are going to be alright with just a relaxing day at home?" He asked curiously He had a feeling that his daughter would probably disappear for awhile, if only to go care fo her horses, but Nick may enjoy hanging out with his parents, doing a whole lot of nothing. He hoped the kids didn't plan on going anywhere or doing anything, since he had a feeling Maria may lose it at the first suggestion to leave the house.

Kristen sighed softly and merely nodded. So long as Demitri was careful. She was just worried about this going from bad to worse. They didn't have a good-track history with things just staying good, or just being a bit bag. It was usually one extreme or the other.
"I'll stay. You two go find a house." Kristen said, grinning softly at her son and husband. She had a feeling that she tried to go along, she'd be repremanded to stay in bed. Which actually started to sound pretty good. Getting out of bed earlier wasn't easy, and it was catching up to her quickly. Plus, having eaten, Kristen was slipping into something like a food coma.

Now that all the dishes were done and put away, Maddie nudged her mother gently.
"Movies? Or are you gonna take a nap?" Maddie teased.
"Why not both?" Kristen asked, and Maddie tugged on Kristen's hand to help her out of the chair.

-------------------

"Sure." Carlos agreed with a small nod. "I haven't read the book but Maria did, it became one of her favorites." Carlos mused with a content sigh. Janette came back around with two can's of soda in her hand.
"Here you are, and if you need anything just ask." Janette said, placing their drinks down in their cup holders which were part of the seats.
"Thank you Janette." Carlos said with a nod, slowly sipping from his can which of course was filled with blood. Though the outside can looked like it was some raspberry soda.

------------------

"I'm sure it's better than going to school." Maria reasoned as Alexi soon joined her. "I've done a few years in high-school, it wasn't exactly pleasent. Nor was univeristy for that matter....but that might just be the human aspect more than anything." Maria murmured with a small shrug. She took one last slip of her breakfast before she couldn't stand the stale taste anymore.
"I'll go wake up Serena." Maria said with a small smile as she wandered out of the kitchen. She pushed open her daughter's door gently and walked inside quietly. Sitting down gently on the girl's bed, Maria ran her hand over Serena's arm.
"Serena...." Maria called softly. "Darling....it's past noon...time to get up mi amor..." Maria said, leaning forward to kiss the girl's head.

Demitri grinned and grabbed his keys.
"Bye all" He said, dropping a kiss on Kristen's head as he sent Zach to grab a jacket, though it wasn't really cold out.
Meeting his son outside, he grinned as he realized Maddie's car had been delivered and Sven or Vlad must have dealt with it. Texting his daughter, he slid into his own car, laughing as Zach bounced inside with a huge grin. Zach loved when they took Demitri's fancy car, as he called it. Teenage boys were much more into cars then girls were and Zach appreciated Demitri's Astin Martin much more so then anyone else, though Demitri did turn down his requests to drive the car.

----

Sami grinned and cuddled against her mate, accepting her drink with a murmured 'thank you'.
"Guess having another vampire on board makes your thirst problem fairly non-existent, which is good. Massacre on an airplane' wouldn't go over well" She mused, sipping the fizzy pop with a grin.
"I loved the book when I was younger, and I meant to go see the movie when it came out in theaters, I just never had the time" She said with a sigh.

----

Alexi nodded and bounced down the hall to his son's room.
"Nick" He called, before pouncing on the bed and landing next to his son with a laugh. He bounced carefully, calling Nick's name over and over as he attempted to rouse his son.

Serena groaned but her eyes popped open as she glanced at her mother and sighed.
"M'awkae" She mumbled to her mother, fisting her eyes tiredly. "Wassgoingon?" She grumbled as she slowly sat up and stretched. Damn she was tired, but she had no idea why.

Kristen chuckled lightly as Demitri kissed her, and the next thing she knew, he and Zach were gone.
"Boys." Maddie muttered.
"Men." Kristen corrected, and Maddie laughed quietly. "Care to come watch some movies Alayna?" Kristen asked, realizing her friend was still sitting at the table. There was a mug of tea in her hands, and Alayna merely shook her head.
"You two go ahead." Alayna murmured softly, and when Maddie looked at her with concern, Alayna merely smiled lightly and nodded.

Kristen sighed, knowing better than to push Alayna, and she tugged her daughter down the hallway. They picked out a few movies and Kristen fell back onto the bed while Maddie set it up. Maddie wasn't at all surprised that half-way through the Hunger-games, Kristen was already fast asleep.

---------------------

"It definitely helps." Carlos agreed with a nod of agreement. He sighed contently again as the movie started, and found himself grinning again as Sami leaned against him. He squeezed her hand once before simply settling down to watch the movie and enjoy to quietness of the plane, and the simple bliss of having Sami beside him.

----------
"Good morning darling." Maria said with a soft chuckle as Serena slowly began to wake up. "It's time to wake up. I know there once was a time where vampires were considered creatures just of the night, but that time is long gone. No sleeping the day away." Maria teased, poking Serena's side playfully. Then she heard a growl and a thud, which meant Alexi and woken Nick and they were probably wrestling down the hallway.

Nick gasped sharply as Alexi jumped on the bed. He shot up, and nearly knocked his father in the head, purely out of instinctual reaction. Realizing it was just his father, Nick found himself growling.
"Dad!" He muttered before full on tackling his father to the ground.

Sami yawned and her eyes slowly flickered open as the plane began descende into the airport. Rubbing her eyes, she raked her fingers through her hair and fixed her messy pony tail. Nudging Carlos lightly, she smiled at her mate as the captain announced that they would arrive shortly. Leaning forward, she peered curiously out of the window as the plane pulled touched down. She hadn't been to the states before, despite having grown up in Canada. Her eyes grew wider and wider as she tried to take in all the sites, it was really, really cool and she couldn't wait to get to the damn beach.
"We're here" She breathed excitedly, practically bouncing in her seat with excitement. She ignored the amused glances she was gaining from the other first class passangers. Screw them, she was going on a cruise and going on her first vacation in quite some time.

----

Serena winced in symapthy as she heard the thudding down the hall. At least Maria had woken her up rather than her father. She loved Alexi, but he was totally crazy.
"M'up" She murmured to her mother, dragging herself out of bed. She grabbed a clean shirt and a pair of yoga pants, sensing the family wasn't doing much of anything today, and disappeared into her closet to dress, though her outfit wasn't much different then what she sleapt in. She was just swapping a tank top for a t-shirt and her yoga shorts for yoga pants.

Alexi laughed as Nick landed on his stomach, his ice blue eyes shining with amusement.
"Morning kiddo, time to get up" The hyper vampire said with a smirk before easily flipping Nick onto his back and rising to his own feet before helping his son to his feet.
"Your mother wants a lazy day at the house, but its still time to get up" He said with a chuckle.

Carlos hadn't even realized that he zoned out until Sami was nudging his side in an attempt to wake him up. He was awake the next instant of course, because he felt Sami's excitement as she peeked out the window. The captain made the annoucement that they were beginning their decent. The weather was gorgeous, as always in sunny South Miami, and he hoped everyone had a pleasant stay along with seeing them again on this airline.

Carlos yawned once and stretched as the plane came to a steady halt on the ground. After the ting of the 'fasten-seatbelt' sign went off, Carlos stood and reached for their carry on bags.
"Come on then, we don't want to keep South Beach waiting. I think it's nearly 10am." Carlos murmured, since they'd traveled through a few time zones. "We'll check into the hotel first since if I know my agent, our hotel is probably on the beach." Carlos added as they left the plane and wandered towards baggage claim.

The heat from outside was somewhat intense because even Carlos could sense a difference. Weather in Russia was always colder, and since they were now in Miami, it was like a whole other world entirely.

-----------------

Nick growled again as Alexi pushed him to the ground. He sighed roughly, taking his father's hand to stand up. He yawned and then groaned as his fangs decided to pop out. For some reason, it hurt, and Nick winced as they sliced into his bottom lip.
"Ow." Nick muttered, pressing his land to his lip as it bled lightly. "That's always a fun way to wake up." Nick muttered, more to his father than anything.
"What time is it?" Nick asked then, scratching his head and rubbing the remainder of sleep from his eyes.

"Nearly 1 in the afternoon." Maria said as she walked down the hallway from Serena's room.
"Yay, no school." Nick said, realizing they're day would be nearly half-way over even if they were going. Maria nodded in agreement and noticing her son's fangs she raised an eyebrow.
"Woke up hungry?" She asked. "There's blood in the fridge."
Nick made a face and shrugged. "I think it was more like Dad scaring the bejessus out of me by jumping on the bed in order to wake me up." Nick said, concentrating enough to retract his fangs so they would stop cutting into his mouth.

Sami smiled and followed Carlos off the plane, making sure she had all her belongings before she actually exited the plane. Stepping into the terminal, the first thing she felt was the heat, despite the air condition.
"Holy hell" She breathed, a small smile on their face as they quickly got through customs and got their bags before heading outside to find a ride to the hotel.

"Hopefully its on the beach" She murmured, grasping Carlos' free hand, since she had managed to snag a bag from him so he wasn't carrying all of them. She looked around, awed by the size of the airport. Even the one in Moscow wasn't this big, though the London Airport was huge, but there was something just massive about this place.
"Are we just catching a cab?" She asked Carlos curiously, still peering around intently. She had the urge to wander around and check this place out, though she had a feeling Carlos wouldn't allow her that, not with how he was gripping her hand like she was a child prone to running away, which she probably was.

----

Alexi smiled apologetically at his son, startling Nick probably wasn't the best plan, but it had been funny.
"Sorry kiddo we can go hunting later" He offered, clapping Nick lightly on the back, a small smile on his face.

Serena wandered into Nick's room, still rubbing her eyes tiredly.
"Whats up?" She asked, looking at her parents and brother.
"You okay?" She asked, seeing the blood on Nick's lip, she frowned reaching out to brush away a drop of blood from her brother's lip, a completely absentminded action.

Carlos sighed with relief of finally being out of the airport. Customs was always tedious to get through. Stepping out into the open air, Carlos took a deep breath and a grin formed on his face.
"Beinvenido a Miami." Carlos said, and just as Sami asked about getting a taxi a small black card drove up and Carlos waved them down.
"Taxi?" Carlos echoed, smirking at Sami. "Yea, I suppose you could call it that." He said, opening the door for Sami to slid into the back seat.

The driver wandered over and shook hands with Carlos. He took their bags and loaded them into the trunk while Carlos slid into the seat next to Sami. The car was cool with the air conditioning nearly blasting. As the driver sat back into the car, Carlos quickly told them where they were headed.
"Ah, that's a beauty that place." The man said with a small nod as he drove them from the airport. "I hope the flight wasn't too long."
"It was bearable. I've been on longer." Carlos agreed as he pointed out Sami's window. The streets were lined with palm trees as they left the main part of the city. Soon, sidewalks became lightly coated with sand, and people were wandering about in swimsuits, sundresses and shorts.
"Here you are." The driver said, pulling under the awning of a cozy-looking hotel. As Carlos stepped out from the car, the sounds of waves crashing against the shore became apparent, and he couldn't help the grin on his face.
He helped the man take the bags from the trunk, tipping him with another handshake as he drove off. "It's almost a shame we're only here for three days...." Carlos mused as they wandered into the lobby. Everything was open so there was a nice ocean breeze pushing through. Carlos spoke to the concieger quickly to get their room and lead Sami around the lobby t their room.
"26...here we are." Carlos said, sliding the card-key against the door handle and pushing the door open.

The room was quaint. Just the right size with a king-sized bed, a flat screen t.v., a desk with a lamp, a chair in the corner, a bathroom off to the side, and sliding glass door for a wall leading out to the beach.
"That's a sight." Carlos murmured with a smirk as he set their bags down on the bed.

---------------------

"You sure?" Nick asked when Alexi said they could go hunting later that evening. "I mean...Uncle Demitri kinda lost it yesterday. Is it safe for us to go hunting after that?" He asked and Maria glanced at her husband. He was going to answer that, because Maria was honestly worried about it as well. If it were up to her, they should stay in for the night, and maybe go tomorrow...or at the end of the week once things quieted down some.

"I'm fine...." Nick murmured as Serena proceeded to clean his lip up. He rolled his eyes softly but just let her be, knowing it was something she always did. "Can't always help when my fangs come out." Nick murmured with a small shrug. It didn't help that he was slightly thirsty. Not enough to go crazy, but enough that his body thought he would need his fangs soon.

Sami chuckled, sliding into the car and stared out the window, completely awed by the palm trees, she had never, ever seen them before.
She knew she looked like a complete tourist, but she couldn't actually help it. Once they arrived at the hotel, she matched Carlos' grin as she heard the waves, she couldn't wait to just lay on the beach and relax.

Once inside the room, she dragged her suitcase onto the bed and popped it open.
"Guess those swim suits Maria talked me into buying were a good idea" She commented to her mate, grabbing a black bikini from her bag and disappearing into the washroom to freshen up and change. She couldn't wait to lie on the beach in the honest to god sun. Russia was gorgeous but it wasn't really all that warm and she missed the heat. Once she had showered, rather rapidly. she emerged from the washroom wearing the bikini, a self-concious smile on her face. It wasn't often she wore swim wear, and she always felt a bit odd in it, especially when she was normally surrounded by girls like Kristen and Maria with their incredible bodies. She knew she wasn't bad looking and she was extremely fit but she still tended to worry.
"Whats the plan?" She asked curiously as she dug in her bag for something to wear over her suit.

----

Alexi smiled softly at Nick, "It doesn't really matter, as long as we make sure to deal with the bodies. But we can always wait until tomorrow if you think you can last that long. I'd rather we risked bad publicity then another diaster like Demitri's" He said.

Serena smiled, she didn't particularly care about hunting since she still didn't feel like she was ready. Shaking her head slightly at her disfunctional family, she headed down the stairs, intent on getting first dibs on the couch.

While Sami wandered into the washroom, Carlos walked over to the sliding glass door and tossed it open. Leaning gently against the frame, Carlos took a deep breath of the salty-sweet air. He was over-taken by the wind for a moment, which brought a memory forward so suddenly he couldn't pull himself from it.

The breeze was warm. It was making him sweat in his thick clothes and he almost couldn't stand it. Maria was laughing along with their younger brother, playing in the sand like two children who had never been to the beach before in their life. They came here nearly every day during the summer, yet they almost always treated it like it was the first day ever.
"Carlos! Come to the water! Don't be so sore!" Maria called. Carlos rolled his eyes and shook his head at his sister. His gaze wandered around the beach. They were the only ones around, but Carlos' mind was elsewhere entirely.
"You're thinking about her again?" Carlos blinked as his brother sat down beside him in the sand. He was soaking wet and chuckling softly at the expression on Carlos' face. "You are terrible at hiding your thoughts."
"You're one to talk." Carlos muttered.
"I honestly think you should just ask the girl already." his brother said. "I don't think you'll get another chance with a woman like her. She won't wait forever."
"Remind me again how you can give me advice?" Carlos muttered, shoving his brother into the sand as Maria wandered over to them both.
"So now what?" Maria asked.

"What's the plan?" Sami's voice broke through the memory and Carlos sucked in a sharp breath. Damn this was happening way too often. He rubbed his eyes softly and didn't turn to face his mate for a few seconds. The image of his brother stung more than it should have, but he didn't want to worry Sami with those thoughts. Smiling as though he was tired, Carlos turned to face his mate. Seeing her in a swimsuit, Carlos smirked and wound his arms around her waist gently, pressing a kiss to her shoulder.
"Well, it seems like you're ready for the beach, and I'm terribly over-dressed." Carlos said.

------------------

Maria glanced over as Serena wandered away from them and probably went downstairs. She chewed her lip slightly in worry as she glanced between her son and husband. Alexi had a good point; Nick was just now starting to gain habits of a true vampire. If he skipped on feedings, he could easily laspse into blood lust. They didn't need that anymore than Demitri had already given. Maria nodded in agreement with Alexi and wandered down to the livingroom to join her daughter on the sofa.
"Let's pick out a movie." Maria said. "Maybe have a marathon? Or something." She added with a small shrug.

Nick nodded as he listened to his father. He noticed when Serena and Maria left. He yawned and scratched his head again with another nod to his father.
"Hunting would be nice i we can go." Nick murmured softly. "Those bottles of blood are gross..." He admitted with a small chuckle.

Sami frowned slightly as she caught the odd look on Carlos' face. She was about to ask him what was wrong but she noted the slightly sad look on his face and let it drop. She smiled slightly, leaning against him, "Seems like you should get ready for the beach. We could go relax or we could go for a walk or.." She trailed off, shrugging as she grabbed a white, beach cover up from her bag, another thing that Maria had forced her to buy. Grabbing her bag, she tossed in a water bottle along with a bottle of sunscreen, knowing she'd need it.

She grinned as she saw Carlos in his own suit.
"Mmm" She murmured, golden-brown eyes lightening up. "I forgot how good you look in swim shorts" She said, grinning at him.
"So, shall we?" She asked curiously, sliding her sunglasses onto her head, another thing she knew she'd need.

---

Alexi smiled at his son, wrapping an arm around Nick's shoulder.
"If you get hungry later, let me know and we can go get something" He murmured to his son. He knew it was more important that Nick fed then anything else, lest they risk another blood-lust event and he had no desire to take down his own son.
"C'mon kiddo lets go downstairs" He said with a grin.

Serena grinned at her mother, immediately stretching out on the couch, knowing she risked Nick sitting on her, since it was just a thing.
You okay? She mentally asked her twin, she could feel his desire to feed and it worried her a bit.

"Mmm, going for a walk on the beach and finding a nice place to relax sounds perfect to me." Carlos said, smiling lightly as Sami rested against him. As she mentioned he should change, Carlos nodded silently in agreement. He pulled his swimsuit from his bag and quickly went to change. It took him practically three seconds since he didn't feel the need to shower as Sami had. Wandering back out of the bathroom, Carlos handed Sami a towel to toss into her bag.

Hearing Sami's comment, Carlos took a moment to glance at himself. He was fit of course, but he didn't really see what was so appealing. Then again, he found Sami irresistible in just about everything she wore, so he couldn't really say much. He grinned and a second later he had Sami wrapped in his arms and in a kiss.

Chuckling as he pulled away, Carlos nodded in agreement. "Yes, I just needed to get that out of my system. Ten hours on a plane with on-lookers wasn't exactly a nice environment to kiss you." Carlos said, grinning at Sami as he slowly withdrew his arms from her. "This was better." He added, kissing her again.
"So to the beach?" He asked, tilting his head curiously though his eyes were dancing lightly.

----------

Nick yawned again as Alexi lead him down to the living room. Maria and Serena already had a movie going, but he didn't pay much attention to the screen. Instead he flopped down on the couch where there was enough room, not even bothering to collaspe on his sister.
Tired Nick answered. Dad sucks at waking people up. he added. The energy he had a few minutes ago was purely from the fact that Alexi and scared him awake.

As Alexi came to sit on the couch, Maria moved over to press her head on his shoulder. she looked over at the children with a gentle smile on her face. She could tell that they were having their own private conversation since Nick glanced up over at her suddenly with a careless shrug. Over the few years, Maria had noticed their behavior whenever they were talking silently.
Maria rubbed her lips as she laughed quietly. It was hard to believe that a few short years ago, the two were hardly a year old. They were still as inseparable as the day they were born. And Maria was sure that wasn't going to change much.

Sami smiled softly and leaned into the kiss.
"No kidding, making out on a plane with a bunch of on-lookers would be horribly awkward" She murmured, stuffing the towels into her bag before slinging it over her shoulder.
"Lets go then" She murmured, stepping out the screen door, leaving Carlos to lock it and hold onto the key.

Stepping onto the sand, she immediately kicked off her flip flops, scooping them up and digging her toes into the warm sand.
"Oh my god" She moaned, knowing she was being dramatic, but she hadn't walked on a beach in forever. Pushing her shoes into her bag, she laced her fingers with Carlos.
"Lets go for a walk" She said with a small grin. She wanted to find a nice place to just relax, maybe get something to eat and just veg out.
"This is awesome" She murmured to her mate, heading down to the water to feel the water.

---

Serena smiled and ran her fingers through Nick's hair soothingly.
I know, Dad's done the same to me before. He takes far to much pleasure in scaring the hell outta us She said with a soft smile. She glanced over at her parents, they were both watching her and Nick curiously. She knew that they could tell when her and Nick were speaking telepathically, but she also knew it didn't bother them, which was a relief.

Alexi watched his children for a moment, a small smile on his face.
He knew exactly what his wife was thinking as they watched their kids for a moment longer.
"So what shall we watch?" The grinning vampire asked curiously.

Carlos laughed as Sami agreed with him and he couldn't help the smile on his face. As they left the room, Carlos locked the door behind him though he quickly tucked the key into Sami's bag. It was safer there than in his pocket. Stepping onto the sand, Carlos couldn't help the laugh at Sami's reaction either. He wasn't wearing anything other than his swimsuit, but the sand wouldn't have the safe effect on him as it was for Sami.
"When was the last time you were are a beach?" Carlos asked curiously, smoothly lacing his fingers with her's as they continued to walk down the beach.

The shore wasn't too crowded, but there were definitely a good number of people dotting the sand for as far as Carlos could see. There were venders here and there, selling everything from food to ice-cream and even inflatable tubes to use in the water.
"Hmm, how about here?" Carlos asked as they hit a point on the beach that wasn't overall crowded. They could sit in the sun and talk without being over-heard, since the next closets couple was a good twenty feet off. Glancing over his shoulder, Carlos realized they had walked a good distance from the hotel as well. He wasn't worried though.

--------------------------

Nick found himself humming as Serena ran her fingers through his hair. It was soooo soothing. He tilted his head into her hand, almost cat-like in wanting more attention. He hardly heard Maria's soft laughter from the other end of the couch. He could really care less that she was laughing at him though. He was content.
"Anything's fine." Nick murmured as a response to his father. "I'm not picky." He said. He wasn't in the mood to watch movies either really. He figured he'd pass out half-way through the film anyway, so it didn't matter to him what they watched.

"Have we bought any new ones?" Maria asked, reaching for the list of DVD's they had which was always resting on the coffee table. It made it more convientiant then wandering over to the massive case and looking through every DVD case to find a movie to watch.
"Maybe Harry Potter?" Maria asked. "I loved the books....though I can't really remember if I've sat through all the movies." Maria murmured, tapping her lips gently.

Sami smiled at Carlos.
"When I was back home in Vancouver" She said with a small frown. She really did love the beach but she hadn't had a chance to go since moving to Russia.
"Sure things" She said with a small grin, heading towards where Carlos had pointed out. She pulled the towels out of her bag and laid it down on sand, taking off her cover and stretching out for a moment before handing Carlos the sunscreen.
"Can you?" She asked, turning her back to him and handing him the tube, pulling her hair out of the way and allowing him full access to her back.

She leaned forward slightly, a small grin on her face as she stared at the water before glancing down and looking at all the people on the beach. It was, surprisingly, not overly crowded, however it was also early in the morning and she figured people wouldn't come till a bit later in the day.
"Its gorgeous" She murmured, eyes shining happily.

----

Serena continued to stroke Nick's hair absentmindedly, knowing how much he enjoyed it. She smiled slightly, nodding in agreement with her brother, she wasn't really in the mood for a movie, but she did perk up at the mention of Harry Potter, since it was her favourite book and movie series.

"Okay" Alexi agreed, "Good movies" He said with a grin, hopping up to pop the first disc in the player. Smiling, he grabbed the remote and cuddled down next to his wife, wrapping his arms around her and smiling.
"Nick's gunna fall asleep" He murmured, looking at his kids, both were tired, Nick more so then Serena though.

Carlos flopped back on the towels with a huff. He only sat up as Sami nudged him with the sunscreen. Seeing her back facing towards him, Carlos poured some of the lotion over her shoulders. He made sure to rub it in well enough that there was no white showing, and he covered her entire back nicely.
"There. Although I doubt you need too much of this now." Carlos murmured, handing her back the lotion and kissing her cheek. "You are immortal you know." He teased quietly as he rested back on his elbows.

As Sami mentioned the gorgeness of the beach, Carlos couldn't help but sigh in agreement.
"It is. This is one of the few places that still holds to beauty of the world." Carlos said. "Wait until we go to Mexico." Carlos added with a grin on his face. He would be lying if he said he wasn't excited for the cruise. Even though he had been on ships countless of times, and had been around the world more than he could count, this time it was completely different. This time, he was with Sami, the woman he was destined to be with...at that thought, Carlos reached forward to squeeze her hand gently.

---------------

Nick growled lightly at his father. So what if he was going to fall asleep? He felt tired for some reason. It wasn't like nick had been awake all night or anything....maybe it was just the craziness of the day before that was finally catching up to him. He didn't know. All he did know, was how comfortable he was with his head near Serena's lap, and her hand running through his hair. It was oddly soothing, and he wasn't about to stop her.

As Alexi put in the movie, Maria grinned and settled down into the couch. She found herself laughing again at the sight of her children. They were adorable. There was no other way to describe the duo.
Maria tugged on Alexi's shirt as he sat back down on the couch. She wanted to be close to him. Even though the were sitting half a breath apart on the sofa, that was still a distance too far. Sometimes, Maria wondered why it was so difficult for her to be far from Alexi for too long. But then she reminded herself that they had spent centuries apart. In her mind, her body was making up from loss time. It was almost like her soul had felt the pain all those years that she was in England while Alexi was in Russia, and it never wanted to feel that pain again. So even slight distances became unbearable. Leaning forward at the thought, Maria rested her head on Alexi's shoulder and sighed in content.

--------------

Alayna blinked, glancing up as she heard footsteps down the hallway. She was on her third cup of tea as Maddie strolled into the kitchen. She girl seemed confused as to why Alayna was still in the kitchen in the middle of the afternoon.
"Tea is a comfort, not just a source of caffine to wake me up in the morning." Alayna explained gently and Maddie nodded softly. She rummaged through the bags of food they'd bought at the store and found an apple to munch on.
"Kristen fell asleep?" Alayna asked, and Maddie nodded silently in agreement.
"She's hurt more than she'll admit." Maddie muttered.
"That's your mother. And a characteristic you acquired." Alayna added, sipping her tea as Maddie shrugged her shoulders. Maddie bit into her apple, and after a minute or so of silence she found the courage to speak.
"Anna was really at the house yesterday?" Maddie asked softly. "I over-heard Mom telling Dad this morning..." Maddie added in response to Alayna's sharp glance.

"Yes. She was." Alayna said, finding it pointless to lie to the young teenager.
"What did she want?" Maddie asked.
"A dagger that Keith had given to your mother as a Christmas gift some years ago." Alayna explained.
"What's so special about the dagger?" Maddie asked.
"It was Keith's personal dagger. An angel blade." Alayna said, and Maddie's eyes suddenly grew wide. Alayna frowned. "What is it?" She asked.
"Only angel blades can kill an Angel." Maddie whispered.
"Where did you hear that?" Alayna asked.
"I...I don't remember." Maddie said, frowning as she held her head. "I just remember knowing it...and demonic blades are worse because they're the direct opposite of angel blades. They can fatally wound an Angel...but...Angel's can't die from demonic blades right? Keith had a wound for years and it didn't kill him."
"It nearly did. But Angel's hurt to the point of death in combat return to Heaven." Alayna explained. Since that was something Keith had told her. What Maddie mentioned worried Alayna now. It would make sense as to why Anna wanted the blade. The fallen angel's would surely be on the brink of turning demonic, and thus wouldn't kill an angel...but an actual angel blade....and Keith's personal blade. Alayna chewed her lip for a moment, and then realized that Maddie was watching her with worry.

Alayna quickly smiled. "Don't worry. Keith's tough. Wherever he is....I'm sure he's just fine." Alayna murmured softly. "And I doubt Anna has the strength to hurt him so badly." she added and Maddie nodded lightly in agreement.