One x One with: Blacksoal

When Keith burst through the basement doors, he was expecting to see Iggy, sound asleep in the bed, maybe some blood or something, he was, however, not expecting to see the empty bed and the blood droplets.
"What the hell?" He muttered, maybe Roxa had moved Iggy, that was it. He nodded firmly, taking a deep, unnecessary breath as he centered himself and slowly headed up the stairs.

Alexi goggled at Roxa.
"With us? No...He left?" He groaned, slumping back against the wall in the hallway, completely ignoring her warnings about Demiri, he knew how to take care of his brother. Keith was going to flip, that was the only thought going through his mind as he heard the slightly hesitant footsteps in the living room and subsequently on the stairs. Finally a slightly disheveled Keith came into view.
"Where's Iggy?" He asked curiously, his tone even as he looked around. "And what was all the blood scent from?" He added, looking at Roxa curiously.

"I-Iggy err...left" Alexi mumbled, not looking at Keith, instead he focused on the floor, the floor was safe.
"Left? Where?" Keith asked, his tone now wavering slightly as he attempted to keep control.
"No idea" Alexi said, flashing Roxa a look, Keith was already irritated with her, the last thing he needed was another fight breaking out.
"He left? He was half dead" Keith said, still seemingly not comprehending what was being told to him.
"...." Alexi had nothing to say, Iggy was in pretty rough shape if his brother was any indication, so it should have been impossible for him to just up and leave.
"T-this is all my fault" Keith said suddenly, "He thought..." He trailed off, looking pained. He was really sturggling to keep control but the guilt racing through him was way to intense to really be calm. Damn it, Iggy had left? Why had Iggy left? Had it really been his fault? Of course it had, Iggy had thought Keith was leaving him, had abandoned him. Iggy had bared his soul to the older vampire and Keith, being the I love coward that he was, had left. He couldn't believe it. He mouthed wordlessly for a moment, hands clenching at his side as he tried to stop his temper from coming to the forefront. Why hadn't Roxa stopped him? Why hadn't he stayed? He just didn't understand.

"Keith?" Alexi stood slowly, Keith looked shocked, his hands kept repeatedly clenching into fists and his already pale skin was slightly flushed from anger or something similar. It wasn't a pretty sight, it was damn near terrifying.

Roxa winced as Alexi confirmed that Iggy was not with them. A part of her seemed to grow distant and wide-eyed. She couldn't believe it. If Iggy wasn't with Keith and Alexi, and Demetri didn't sense Iggy's presence within himself, then that meant that Iggy was...really gone. Out there somewhere, alone, hardly able to stand up straight and surrounded by a world filled with cruelty. What if someone had found him? What if they were hurting him?
What if Iggy couldn't find a place to stay for when the sun came back?!

For a moment Roxa simply held her head in her hands, feeling as though she had failed her simple task of keeping Iggy safe and well. She would have stayed in that position longer if Keith hadn't come around, and when she heard his voice she felt so many mixed emotions she wasn't sure what to do.
She was scared, angry, furious actually, there were so many reasons why she didn't want to be around Keith right now, she didn't know what to focus on. Keith might be really angry...no, he would be really angry. He might attack her, but then, who's to say she shouldn't just attack him? He'd known what was happening. He knew why Iggy had left, she knew he did. Or at least he had the gust of it. Why hadn't he just informed her so she could have been better prepared? Why did she always have to be kept in the dark and yet have to still watch and look after everything as if she understood?! Then there was the more literal sense of what the hell Keith did to make Iggy so scared that he had to leave in a condition like that!
What had Keith done? It was his fault it had to be.
She was so mad with him.

She let Alexi break the news to Keith, lifting her head out of her hands and just watching for a reaction. At first Keith seemed to not understand, or maybe he had but was hoping he'd misunderstood, but as time stretched on she could see the emotions clouding in his eyes, forming one heck of a storm.
"I couldn't stop him," Roxa whispered softly. "I tried. I had him, but he...slipped away...into some sort of shadow." Her eyes teared in frustration, "he didn't leave a scent behind; I couldn't track him. He just... he just kept saying that he had to go. And I...I still... I still don't even understand any of this!" She snapped at Keith suddenly.

There was guilt in his eyes, not for her, for him. He knew.
Keith said something about what Iggy had thought, and that made her snap.
"What did he think, Keith? Why did he leave!" She demanded sharply. "I deserve to know! If I had known I could have stopped him! You're always keeping me in the dark and then you wonder why I'm such a bitch to you. It's because of crap like this Keith!"
"Look, I don't know what the hell happened but you better bring him back before sunrise or so help me Keith I will make your life a living hell! You and your damn secrets. You know what? Forget it. I'll find him myself. Alexi can stay here and look after Demetri." She gave Alexi a stern look before tromping off down the stairs and away to the door.

She sort of was aware that she had picked some fighting words, Keith was probably going to either hurt her, yell at her, or sulk, but she didn't care so long as Iggy was found and brought home safely.
Just please, she thought to the great unknown, let him be safe.

Keith snarled as Roxa began to yell at him, demanding things from him, answers from him that he didn't want to give. His eyes flashed dangerously and Alexi made a noise of warning. Keith was already agitated enough and Roxa's behaviour and attitude were just going to upset him more.

"No one expected you to stop him" Alexi murmured to Roxa, "It was just something that happened" He added, before she could start yelling at them or what not.
"Roxa" Keith hissed harshly, "What happened between me and Iggy will stay that way, between us. It is none of your damn business" He hissed dangerously.
"You are not his mother nor are you mine. He is an adult and so am I. If he chose to leave and the reasons why, those are his reasons. Yes, I may be privvy to certain information that you are not but it is personal and you will drop this" He hissed.
"Do not presume to threaten me Roxa" He added as she started in on the threats of making his life hell. He really had no qualms about killing her, yes he'd probably mourn a little bit, but if she continued as she was, he'd probably kill her and walk away without a bother. Perhaps that was Raven's influence on him, but he really didn't give a damn at the moment.

He watched her stomp away, a sneer forming on his face as his temper continued to spark and flare.
Alexi whined submissively and moved into Demitri's room, leaving Roxa to pout and Keith to his temper, intent on keeping him and his brother safe. He knew Keith was angry and so was Roxa and he had a feeling that world war three was going to break out of they continued on as they were. He sighed and cradled his head in his hands, glancing at Demitri for a moment before going back to his brooding.
"Hurry up and wake up, you're better at calming them down then I am" The blond grumbled to the older russian.


OOC: Urgh, crummy post.

Roxa sighed, almost in relief as Alexi commented on Iggy's 'escaping' not being her fault. Somehow it seemed to offer her some reassurance, but not much. Iggy was still out there by himself.

What little calming down she did was easily snuffed out by Keith's sharp defense of secrecy. He still refused to tell her anything! Iggy could be in danger! This information could help her find him and Keith wanted to keep it too himself! Her own fists clenched, and her teeth compressed together in a border-line painful grind.
"He IS a child!" She snapped back, "He may be older in years but he's frozen at a point of prematurity! It doesn't matter how old his body gets, he'll still have the mind of a child! I may not be his mother but I am the only person that looks after him. If I stepped down no one would care for him and he'd be back to sulking in the basement ripping his wrists apart! So I see myself as more than entitled to know what the hell is happening here."

Her teeth bared at him in an instinctual way, tensing up as Keith did. Unlike him she had no intent to kill, but honestly she had never been so angry in her life. There was Keith, standing there, arguing with her, and not moving a muscle to help track Iggy down. It sickened her.
"I'll threaten you all I like," she growled. "You're not the same man you once were, not with that...THING lurking inside you. I hope she rots you from the inside."

With that snarled she pushed past and headed for the door in a temper no man would dare stand in the way of. "You might not care but I am going to look for him. I refuse to simply let him die out there."
She nearly ripped the door off it's hinges as she exited, slamming it shut behind her in utter and total fury.
Damn him.
She couldn't believe it.

Frantically she searched around eyes nose and ears for any sense of Iggy, and found not a trace. The scents of him were all too old to be his current leave, and already lost it was all she could do to wander around hoping for some hint of his whereabouts.
Hoping she wouldn't run out of time.
---
Half-hearted naps, that was what had transpired for the last little while. Somewhere along the lines of introductions Iggy'd simply decided he'd had enough socialisation, and had fallen asleep in Rao's lap. It wasn't like he had much of a choice. He was far too tired to complain about a luxury like being held and looked after.
He wasn't sure how long he'd been out, but when his eyes slid open he'd found himself staring into the foggy, deceased eyes of a half eaten deer. He felt the warmth of a fire to his left side, and when he looked up it was still well into night, though the trees did make for excellent coverage. Quietly Iggy let his eyes side over, seeing the two girls leaning against one another, seated around the fire and cooking what looked like deer meat on a stick.
Iggy felt his mouth water, but failed to vocalise any needs he might have. He wasn't certain about his safety in this place, and they were leaving him alone so long as he seemed to still be sleeping. It gave him time to collect his scattered brain and think things through with as much of an attention span as he could muster.
He remembered everything this time, and it wasn't so much figuring out the past as planning the future. He had to be careful, these beings were a lot stronger than he was at the moment, and if he angered them they could easily end his life.
Then there was always that conflict of if he even wanted to leave. He had no where else to go if he did, and only some enemies to gain.
Iggy had enough enemies as is.
Perhapes it would be better to play this whole thing out? He frowned lightly, looking to the floor and letting out a slow breath. A little bit of fancy... if he wasn't mistaken that meant these girls thought he was rich. Well...he was...had been...always. But they'd said it with the subject of back home, and in his current demonic state of being, he bet they meant hell.
Iggy'd never been to hell before.
This could be a problem.

"Well well, look who's awake." Rao purred softly, making Envy turn her head and relieve her hands from lingering at the fire's edges.
Looked like pondering time was over for now. Iggy let his black and Sapphire ringed eyes flicker over to focus on them quietly, not uttering a single sound nor moving a muscle. He wasn't about to start anything.
"You want some food?" Envy muttered softly in her dual toned, ghostly voice, and she smiled as Iggy hesitated to do anything, but looked at the deer in contemplation. "Your chains long enough to reach, come over here. You should be strong enough to walk now that you've had some rest."
Iggy continued not to move and Rao giggled, "Don't be like that, come here we've got one ready for you. You can trust us, if we were going to eat you we would have."
Iggy watched the fallen angel reach out her hand for his, but Iggy failed to take it, instead, he pulled his rm underneath his body and slowly pushed himself up and into a sitting position, giving some huffs before moving to take the next step and stand.
Rao clapped her hands in delight and immediately stood, wandering to him and casually gripping his hand and pulling him over to the fire, which of course made him very nervous. He watched Rao sit again, before issuing a sharp tug on his hand and forcing him to sit, if not fall unto his butt, beside the fire. It was then that Envy handed him a skewer, and Iggy reluctantly obliged. He was too hungry to refuse this offer.
But as the young demon bit into the well cooked meat, he couldn't help but feel as though he'd sealed some sort of deal with these girls, as if accepting their help was signing a contract all it's own.
He was indebted to them now.

Keith sneered, his eyes flashing dangerously.
"He's not a vampire anymore" he growled at her, "Yes, when he was a vampire he was stuck. Demons aren't vampries Roxa. They age, they grow. They're immortal but they aren't trapped at a certain age" He hissed.
"He is no longer a child and you damn well aren't the only one who gives a damn about him. Look at Demitri, he gave up his I love soul so Iggy could stay here. Stay with us" He spat, he wasn't going to argue his care for Iggy, but he wouldn't have Roxa slandering Demitri.

"Shockingly Raven has done nothing to my personality. I'm just fed up with your bitching about every little thing. Grow up" He hissed in annoaynce. Yes, perhaps Raven had effected him slightly, taken down his filters and allowed him to speak his mind, maybe that was what had happened. But all he really knew in that moment was that he was extrordinarily pissed off and Roxa was the target.
"Go then, see if you can hunt him down. I doubt you'll be able to track a demon though, its not like he'll leave a trail to follow" He hissed mockingly as she walked off.

Alexi groaned. Joy. He glanced at Demitri again, he was still unconcious, or sleeping or whatever you wanted to call it. He wasn't sure what to make of the whole situation. Keith was really pissed, a lot more angry then he'd seen him in awhile, while Roxa might think that this anger was stemming from Raven's influence, Alexi knew better. Keith had a temper, he always had, but he ususally kept a fairly tight leash on it. Historically speaking, when Keith got pissed off, towns were utterly destroyed. He wasn't sure how his temper would come out now, but he hoped that Shaye and Vaix's house survived the inevitable.

Roxa was only half listening to Keith's returning snarls as she made her way to the door. She was so done with him and his attitude, though she did stop a little to contemplate the comment on Demetri's care. Yes...she supposed that was true, but Demetri wasn't in any condition to help Iggy now, and that was what she was talking about, right now.

Perhapes she was just being stubborn but Iggy would always be a child to her, even if he did grow bigger. She frowned at the idea. After hundred years of knowing him to be small and weak, seeing having changed so drastically was almost too much for her to take in. Right now Roxa was stuck in the past, trying to argue the present.

It was then that Keith dismissed her and head snapped round to glare at him as she gripped the door. "Fine! I will! I know it may be hopeless but at least I'm trying to help him!" She snarled before exiting with a fair amount of force, as previously described.

It was then that her search took place, with no scent to follow and no clues to help her out it was all she could do to wander around aimlessly thinking about where he could possibly go. To Vaix perhaps? Oh lord she hoped not, but when Iggy was upset he didn't think straight, and if he'd felt the need to abandon one house it stood to reason he might seek sanctuary in the other half of the family. So off she went, still fuming as she approached Aren's home. Trying to pull herself together as she knocked on the door.
A few moments passed, then with a creek Aren stood with the door in hand, looking surprised to see her.

"Eh...Roxa right? What can I do for you?"
"Have you seen Iggy?" Roxa asked weakly, "As he been in there or around here recently?"
Aren tilted his head to one side, "Uh..no. I was under the impression he was too wounded to be making any trips alone?"
"He is," she sighed, "But he...ran away. I'm trying to find him."
Aren frowned, "You know it's nearly impossible to find a demon if they don't wish to be found right?"
"That's what everyone tells me," Roxa muttered quietly.
Aren was silent for a moment, thinking, before he finally spoke again. "Iggy's host can lead you too him. When he's well enough. They're bound together by a contract to protect each other's lives. Demetri might not be able to point out the location on a map, but if he follows his instincts he'll find Iggy just fine."
"Demetri is too wounded to be doing anything like that," Roxa muttered back, looking frustrated. "I need to find Iggy before it gets light out again."
Aren blinked quietly, "Well, I guess the only other thing to do is use another demon? They can sense each other's power if they need to find one another. But Drake can't go," he added quickly, "He's needed here, for Vaix and Shaye."
"But Iggy could die," Roxa whimpered in despair.
Aren shook his head and sighed, "Roxa, I doubt Iggy's stupid enough to let himself bake, he'll find shelter before the sun comes up. No matter how wounded he is. Demons don't like to die."
Roxa moaned and sighed, looking off to her right defeatedly, and Aren's brow creased.
"Wait here a moment," he muttered, turning and walking inside, and without a choice in the matter Roxa did just that, smiling as she saw Drake accompany Aren in the doorway.

Drake's ears flicked a bunch her her direction before flattening a little, and calmly without a single word, he turned his head and pointed to the west. "He's that way, and is currently stationary."
"How do you know that?" Roxa asked curiously.
And Drake sighed, "Because if he was moving his power would seem to constantly grow fainter and fainter. He's pretty far away as is. If you wanted to reach him before day break I'd travel at a jog if I were you."
"Thank you so much!" Roxa gasped, before Drake nodded and turned to head back inside with Aren.
"Good night, Roxa," Aren muttered, waving at her as she turned to run, "best of luck to ya!"

Keith snarled again before turning and stalking into Shaye and Vaix's room. God he wanted to hit something, hit her preferrably, but he wasn't about to hit a woman. Hands clenched into fists, he sat down on the bed, body practically viberating with anger as he worked to try and calm himself down. He could hear Adrian down the hall with Demitri, fussing over his brother and talking animatedly now that the drama and danger had passed. He sighed, leaning forward to cradle his head in his hands. What the hell was he going to do? He cared deeply for Demitri, he was the first person he had felt these emotions for since his mate had died all those years ago. Then, out of nowhere (or seemingly so), Iggy had started confessing all these things to Keith, things Keith was sure he couldn't handle, especially not now what with everything going on. He basically had to re-examine his entire relationship with Iggy and see how he truly felt. Was it worth it to hurt Demitri for Iggy? Did he even 'like' Iggy in that way? Was Iggy just screwing with him? He really had no idea what to do.

----

Shaye was startled awake as someone knocked on the door. Groaning quietly, she rubbed her head and glanced around. She was still lying on the couch, but she had no idea where anyone else was. Frowning, she gave her head a shake and sighed in relief as she heard Aren speaking to someone, Roxa? At the door and then heard Drake begin to talk. They were talking about Iggy. Frowning in confusion, she looked around for Vaix before she heard him talking animatedly to Xayden in the other room. She could also hear Carr puttering about with her husband and son. Sighing contently as she realized she knew where her family was located, she carefully pulled herself up off of the couch, surpressing her gasp of surprise when she realized she'd grown a bit. She looked about four months pregnant now, which was typical of a vampire pregancy. resting her hand on the slight swell of her stomach, she walked into the entrance way to investigate what was going on.

With a defeated huff and a returning wave Roxa set off just as Shaye started to approach Aren's front door. Which was probably a good thing because honestly Roxa wasn't up for much conversation at the moment. At least she was a little less blind than before, she had a general direction in which she could run, but not much. She was still chasing a hopeless cause here. There was no telling if Iggy would even come with her when she found him. He wasn't lost after all, for all she knew he'd just run even farther away. But she couldn't give up, she had to try she just had too.

Aren and Drake had been about to head back in when Shaye came round, and Aren smiled at her warmly. "Hi Shaye! How are you? Have a good sleep?" He let Drake brush past him, and pause momentarily, 'looking' to her swollen belly.
"Babies looking good," he commented with a smile of his own. "It's developing nicely." He'd then lift his face-less head and stare at her a few moments, as if to read her thoughts before continuing on his way and heading towards where Vaix and Xayden where chilling. Vaix was getting...worse, but that was too be expected. Vaix would get worse before he got better. It was like batting a rat's nest, luring out the problem in one big wave before crushing it out all together, rather than letting it adapt and grow and killing one or two rats, or problems in this case, at a time.
"Shaye," Drake muttered calmly before heading into the living room, "When you have some free time, I'd like to talk to you about something...unpleasant. It's no rush though. Whenever you're ready." He looked over his shoulder to give her a gentle smile before moving into the living room.
Aren blinked cluelessly then turned to Shaye, "That was Roxa at the door by the way. She was looking for Iggy by the sounds of it. Hope she finds him." He gave a passive shrug, honestly he wasn't worried, but what did he know?

Shaye looked at Drake, frowning slightly as he spoke to her. She was happy to hear that the baby was doing well, but the second comment left her feeling a bit...dazed.
"Oh, alright" She murmured to the demon, glancing at her brother as he spoke about Roxa and Iggy.
"Huh" She mumbled, not at all intelligently, she had no idea what was going on at her house with all of the others and frankly, she really didn't give a damn.
Walking over to Aren, the brunette nestled herself in his arms, needing to feel loved and cared for, for a moment. She was beginning to feel the onset of pregnancy hormones and now she felt all out of sorts. She was stressed about the upcoming conversation she needed to have with Drake, she wasn't dense, she knew what it was about, she wasn't disillusioned when it came to Vaix and his mental health, perhaps she was just naive.
"This sucks" She grumbled against her brother, thank god he was here. She needed someone like him in her life, a constant, normal presence, who cared about her and loved her unconditionally. Oh she knew Vaix loved and cared for her, but he was so messed up emotionally and mentally that she often worried that once he was better, once he was fixed, he wouldn't have the same feelings for her that he once had. She understood that her presence in his life was as his anchor, the person that kept him sane when the dark things closed in. Once that need was gone, what was she really? Gah she was being dramatic. With a sniff, she closed her eyes, not really worrying about bothering her brother, he encouraged her to seek him out when she felt like this, wanting to make up for a messed up childhood for both of them. She felt the skin on her body ripple slightly, her ability to shift was beginning to act up, as it normally did with her pregnancy, and she knew that soon she would be forced to drop some of her everyday shifts, such as the smooth skin on her back. It wasn't really a hardship for her, but she also didn't want to stress anyone out about the scars that stood livid against her skin.

Drake gave her a bit of a sad smile at Shaye's response. Being telepathic meant he knew a lot of things, like her internal reaction to his words. He didn't want to stress her out, he hated knowing he was doing it to her, but this was simply something that couldn't be avoided forever. A few days at most. He wanted her to decide before the baby was born. As sad as it was to see her so unhappy when she should be glowing, the inevitable was coming.

However Aren wasn't telepathic, and honestly he was sort of clueless about what was happening here. He spoke the happenings to Shaye simply because he knew those people were in her house, and she had every right to know, but her reaction suggested she was not at all interested in such things, which made him worry that there was other things getting her down. Like Drake muttering ominous messages about needing to talk. Man, he knew the demon was an angel now but you could certainly tell he'd once been from hell. Compared to most demons he was a saint, but among angels he certainly was...daunting.
It would be lying if Aren said he wasn't surprised to have Shaye suddenly in his arms, it took him a second or too to realise her need for comfort and return the affection by wrapping his own arms around her. She was so sad, he little sister, he hated it. Drake should have just shut his mouth and not said what he had said. Shaye had enough on her plate as it is without needing 'serious talks' to bump up the pressure.
He sighed as Shaye vocalised her feelings, and Aren frowned softly. "I know, I wish I could help you. I hate that you're taking on all this burden. It's not fair." And he meant that truthfully. He wanted to help, take some of the load for her. Why did all her problems have to be so personal that only she could deal with them? Why couldn't she have regular problems like 'My car broke down and I need a ride'?
"Would you like to go for a walk with me?" He asked softly, "Get some fresh air? Do some baby shopping?" Get away from all this... He added silently.
He just didn't want her to be sad anymore, and he'd do whatever it took.

Shaye grinned as her brother asked if she wanted to go shopping.
"I'd love to" She said with a grin, shopping sounded lovely and she rather enjoyed the idea of stocking up on baby things and getting out of the house.
"Let me change and grab my bag" She said with a grin, breaking away from her brother's hug and walking sedately up the stairs. She had a bit more of a bounce to her step now and she seemed happier. Quickly changing into some looser clothes, the girl snagged her purse and sat down on the bed to pull her flats on. Damn she forgot how inconvient being pregnant was.

Walking back downstairs, she grinned at her brother and pushed her hair behind her ears.
"Ready to go?" She asked, practically bouncing with excitement. "We should drive though" She murmured softly. "Especially if we need some big things, most of our baby stuff is at the house and I don't really want to go over there and get it. I have a feeling we'll be doing most of the baby stuff here" She added as they walked outside. "What with Vaix being the way he is, I don't particularly want to do this on my own and Vaix isn't really stable enough right now" She said with a soft sigh.

She rubbed a hand over her slightly protruding stomach, smiling as she did so. This is why she enjoyed being with her brother so much, he was so calm, so soothing and that was what she really needed right now. No stress, just enjoy the whole being pregnant and having a kid, again, thing.

Aren sighed with relief as Shaye smiled up at him and exclaimed her pleasure and desire to go shopping for her unborn baby. When she turned to go he dismissed her with a weak smile and a nod, turning to grab his coat before he realised he technically didn't need it anymore, now that he was a vampire. However, for comfort's sake, he slipped it on anyways, popping the collar and smoothing the sleeves like he always did. His wallet was always in his coat pocket, which he admitted probably wasn't the safest place for it, but being a boy he had no desire to move it elsewhere. Convienice had his upper hand.

He watched Shaye walk back down the stairs with all that pep in her step, and felt himself relax a little. He was so glad she'd cheered up now; seeing her depressed, depressed him. His smile was a little warmer as he opened his hand to her as she neared. A big brother looking out for the little sister, requesting a hand to hold so she didn't wander or get lost. He knew those times were over now, but something about them was still so precious it made letting go a trouble all it's own. Shaye wasn't a toddler anymore, but she'd always be his baby sister.
"Sure, whichever you'd prefer Shaye. If you think the car would be better than by all means. Just remember we still have stuff we can use from Xayden. Like his crib, the baby bottles, Jolly Jumper you know...stuff." He chuckled softly as he escorted her out of the house. "We're taking off Drake!" He called, and there was a grunt in return, as well as a "Have fun!"
Then there was some Xayden demands. "Huh? Where are they going?! Can I go too?"
"Xayden they're going shopping," Drake muttered back, and Xayden gasped.
"Toy shopping?!"
"No no, baby shopping," Drake purred back, and Xayden groaned.
"Oh they can do that on their own..." And Drake chuckled lightly in amusement.

Aren frowned as they stepped outside and the conversation turned a little sour. Vaix... that ass? He sighed, whether he had her hand to squeeze or had to suffice in other ways by wrapping an arm around her shoulders and giving her a half hug, he'd acknowledge her turmoil in a gentle way.
"Are you...uh...nevermind," he muttered softly. "I'm sure Drake can fix him. If he can't, then nobody can. I've never known someone who knows the mind better than he does. Point is, you'll be a loving family again before too long." He smiled softly over at her.
Family...that made him think of Vaix's half of family, and his brow creased.
"What...was that? Back at Keith's house. The building was collapsing from the fight that broke out. Is that normal or..." He gave her a half smile, oblivious as he was, he'd assumed he was being funny by asking if that was normal. Of course something like that couldn't be normal. Siblings didn't fight like that, they loved one another, how could they be at each other's throats? It had to have been a freak situation. It was the only explanation, something had happened that was out of line, and that's what made him nosey. What had happened?

He opened the door to the car for Shaye, before walking around to he driver' side and hopping in himself. Staring the engine and backing out of the driveway. He intended to take Shaye to the mall, simply because it had the largest varieties of everything, rather than one independent store, but Shaye could always steer them in another direction if she so choose.
"The mall ok?" he double checked with her as he drove, finding a brake to say so in whatever conversation they could be having at the time.

Shaye grinned and offered Aren her hand as they walked to the car. She sighed as he began to ask the inevitable questions, the questions that hadn answers that he didn't want to hear.
"Mall's fine" She murmured as she clambered into the truck, worrying her lip for a moment.
"Unfortunately what happened at Keith's house was sort of a normal occurance" She said, running her fingers through her hair. "Vaix and Iggy don't have the best of relationships. Well to be honest, Vaix detestes, loathes Iggy and Iggy worships Vaix, or used to. He wants nothing more then a good relationship with his big brother. Vaix has always hated Iggy though, I think he was jealous of him to be honest, ever since they were mortal children. The Vaix was turned and he had that damn demon yapping in his ear, there relationship didn't really even have a chance" She murmured. "Normally their altercations aren't nearly as violent, but Vaix got ansy with Iggy as a demon so near to Xayden. Then they fought, Demitri and Keith tried to break them up, Vaix went after Demitri, since he's Iggy's host..." She trailed off. "You saw the aftermath" She shrugged.

She looked thoughtful for a moment, before trying to switch back to 'Happy Shaye' as she dug in her purse for a pen and paper. She needed a list of things to get for this baby, but Aren was right, they did have most of the bigger things.
"I hope so" She murmured as he mentioned having a happy family. Her childhood had been miserable and she wouldn't allow the same for her own children. If that meant being a single parent for a little while, until Vaix was one hundred percent again, she could handle it.
Chewing her lip, she began to jot items down, thinking about what she needed.
"We need a lot still though, especially if this one ages as fast as Xayden does, you have to get stuff across the board, for all ages, not to mention we don't know which sex this one is yet" She rested her hand on her stomach. She sort of wanted a little girl, but as long as her child was healthy she was totally okay with whatever gender child she had.

Aren nodded as Shaye confirmed wanting to go to the mall, and continued on his route as planned, listening to her in what could only be described as disbelief. He just...didn't understand how brothers could hate each other so much. Well, actually from Shaye's story it sounded more like Vaix just hated Iggy and Iggy struggled to try and maintain any relationship with the guy.
Honestly the more Aren heard about Vaix and his behaviour the more he disliked him. He seemed so selfish, so in his own world that he failed to see the people around him that needed him and his love. If he heard Shaye's story properly than the only thing that had needed to change to keep that incident from happening was for Vaix to smarten up.
That damn vampire was ruining the life of his sister, nephew, and unborn relation, seemingly without any feelings of guilt or regret. Just selfish desire.

He gripped the steering wheel tightly, bending it a little out of shape unknowingly, before he sighed and shook his head. Not speaking a word to reply to that, what was there to even say? He just couldn't fathom it. He was at a loss for words at the moment. At this point he almost felt like Shaye's happy family would only come when she cut Vaix free of her life, but he wouldn't bring that up again. It was an old plea, he'd said it before and Shaye had denied doing so. Though it hurt him to see her suffer, he understood there was nothing he could do to change her mind, only try and cushion the blows or heal the wounds that man created on her.

It was then that his vents were cut short by Shaye's response about needing more stuff for her baby, and he forced a weak smile. "Just be sure to buy only unisex objects at the moment I suppose. But I'm sure Drake will be able to reveal the secrets soon enough. Which reminds me: I should stop at the blood bank and pick up some stock from our supplier. Since the baby drinks both milk and blood and we're running a little low as of late. Other than that, I'll let you lead me along to the necessities." He gave a soft chuckle as he pulled into the parking lot and sighed, turning to her after a spot on parking job.
"Ready to go?"

Shaye nodded in agreement, she'd just get a few things, no sense in really going overboard. She had enough stuff left over from Xayden, and she could always pick up stuff she needed, as she needed it.
Sliding out of the truck, she slung her bag over her shoulder, glancing around the mall parking lot curiously. It was decidedly empty, which was a bit odd, but she didn't really mind to much.

Rubbing her stomach absentmindedly, though the bump was barely visible, she headed towards the main entrance, smiling at her brother despite the scowl on his face. It seemed that he, like all men, whether they were mortal or not, hated hunting.
"So, what do you think about this whole situation? utterly stupid right?" She asked curiously. She may love Vaix, but she sure as hell didn't condone what he had done, nor did she appreciate any of it. She knew Vaix wasn't perfect, none of them were, and she also knew that noen of them were infallible. Hell Keith had been dumb enough to make a deal with Raven, Iggy had changed Roxa of all people into a vampire. She was probably the biggest beacon for trouble, like ever, and Vaix, well Vaix was just plain messed up. In short, they were one ragtag group of drama. Her poor brother, he must think they were all nuts, her especially since she tried keeping the entire group together.

Stepping into the mall, she glanced around curiously, there was barely anyone inside. Something about a near empty mall was a bit disconcerning, but she shoved the anxity aside as she looked at the mall directory for the nearest baby store.
"Just upstairs" She chirpped happily, offering Aren another grin.

----

Further down the deserted mall, a large, black figure sniffed the air appreciatively.
"She's hear" The gruff voice purred, a forked tounge flicking out of pale lips as if to test the air. "She is pregnant again" The wicked mouth grinned, revealing two, sharp dangerous fangs, venom dripping down them. The odd figures companions chittered noisly, almost happily.
"We can feed soon" The speaker whispered, stepping into the shadows of the empty corridor and moving down the hallway, the few human patrons who had ignored the terrifying aura coming off the large structure, completely unaware of the danger they were in.

Aren watched Shaye rub her stomach quietly as they walked towards the mall, and gave a weak smile. He'd protect this child from all the harm it's father could cause. At least one of Shaye's children would have a phyco-less childhood then.
Shaye assumptions about his grumpy demeanor where misplaced however, he'd done the shopping for Xayden when he'd been about to be delivered, he had no issue with shopping for something like this. Even if it wasn't his favorite activity by far, there was something humbling about shopping for infants.
Maybe he was just weird.

But no, it was Vaix that made him frown; Vaix and his stupid antics. Shopping was a holiday compared to that man. When Shaye asked him what he thought he had to bite his lip from spewing out all the bad things he thought about this colossal shit storm. He was so worked up he hadn't even noticed the mall was empty. Heck it could be full of people and he wouldn't know any different either. It was just him, Shaye, and his degrading thoughts.
"Stupid is...a way to put it. Yes. To fight like that, over jealousy, to put your family in that kind of danger." His hands balled into fists and he took in a breath, before releasing it and relaxing again, looking back to Shaye with a weak smile. "Well, it's just no good Shaye."
No good. Lets just leave it at that, he thought to himself dryly. No need to start a fuss when he was supposed to be taking the stress off Shaye's shoulder. He could always punch the asshole in the nose later.
The thought made him smile, though in his heart he knew he could never do such a thing. It'd only make Shaye upset, because as much as he was beginning to loath Vaix, he happened to be Shaye's special bond. It would devastate her if anything happened to him. It just...wasn't worth it.
But damn, he'd sure love to give it a try. Hey maybe he'd knock some sanity into the demon? He gave a dark sort of smirk before running his fingers through his hair and wiping the whole thing off the table. It wasn't going to happen. He'd be the big boy in this picture.

He glanced at Shaye as she voiced about things being upstairs and nodded with a small smile. "Sounds good, I'll follow you there." And with that voiced he moved to take her hand, then hesitated.
She wasn't a little girl anymore, and as much as he felt he needed to protect her, maybe there were some things better left to kids.
"It's hard to adjust to you not being a little kid anymore," he chuckled softly. "I think I almost miss it, in a way."
But not really, now he had adult Shaye, and she was just as good.

But damn, she sure could have picked a better husband.
Maybe he should give the guy a good punch.

Shaye chuckled, "Its fine" She reassured her brother, she knew she'd have a hard time adjusting to her own children being grown up, and she would watch them age. The last time Aren had seen her was as a little girl, he'd missed seeing her grow, so she could indulge his behaviour.

She knew Aren wasn't a big fan of Vaix and honestly, at this point she couldn't blame him. Her husband wasn't exactly making the best impression on Shaye's only family.
"No, its not good" She murmured as they entered the store. "I think its downright ridiculous but there's not a whole lot I, or anyone else can do. I've talked to Vaix about it, and Drake is working with him, but I've aready told you that if this gets any worse, any more dangerous. I will take my children and disappear until things are safe again" She said, her tone turning fierce. She loved Vaix and she would be miserable without him, but she also loved her children and she had no desire to put them at risk, no more so then she already had done.

Grabbing a cart, she began to browse through the neccessities, tossing a few bags of various sized diapers in the cart before going to look at clothes, sticking to unisex colours and styles.
"What do you think of these?" She asked, showing Aren some clothing she had picked up.

----

The dark, reptelian like creatures slowly made their way down the hallway, tounges flicking out as they scented the air.
"You incapacitate the male vampire" The leader hissed softly at a pair of creatures.
"We will get the girl" He grinned, revealing venom filled fangs once again.
"Yessss" The others hissed, there was a group of about six. "The rest of you take care of the humans in the store. Make sure they do not interfere" He grinned wickedly as the group slunk into the store. They were completely unnoticeable to the occupants of the store, Shaye and Aren included. Carefully a few of the creatures broke away from the pack to handle the sales associates while the other four stalked Shaye and Aren.

Aren gave Shaye a weak smile as she accepted his brotherly tendencies, looking over at her with a nostalgic sadness that could only some from missing the life of another. She had been too young, she had no idea how it felt to see her again, to walk beside her, to know she was but a phone-call away always. After drilling the idea into his head that she was better off without him, to have this...blessing. It was indescribable.
He loved her. He loved her the way a brother loved a sister. It was a different kind of bond, the bond of blood, the strongest bond. No matter what they would always be together, there for each other. It was what family did. It was very special.
Most vampire's didn't get it, they got soulmates, which he supposed what the next best thing. He really didn't know anything about it. Other than that if you killed one, you killed the other in some level, turned them lawless, barbaric. He'd done it before, as a hunter. The living subject just seemed to..lose the will to preserve anything afterwards, they devoted their life to revenge, or simply killed themselves. Still, he didn't really get why.

Shaye then moved to speak of Vaix, and Aren's brow creased. "You'd leave? Shaye...where would you go?" His expression hardened, "I...wouldn't it...just be easier to move him?" He looked over at Shaye quietly, "That way, you could stay with the people that can still love and support you." He gave a weak 'ha', "Besides, I don't want that man in my house if you're not there to control him. One crazy vampire is enough for me, thanks." He was referring to Carr of course. The poor man, though Drake tried he was just falling to fast to catch. He wouldn't talk about it though, or...moreso he couldn't. It upset Drake immensely, because oddly enough, demons were capable of emotions like love. It just took...a lot, and since they were unused to it, it drove most insane. It was an understatement to say Drake loved Carr, they were always together, or at least, they used to be. Carr was wandering astray more than normal. Couldn't talk about that either apparently.

Aren blinked from his thoughts to look at the clothing Shaye held out, immediately smiling at the size of it. So small. "Cute," he muttered back letting lose a soft purr before cutting it short and looking surprised. Did he just...purr? Vampire's purred? What. He blinked and looked up at shaye with a sort of 'dah hell was that?' expression, before he blinked more steadily and snapped out of his surprise to carry on. Being a vampire sure was...different.

Shaye nodded in understanding.
"I guess perhaps I wouldn't leave, but we'd need to work something out" She said, adding the clothing to her cart while she continued to search for items. She could tell her brother was lost in thought and she honestly didn't mind. She understood that shopping wasn't his thing and a lot had happened lately and it wasn't like baby shopping was a thought consuming processes.

Adding a few more items, Shaye whirled around as she felt eyes on her. Nothing, damn. Frowning she looked around once again, she felt as if she were being watched.
"See anything else?" She asked her brother curiously, she felt like it would be prudent to leave, her instincts were screaming at her rather insistently and she felt like now was a good time to listen to them.
Heading to the counter, Aren close behind her, Shaye let out a startled yelp as something appeared in front of her. The basket filled with items fell to the ground, scattering as she stared at the creature n front of her.
What the hell was it? It was a huge, reptellian like beast, covered in scales with glowing red eyes. A forked tounge flickered into the air, much like a snakes, and Shaye was guessing the thing was venemous.

"Grab the girl" It hissed as two more creatures appeared to grab Aren and prevent him from getting to Shaye. Shaye's arms instinctively wrapped around her midsection as another creature shot out of nowhere, grabbing her and dragging her away from her brother. She fought with everything she had but these creatures were ridiculously strong, even more so then a vampire.
"Aren!" She yelled as she was dragged out of the store, more creatures coming out of the shadows to drag her god only knew where. Her brother was being dragged the opposite way, out of the store and mall. She had no idea what was happening, the creatures were hissing in what seemed to be pleasure as one approached her, sinking its venemous fangs through her neck (much like a vampire) as if her granite hard skin was butter. The venom struck her blood stream and her head pounded as she collapsed into sleep. The venom, while dangerous to humans, merely served as a knockout aid for the supernatural.

Aren gave an audible sigh as Shaye said she'd work something out instead of leaving them all. He was relieved at that. Why cut the head from the body when it was only the foot that was infected? To him, at least, it seemed unnecessary and cruel for Shaye to take her children and leave them all with...Vaix.
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't relieved to hear it, Shaye." Aren muttered back to her with a weak smile, before his expression faded as Shaye wizzed around paranoia.
He followed her eyes as they streaked across the store, and for the first time noticed how quiet everything was...creepy. Something wasn't right.
Shaye asked him he if saw anything. and instinctively he shook his head. Even if he had he wouldn't have mentioned it, at this point he was hyperaware of his surroundings, and like her he just wanted to get out.
So he followed her closely from behind to the counter, only to hiss in sudden surprise as a creature he'd never seen interjected their buying of children's goods.

"What the fu-" Aren started, only to be cut off by the lizard barking orders to god knows who, then to be snatched from behind by both arms. Instinctively Aren started to wriggly and struggle against them, like a flailing fish in a net his body twisted and kicked, occasionally his head would try and whip round to try and bite one, but the angle simply would not allow it.
His head snapped back round as he head Shaye call out his name, and his eyes widened as he saw her being dragged off and another beats fast approaching her.
"Shaye!!" Aren cried in despair as he watched the animal bite her, and saw an assumingly lifeless body hang limp in their arms.
"You bastards!" He roared, "What have you done to her?!! Let her go!"
His eyes would squint dangerously at the beasts currently holding him, "Let me go, or I swear I'll kill you." Frantic eyes scurried back to the sight of his limp sister, panicked beyond belief his mind raged out of all logical thought as he struggled to no avail, only to meet the same venomous fate of his sister, and watch the world go dark...

The creatures pointedly ignored Aren, the one carrying the now unconcious Shaye carried her bridal style, almost reverently as they walked. The leaded glanced back at those creatures carrying Aren.
"Put him in his vehicle" It hissed, "Meet us back at the base" With that, those creatures not with Aren disappeared into the shadows, taking Shaye with them.

The two creatures dragging the unconcious Aren slid into the deserted parking lot. Finding Aren's truck, they carefully loaded him into the driver's seat before disappearing to meet up with the rest of their kind.

---

Shaye woke slowly, painfully even. Her first thought was to wrap her arms around her stomach, calming slightly as she felt the life inside of her. She had grown again, though not as much as she had with Xayden, it seemed her body was going a bit slower with this pregnancy. Cracking her eyes open, she glanced around the small, dark and dank room, trying to figure out where she was and what the hell was going on.
"Finally awake I see" Something hissed by her ear. Startled, she jerked forward, only to find she was on a large bed, surprisingly well kept given the rest of the room.
"What the hell do you want?" She hissed, flashing her fangs warningly.
"You my dear, it is not often a vampire is pregnant and it is even rarer still that a child is born. You are an enigma" The creature whispered, reaching out one claw-like hand to stroke her cheek.
"What do you want with me then?" She hissed, flinching away from the hand, arms still wrapped protectively around her stomach.
"As I said, creatures able to bare and give birth to other creatures are rare. Our race is dying and you will help us continue it, as will your child, once he or she is born" The creature cackled, Shaye's eyes grew wide, flashing between green and silver.
"What?" She gasped out, feeling light headed. That sounded an awful lot like something she didn't want to experience. Ever.
"You will be the mother to our new race, it is an honour very few will ever recieve" The creature laughed, its red eyes flashing with something akin to joy.
"Its an honour I don't want" Shaye spat, curling in on herself more. She had to protect her child. Keep it away from these insane monsters.
"You will eventually" The creature murmured, "When we rip your child from your arms, you will do anything to see it again, anything" The creature laughed again, this time insanely, before disappeairng out of the room. It was only then that Shaye noticed there were no windows or doors in the small cubicle.

When Aren awoke he found himself in a sever state of confusion.
He was in his truck, and his body was sore all over as if he were sick with a nasty flu. Slowly he raised a hand to feverishly wipe hair from his face and rub his eyes with a soft moan.

Why was he in the truck?
In a parking lot?

Where was Drake? Carr? ...Shaye.

His eyes bulged as his head swung round to scan the car for his sister. Then the parking lot, and to no avail. "Shaye?" Aren asked, stepping out of the car, "Shaye?!"
"Shaye!!"
He ran straight back into the mall, trying to follow their scents to her current location, but they cute off, gone. His teeth clenched as he remembered the faces of those horrible creatures. They'd taken her. His little sister. Oh no. He hoped with all his being that she and the child were unharmed, that it was not too late to bring her home safely.
"SHAYE!!!" He bellowed. This wasn't funny, this had better not be a game, and yet, it had better be. He didn't want this to be more than a cruel prank on his sister's behalf, but inside he knew it to be true. His last memory of seeing her struggle and go limp in their arms, before feeling the pain of being stuck with venom himself.

Nononononono.
His calling changed.
"Drake! Drake!" Like a madman Aren lept back into the truck and sped down the road full throttle towards the house. It was a wonder to the world how he made it back in one piece without a single collision, his mind crying for the demon as loudly as his verbal call. Ripping towards the door and nearly busting straight through the damn thing, only to feel arm wrap around him tightly. At first his state of panic lead him to not realise who had him, and he struggled violently in the person's arms, gasping as they tightened and forced breath from his lungs, keeping him still, forcing him to calm down.
His eyes skipped up to the face of his restrainer, and saw the familiar blank slate of Drake, ears angled down and face warped into an expression of worry.

"Drake, Drake it's terrible. Shaye... she...they took her... those things. I..I cant. I don't know where..."
"Shht," Drake muttered, "You'll scare Xayden. Let me see, and please try to calm yourself, you're no good the way you are now." With that said he rested a hand on Aren's forehead and sighed, taking in his latest past memories while Aren fretted about the present. When Drake's eyes opened they looked terribly conflicted.
"Aren," Drake whispered softly, "I don't know what to do."
He frowned as Aren instantly tightened up and opened his mouth to complain, but Drake instantly covered it. "Vaix is not well enough to be allowed to be left with Xayden unsupervised. He could hurt his son."
"Yeah? Well those things WILL hurt Shaye if we don't do something!" Aren snapped back in the lowest volume of voice he could manage.
"Let me watch him, you go. You could find her for me," Aren begged, and Drake flinched.
"Aren, do you know what Vaix is? ...He's half demonic. Like me now. If he had a spell you couldn't protect Xayden, only me and Shaye could."
"So. Take. Him. With. You." Aren hissed, "I will watch the boy and you watch Vaix and follow Shaye's trail."
"And Carlos?" Drake muttered back calmly.
Aren quieted at that, shaking his head. "I can't leave her Drake," he choked, "She needs us."
Drake frowned, looking thoughtful before he lead Aren inside, "There are other's that will help you look for her. Shaye has more family than simply us."
Aren gasped, "Yeah! Keith and that lady, but how could they help when even I cant track her down?" At that, he watched Drake's ears flatten a little, and frowned as he silently got his answer.
"Fine then. If that's all the help you'll be-"
"I am helping more than you understand," Drake snapped back suddenly. "I can only do so much. There's only one of me you know."
Aren gave a weak grunt of a response, and Drake took the phone in his hand semi-aggressively, dialing the number and handing it back to Aren. He seemed mad, but Aren knew better, Drake was frustrated that he couldn't help the immediate problem. He felt tied down, which for a winged creature must be tough.
Aren took comfort in listening to the phone ring, hoping that somehow these people might have some way to help. His heart was on his tongue, and he was ready to spill the whole story on will once he confirmed who was on the line.

Even if it was the last thing he ever did, Aren would find her.
---
He felt good enough to walk now, and through the leniency of his chains Iggy would wander, stand and stare quietly into the endless forest. As if he were in a daze his eyes moved not from any position but forwards. His ankle stung from the rub of iron against flesh, and despite knowing how easily he could break free, the newly formed demon simply allowed it to hold him. It was just that he didn't really care anymore.
He didn't care about minor things like soreness and being 'trapped' as he supposed he was. What did these two think him to be? He didn't understand, if they knew him to be powerful, why bind him with something he could so easily dispatch?
Bah, he didn't care. He'd let them believe he was trapped, then he'd leave when it suited him.

Now wasn't that time.
To be honest, he didn't mind bunking with these wackos. They'd healed him, fed him, sheltered him, they gave him a hell of a lot more attention then what he was used too, if it wasn't for the fact they were...weird, he might actually be content with them.
Though he did wonder why they were so nice to him. It wasn't exactly in their genetic beings to be nice to strangers after all. He could only assume it had something to do with his power level, and that was just fine. He was stronger then them, he knew that, more so his instincts screamed it. He had the strangest desire to rule them, but in his own muddle of confusion he refrained from such actions. His body and brain were full of so many new things he'd never felt before. Emotions. Power. Instincts.
He was an entirely new species with new desires and thoughts. Essentially he was a different person, maybe that'd why Keith didn't like him.

Oh...Keith.
For a second, his expressionless face tensed a little as he thought of the man. Past the fear, the first real emotion he'd felt in this new body had been his twisted sense of love for Keith. To feel it and know it to be his own had been a bond in itself, and to have had it shoved back down his throat when he offered it up...
Eyes narrowed, though fear welled in his gut as they did. He was angry, furious with Keith. He felt resentment and jealousy to all whom had claimed Keith's affections, and yet, all this terrified him. He didn't want to hate Keith. He didn't want to be evil as he knew he was becoming.
He felt like he was slipping into a hole, becoming darker, like a monster.
Becoming like Raven.

"What's wrong, Iggy?"
He felt someone grip a wad of feathers on one of his wings and tug a couple times like a child for his attention. Slowly he turned his head to glance over his shoulder at Envy as the demon floated curiously a few steps behind him.
"If you keep crying those stains on your face wont ever leave," she muttered back, smiling softly. "I wish I had stains like those, such wonderful sorrow... Why are you so sorrowful Iggy?"
"It's none of your business," Iggy growled, a little more harshly than he'd intended too, even going the length to bare an elongated fang.
Naturally this made Envy hesitate, and her grip on his wing loosened. For a second her eyes met his, but instantly the hierarchy between them made her gaze snap back to the floor.
"You know, you could be a little nicer to us. We did save you from roasting the other day."
"I'm not being cruel to you either," Iggy muttered back calmly, "simply warning you that my 'sorrow' as you put it, is my own. I will not enlighten you to it's cause."
Envy pushed out her bottom lip in a pout, and Iggy rolled his eyes at her, looking blankly out again.

"Let me see you fly," Envy asked, looking up at him again, biting her bottom lip with a soft smile that hinted impish mischief.
"Why," Iggy growled back.
"Because you have such beautiful wings, they remind me of the father. I'd love to see their mechanics." Envy chimed back, gripping his wing with both hands and forcing it open and shut playfully.
"The father?" Iggy muttered, looking over at her.
"Yeah Father, you know. Satan. They say he's got black wings too, but I actually saw him once. If only for a split second. Oh if there's anyone I envy, it's him. He was so...perfect."
"And how did you come to see him?" Iggy scoffed in disbelief.
And Envy smiled, chewing her nails and crossing her legs in mid-float, obviously content to have his attention now.
"When I was assigned to guide Rao to the darkness you see. When her transformation is complete, she'll be a demon of Pride. I'm of Envy if you haven't guessed. I'm a wholeblood. Pride and Envy, we work good together. So since I was the nearest Envious Wholeblood, I was picked. And I saw him then! Oh Iggy he was beautiful, old though, very old. I'd give anything to be at his side!" Envy threw her arms in the air, making her flop backwards and float on her back.
"Uh huh..." Iggy muttered, "Wholeblood you say? What's that?"
"Oh wow didn't they teach you anything?" Envy gasped, rolling over to look at him curiously, "Surely you were enough of a highblood to get educated on these things? I mean come on this is elementary here! Lowblood, Wholeblood, Highblood."
Iggy shook his head, and Envy groaned.
"A wholeblood is a demon with only one primary sin. Everything about them focuses on it. I'm envy. I envy Everything. I'm not prideful, not wrathful, not gluttonous, I don't want it I want to BE it. I'm Envy. Wholebloods are special, rare. You, you are a Highblood. You're not special you're powerful, and Lowbloods are your Opposites. Get it?"
"Yeah sure," Iggy muttered, going back to staring out at the forest.
"So now that I've told you all that, will you fly for me?"
"No."
"What!" Envy cried, "But why?!"
"Because..." Iggy whispered, "I don't know how."
"How can you not know how?!" Envy snapped, "That's stupid, don't lie to me. You were obviously born with those wings, and you're telling me that in all your years you never used them once? 700 and never flapped a wing?"
"That's right," Iggy sighed, rubbing his forehead.
"That's not right, that's stupid." Envy hissed, "What did you hit your head too hard when we scrapped you off that dumpster? Or do you think you're just too good for us to do anything but stand there and cry over your secret sorrows?!"
Iggy glanced over his shoulder at Envy again, though this time it was a different look, a heavily shadowed one that suggested she drop it if she wanted to keep her tongue in tact. Quietly he watched her eyes widen and immediately silence.
"I'm sorry."
"Don't do it again," Iggy growled, looking away, only to have her fuss with his wing more, pretend to make it beat at the air. Like an irritated cat Iggy made a sound of warning in the back of his throat, which ceased when he felt her release him.
What happened next made him tense in surprise, as Envy instead of leaving him suddenly came in close and pressed herself against his side almost lovingly.

"What are you doing?!" Iggy snapped, "Don't touch me!" He watched her peek an eye from his shirt and bared a full show of fangs to her, violently shoving her away with a snarl. "Don't ever touch me! Not EVER, you hear me?! Not anyone!" He backed away from her, jumping as he bumped a tree and lashed out, nearly cutting the thing in two with vicious claw-marks. Letting out a frustrated cry Iggy gripped his head in his hands and sat down, curling up again. Trying to ignore Envy as he sense her crawl over to him.
"I envy you Iggy. I'm sorry you're frustrated. When you feel better we'll kill them ok?" She watched curiously as Iggy shook his head.
"Where is Rao, Envy?" He sighed defeatedly.
"She's out hunting, she wanted me to watch you while she was away."
"So I see," Iggy muttered with a frown.
"Why don't we go for a walk?" Envy muttered back with a smile. "You'd like that right? Maybe you'll learn how to fly while we're out."
"Envy I...I really just want to be quiet right now," Iggy whispered back, not bothering to look up at her from his sulking.
"You're no fun," Envy growled.
"Mm." Iggy muttered back, intent on creating silence. It was all he wanted right now.
Silence.

Keith flinched loudly as his phone began to ring. Ignoring Alexi's chuckle, he shook his head and dug the cell from his pocket, frowning slightly as he saw Aren's number. Hitting 'answer' on the phone, he held it to his ear.
"Keith here" He drawled, feeling dread curdle in the pit of his stomach as the other vampire launched into a tirade about the mall. Fear gripped him as Aren continued some...thing had taken Shaye, his little sister. Growling, he pinched the bridge of his nose as Alexi bustled around making sure Demitri was comfortable.
"Be right there" He bit out, glancing at his friend. "Stay here with Demitri, he can't be left alone yet" He rasped before speeding out of the house, not even offering the very confused Alexi an explenation.
"O...kay" Alexi sighed, sitting on Demitri's bed, more confused and concerned then he'd been a moment ago.

Keith didn't even bother with driving, instead he ran as fast as he could (which is pretty damn fast) to Aren's house. Skidding to a halt at the front door, he barged inside without even bothering to knock.
He knew he probably made quite the sight as he stepped inside, his hair and clothing disheveled, his eyes flashing and fangs glinting. But this was Shaye they were talking about, the glue that held this wild bunch together and there was no way in hell he, or anyone else, was going to let anything happen to her.
"Should we start at the mall?" He asked, "Or research? Figure out what took her?" He glanced at Drake. "Do you know? Have you seen these things before?" He was being aggressive, he understood that, but he was already pissed off about this whole Iggy thing, and now there was this. All he wanted to do was rip something apart and he was going to indulge in that little fantasy when he found the creatures that had taken his sister and unborn niece or nephew.

---

Shaye grimaced as the weird, snake-like creatures tossed a packet of blood at her. From the little sticker on it, she figured it was from a hospital, since it said what type it was and when it was collected. Nicking the bag with a fang, she nearly gagged. God that was disgusting, there was so many chemicals in the blood for preservation and other things, that it tasted awful. Pinching her nose, she gulped the food down, knowing that she and her child needed it, especially at the rapid growing rate vampire babies under went. Rubbing her protruding stomach, she slid off the bed and carefully made her way around the dark room. The creatures had left her alone mainly, just tossing her the occasional blood pack. She had no idea how long she had been in here, since there was nothing to guage time by, but she figured it wasn't to long. She knew the others were looking for her, but she also wasn't sure if they could even find her. Those creatures moved through shadow with skill she'd only seen once before, and even her own abilities, granted by those odd creatures, were completely useless here, so they weren't the same as them.

Sighing, she sat back down on the bed, pulling out her cell phone for the millionth time. The light of the screen lit up the room, but that was about all it was good for. She had no signal wherever she was, not that that surprised her, she had a feeling she was underground, in a cave or something, but she just wasn't sure.

Talking to Keith on the phone was almost like talking to a wall.
After the initial greeting there was nothing on Keith's end, but that was because all the rant came from Aren's end. Panicked, uncertain, he described everything he could as fast as he could, and when he'd finally finished Keith reacted immediately.
It was reassuring, but not enough to calm his nerves.
He heard Drake's telepathic voice in his head and shut his eyes with a sigh.
"How did it go?"
"I...I don't know. Well I think. He's coming over to help me." Aren muttered back to Drake quietly, "Can you sense Shaye? Is she ok?"
Drake seemed to frown and focus for a minute, seemingly quite extensively, before he sighed. "I...yeah, I think that's her. She's faint, far away from here, but she's ok. the signal's so weak I cant even tell what direction she's in, just that she's still alive and kicking."
Aren gave a weak smile and nodded, "Thanks."
After that it was silent, and Aren sat around biting at his fingers in anticipation for Keith to show up, nearly jumping at the man as he did.
"Keith! Thank god you came." He sighed, though it was anything from relaxing or ease. More like he'd been holding his breath and finally released it.

He frowned as Keith shot him a difficult question, honestly he didn't know what to do, thankfully Keith moved on to Drake before Aren had to respond.

Drake let his ears flick up to Keith as he was addressed, and with a frown he muttered, "I don't know much, I'm afraid. The creatures in Aren's mind are familiar to me, I've sensed them around from time to time. They've been around for a long while, since I first moved into the town, but they've been scarcer as the years go on. Maybe they're becoming more skillful at hiding, I don't know. I know even less about what they'd want from Shaye. Vampire meat is indigestible."
His ears flattened at the last bit, it sucked, having to lay out a fact like that at a time like this, but he wanted them to know that whatever it is they'd collected Shaye for, it wasn't for a meal.
"Aren described their appearance to you well. The only advice I can give is to think about what a lizard would like for a living environment, they're local creatures here." He ran a hand through his hair and ears, flattening them temporarily before they perked back up. "You can try to research, but you will only get the mortal swill, and Iggy still has the Black Book I believe. I need to stay with Xayden and Vaix. They cant be left alone, and Vaix teeters on his demonic tendencies as it is. I'm the only one that can control him if he gets to that point."
He looked torn saying it, simply because he knew they could find Shaye more efficiently if he helped out, but the last thing he wanted was for Vaix to loose it and kill Xayden or Carr or anybody because he was absent as well.
He had to believe Shaye would want him to protect her child.

Aren sighed as Drake spilled all that information, "Thanks," he muttered before looking at Keith. "You still got that book? We could go skim it over. Then check out the mall."
Seriously, he was at a loss for ideas right now. He didn't know what to do, what he wanted, all he knew was that he needed to have Shaye back, to have her safe with him again.
Please let her be safe... He thought weakly.

Keith frowned, "Lizard? Hmmm..." He trailed off, looking thoughtful. "Warm" He said suddenly. Lizards and Snakes needed warm, dry envoriments to function. Rocks and stuff as well, just like a terrarium that one would see in a pet store. Obviously this place had to be big, to house as many of these creatures as Aren described, maybe even more, plus beable to house Shaye, and she certainly wasn't going to be good and well behaved for her captors.
"Don't tell Vaix or Xayden" The older vampire murmured to Drake, "There's no knowing how he'll react and then we'll have world war III on our hands" He sighed, nodding at Aren. "Lets get out of here. Maybe start at the mall and see where they could go from there?" He offered, he was trying to stay calm, at least outwardly, Aren was visibly freaking out enough for all of them.

Shaking his head, Keith headed outside, mentally running over every possible location in a nearby radius that reptiles would want to live in.
"Warm, dark, dry with easy access to food and water. Big enough to house at least ten creatures, maybe more and secluded enough to hide a vampire in" He sighed.
"Caves maybe? Are there any caves around here?" He asked, glancing at Aren. The vampire hunter turned vampire had been living here a lot longer then Keith had and knew the area way better then he did. Damn this sucked, especially with Shaye being all pregnant and stuff. Poor girl, would she ever just have a normal pregancy. The first one Raven made a living hell, it was a miracle Xayden had survived in womb long enough to be born and now the new baby was sure having a hell of a start. Poor kids.

----

Shaye sighed, glancing around the rock walls again. She wished she had someway of sending her brother and whom ever else was looking for her a message. She had already tried calling, even though she didn't receive cell service. She knew the creatures were getting their awful blood from the hospital, but that was about it. Meaning they had to be within walking? distance from the place, though how that helped was beyond her.

----

"If they're housing Shaye, they'd have to be prepared" Keith murmured. "Need to be able to feed her and keep her quiet" He really was just thinking out loud now, hoping something he said would jolt Aren's mind, since he was drawing a blank. It felt like a puzzle, they had all the peices, they just had no idea how to put it all together.