A/N - A while after some serious vampire withdrawal symptoms, I began to play Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines again. I had been off vampires for about a year, and I was really starting to miss them. After maybe a level or two into the game, I wanted to read a while, so I went to fanfiction.net and looked up some VtMB stories. There were a lot, so I decided to search romances. The first one I saw was a LaCroix one. At first I was skeptical, but after reading it, I couldn't stop. It was an amazing story, with plot twists in just the right places, and some good steamy bits mixed in. I really liked it - until I finished. It left me feeling empty. So what do I do? Start playing the game again. Only this time, I try to fly through the quests to see LaCroix again. I know, creepy. But whatever. After I finished the game, I was still too excited. So I start typing. And this is how it turned out.

Prologue

"Are you ready, Luca May?"

My heart pound in my chest as our leader spoke to me. Fear, as well as bravery, coursed through my veins and I couldn't tell if this was real or not. My bretheren were watching, waiting for a response that may never come. I sucked in a breath for fear I might faint due to lack of oxygen. I gulped, and finally, a shakey word was forced from my lips.

"Yes."

The crowd cheered and howled in my name. I was the chosen one, the one who must preform the largest task we were capable of. Most of us weren't even capable of it. I let out a shaky sigh and bowed. Yetcha Otr, the oldest and most powerful werewolf of our pack, and our feared and respected leader, bowed back. Despite my emmense nerves, I couldn't help but feel a spark of pride. I had been chosen. It was our highest honor, and only one in a thousand years was someone chosen for the task.

The task of killing a vampire prince.

Finally mustering enough courage, I turned toward the rest of our pack. Howls and feet pounding could be heard from all around. I smiled, then felt the heavy hand of Yetcha on my shoulder. I looked up at him. Nodding solomnly, he let go and transformed. I did so as well, feeling the bones in my body snapping, bending and reforming themselves to my wolf form. The pain was always emmense, but a small bit died every time. By now, it was only half as bad as it once was.

The rest of the crowd transformed as well, and our leader was first to let out a celebration howl. I was next, letting the earsplitting sound rip through my throat and out my lips. Mine was slightly more feminine than our leader, but it was much more powerful than some other females I know. The audience joined in, and the show was over. Stepping off the stage with Yetcha, I grinned. The fear and nerves were gone. My eagerness balanced on a frenzy. I cocked my head to the side, flashing a lopsided grin.

Show time.

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Chapter One

The night was much quieter than I had anticipated. Only the sounds of paper being blown with the slight breeze, and the footsteps of some "night owl" humans could be heard. Once or twice, I could hear the sound of police sirens way off in the distance. I sighed. I hadn't thought it would be this... strange. I had been to the city before, but it was always during the day.

I wasn't sure what to do first. The task given to me was not to be taken lightly, and only a newbred would be foolish enough to even come close to the LaCroix tower on the first night, without any information whatsoever. I knew this, but I wasn't sure where to get information from. Even worse, I didn't know what kind of information I would need. I tried my best not to howl in frustration. Shaking my head violently, I reminded myself that even on the loudest, most bustling night, I would not be able to show signs of my beast.

I had talked about this problem with Yetcha. He said if there was no possible way to prevent a howl, or a scratch behind the ear, or a animalistic growl, at least try to disguise it somewhat as a Gangrel trait. I snorted. Gangrel. That was our cover-up plan for if I was too inhuman to the kindred here. As if trying to be human wasn't humiliating enough, I would have to act as Gangrel if I wasn't careful. Most foolish kindred believe that because Gangrel are closest to the beast form, the Werewolves would be somewhat closer to them. Bah. As if it could be any farther from the truth. Gangrel were weak, pathetic excuses for half-beasts. They were poor mimickers, or, as a human would so bluntly put it, 'wannabes'.

I gently shook my head to get the thought of the bloodsuckers out of my mind. I tried thinking of different things I could ask about LaCroix. What kind of information would I need? I needed to get into the building, at least, so there's something. 'What kind of people usually go into the tower?' was a good question. Was it just vampires and gouls, or do humans also enter? Following this train of thought, another question popped up. Who was allowed to actually go and see the prince? Probably only a select few, I thought. That coul be my first goal. Be important enough to see the prince face-to-face. I sighed. Even if that did work, how long would it take? And what would I do once I'd be able to see him? Kill him on the spot, with his Sheriff? I wouldn't be able to lay a finger on the vampire with that big oaf always with him.

Another goal. Get rid of the Sheriff somehow. I growled. But even if I got the Sheriff out of the way, how would I go about killing the prince? With my werewolf blood, I would be able to take him down, but what happens after that? Leave him there with the obvious signs of a werewolf attack? That would cause a war. There was no way I'd be able to take him down in my humanoid form. He was too strong.

Moaning, I rubbed my temples. All this planning was making my head hurt. It was almost morning anyhow, and me just walking around the streets doing nothing but talk to myself would definitly turn some eyes if I wasn't careful. I started down one of the more run-down streets. After awhile, I noticed a small, grungy looking bar. I rolled my eyes at it, but walked towards in nonetheless.

I hadn't even opened the door fully when the loud music banged against my eardrums. This would do nothing for my headache, I complained to myself. But a drink would be helpful. Sighing, I walked inside.

I bought myself a beer and chugged it. Scoping out the room, I noted that there was nothing significant about it. A couple booths for dining (obviously empty), a dartboard, and a set of stairs. Curiosity got the better of me, and I wandered toward the stairs. As I was about to step up, though, there was a rough hand on my shoulder. Clenching my jaw, I turned toward who had stopped me.

Her skin was very pale, which made her bright red hair and lipstick stand out even more than it would have on a human. Yes, she was a vampire. I could tell from her sent. The smell of blood lingered on her more than the others, and the physical power she held was obvious. She was confident in her vampiric abilities, and it radiated from her. "Who are you?" she demanded. I glowered at her, but answered her anyhow.

"Luca," I said briskly. I found no reason to lie to her about myself. Even if I were one of the most well-known werewolves, I seriously doubted she even knew a pack was near by. "And you are?"

I saw her jaw clench, and her eyes squinted at me. She obviously didn't believe my answer. After a moments pause, she raised her eyebrow at me, but I could still sense her anger. "Damsel. This here's anarch territory. I suggest you leave now, cammy."

My eyebrows shot up at that comment. She thought I was Camarilla? This was the Anarch base? A sly smile spread across my face, and I couldn't help it. "Sweetie, I'm nothing of the sort. Camarilla, Anarchs... I could care less. I came here to relax."

She scoffed, but made no comment. I was surprised when no retort was made. Instead, she asked me yet another question. "What clan are you?"

That caught me off gaurd. I almost blinked in surprise, but I stopped myself before I could do so. So much for acting like I was a human. I couldn't dismiss her with ignorence now, I had already shown I had knowledge of camarilla and anarchs. If I told this kindred now, it would certainly spread like wildfire. A new vampire's in town, watch out! Sighing, I said, "Gangrel. Why?"

She shrugged. Rolling her eyes, she waved her hand up the stairs, obviously giving me her permission to proceed. I did so, and was greeted with another vampire. Mentally groaning, I smiled up at him. I could smell the beast on him. He was gangrel. I tried my hardest not to scoff at him, but I could barely restrain a roll of the eyes as he opened his mouth to speak. My curiosity deminished, and I no longer felt the need to know what was upstairs. More anarchs, I noted and left before he got his first word out.

After a long while roaming the streets more, I finally decided to just sneak into an empty room in Skyline Apartments. The fourth floor was nice. It wasn't run-down or smelly, and that was good enough for me. I yawned. I guess I was more tired than I'd realized. I walked upstairs to the bedroom. As soon as my head hit the pillow, I was asleep.

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Chapter Two

The next morning, I had almost forgotten why I was there. I had awakened panicked, not knowing where I was. When the memory of the previous nights flashed back, I groaned. Oh yeah. The assassination of the prince. Sighing, I flung my legs over the side of the bed and yawned. My mouth felt dry and sticky, and my stomach growled. Ah, yes. The insufferable werewolf hunger that gnawed on your insides until you eventually ate some meat. I got up, grabbed my raggedy coat, and left the building.

It was about eight or so at night. The streets weren't nearly ask quiet as last night, which was some comfort to me for some reason. I always felt better in a crowd. I think it was my fear of being spied on, alone. I was used to being surrounded by the others of my pack, even when we came to town once every three months of so. I groaned and shook my head. This was no time to get homesick. I had a job to do, and I was going to do it well.

After grabbing a random vandal for breakfast, I headed towards a place Yetcha had told me about. He said if I couldn't find a good place to start, then go to one of our contacts. He was supposed to be a last resort, but I was impatient.

Down the road, around a couple of corners, down into an alley... I remembered the directions easily. It's not like I memorised them or something, it was just a thing I had. It wasn't some supernatural memory increase as a werewolf or anything, it was just me. Easily remembering directions. I found the little crawlspace that led to the underground hideaway. A sweet scent filled my nose, and I figured it was a ward. Anyone else tried to get in, they'd be repulsed and leave. A werewolf would bask in the smell.

I kept going deeper and deeper into the tunnel, and finally I saw a clearing. It was like a little living room undergound, I mused. The old fart was lazily reclining in a chair, picking his teath and reading a magazine. I... won't tell you what kind.

He looked up from his reading when he heard me walk in. Grinning, he said, "Luca. Pleasure to finally meet you." He got up from his chair and shook my hand, surprising me a bit. I hadn't expected him to be gentlemenly. In fact, I was expexting a ruffled old man you had to poke with a stick before you even got him to move.

"And you, Mr. Rorik." I smiled, and sat down on a chair he gestured to. He sat back down in his chair, sitting on his magazine. Reachind down to see what he had sat on, he remembered. Picking it up and throwing it down next to his chair. I noticed the blush in his cheeks when he noticed I'd already seen it. I shook my head. "No need to worry, Mr. Rorik. I'm not a very judgemental person." I smiled weakly at him.

He returned the smile. "That's mighty kind of you, Luca. You can call me Paul." I felt the edges of my mouth twitch, and I could help but smile. Never in my entire life had I ever heard of a werewolf named Paul. He seemed to notice my smiled and rolled his eyes playfully, shaking his head. "I do believe that the prince will be the subject of this meeting." He looked me in the eye. I knew it was time to stop playing with that look. Dispite how I'd seen him when I came in, he seemed old and wise. I gained a newfound respect for the man. I liked people with wide personalities.

Returning my train of thought back to what he had said, I nodded. "Indeed. I am having trouble settling my mind on one thing to do first."

His eyes searched mine for a while, then settled on the floor, thinking. "And you want my help in distinguishing what to do?" I nodded in response. His lips went to one side and I could tell he was biting the inside of his mouth in thought. It was a bad habbit to have. I used to do it all the time, until my mouth became so scratched up that I nearly tore a whole in it. I shook my head. How was I ever going to do this if my mind keeps wandering? "If I were you," he said after a long period of time. "I would get a sense of his general personality. But if you were to do that, I'd talk to his enemier first, then to his friends. If he has any. I, personally, find him to be an insufferable man with an obsession with power." He shrugged his feelings off. 'Because of our natural hatred of vampires' I thought, but decided not to voice my thoughts. "Then ask about his past. You need to know as much about him as possible if you're going to impress the man. And you need to do something big."

I was puzzled. "Why do I need to impress him? I'm here to kill him, not be his best friend."

He shook his head. "But that's just it. You need to be his best friend to kill him." He sighed at my look of confusion. "As long as your just business partners or acquainences, he's going to have a wall up. There's no way you're ever going to take him down with that wall up, Luca. He's too strong. He didn't become prince just because he's handsome." For some reason, that word stood out. I knew it was innappropriet, but I couldn't help but think it. The vampire prince of LA was handsome, huh? Paul went on, not noticing my interest. "He needs to let you into his personal life before you'll even be able to talk with him properly."

"Won't he notice when I'm asking around about him?"

He nodded. "That's part of the point. We need him to notice your presence. Otherwise, you won't even get to see him face-to-face." He paused, seeming to hesitate. Then he handed me a small peice of paper. "Here. It's a list of people closely related to LaCroix in some way. Whether it be his business partner, enemy, or a stalker that knows everything about him." He laughed. "Strangely enough, he's got lots of those."

"Thank you so much, Paul. You've really helped me out." I dragged my fingers over my eyes then laid my arm across my chest in the formal, respectable parting sign. He smiled slowly, shaking his head.

"What? Do you not hold enough respect for me?" I asked cautiously. I had never been denied the privallege of the parting, and I wondered if he was much more important than I thought.

His grin waned, but not completely. "No, dear. I'm just not worthy of the parting." I crooked my head in confusion, much like a dog. I hated how canine I really was. My thoughts instantly went back to him when he bared his fangs at me. I gasped. Guiltily, I thought back to my previous assumtion that it was in our nature to hate vampires. Maybe it was more in our head than I thought.

"I'm sorry..." I began, but he stopped me.

"No need. Go. You have a very important job to do."

I nodded and walked back up the cave and through the crawl space. Glancing at the peice of paper he'd given me, I remembered what he's said.

Yeah. Be best friends with prince Sebation LaCroix. Peice. Of. Cake.

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Chapter 3

When I went to check my computer, I found an email from the prince himself. He wanted to see me.

Over the course of the last five weeks, I'd learned quite a bit about LaCroix. I knew about his past, and I knew how he worked and how he handled things. I knew his feelings toward things, and I knew the effect he had on the kindred in this domain. I knew Sebastian LaCroix. Now all I wanted to know was how true this 'handsome' rumor was. I smirked, thinking tall, strong legs, and a lean yet muscular frame. A pronounced jaw, soft pink lips... nice un-vapire-like tan. Jet black hair, and a little stubble to frame his features. I imagined him, sitting at his desk casually, reciting poetry to himself in French. Wow...

Getting caught up in the thought, I laughed. I ran my hand through my dark brown hair with a 'I can't believe I just thought all that up like that' look. I sighed. I was getting anxious to meet my victom.

I walked down the street from my apartment. Cutting a few corners here and there, I quickly ended up at the LaCroix tower. I took a deep breath. Walking up to the doors and pushing them open, I was a little surprised to see the lobby so empty. I guess this place was rather exclusive, just as my first thought had been. I walked up to the counter, meeting a scrawny blonde girl with pink bubble gum. "Yeah," she said, looking lazily at me. She looked only nineteen or twenty. 'Was she really security?' I thought. Whatever.

"I need to see Sebastien LaCroix," I stated matter-of-factly. She looked up at me with bored eyes.

"Duh," she said. Man, was she smart. She pressed a button and pointed behind her, summoning the elevator.

I tilted my head back, not even wasting any breath on her. I walked casually to the elevator, and pressed 'PH'. Wow. Going to meet the prince. It was a bit bigger a deal for me than I had initially thought it would be. The elevator was not nearly as slow as the one in Skyline Apartments. In only about twenty seconds, I was there. That was the same time it took to go to the fourth floor in the apartments. I took a deep breath and walked out.

It was a long, blueish greyish hallway. The lights weren't on and I wondered if humans were here to turn them off at night. Or if there just wasn't a need for the vampires to use light to see in the dark. Me, I needed light. After a while, my eyes adjusted to the blackness. Although my eyesight was better than a humans, it was in no way similar to a vampire's.

I walked down the hall some, turning a few corners here and there. I had no idea where LaCroix's office was, and I wasn't sure if I was getting closer, farther, or just in a circle. Each hallway looked the same as the last. I began to get little panicked, but felt relief wash over me when I came to a hall with two large double doors on it, light seeping through the crack on the bottom.

I stepped lightly towards to door, grabbing hold of the handle. I took a deep breath in, then slowly let it out, closing my eyes, trying to calm down. I pulled on the handle and stepped into the light of the room. My eyes adjested quickly this time, to my relief.

The first thing I saw was a huge hunk-of-a-gorilla, the Sheriff. I began to doubt my thoughts on how easy it would be to take LaCroix down, even without the Sheriff. If he was able to get someone like that to work for him without question for a hundred years, he was worse than I expected, even from the five-week research on him.

The next thing I noticed was LaCroix himself. All of my girlish daydreams went out the window. Jet balck hair with sexy stubble? No. Tan? Absolutly not. Casually reading French poetry? No way. In fact, he looked to be the palest, most uptight blondie I've ever seen. Now about the lean, muscular figure, I didn't know. His coat covered up any kind of visible form, but at least he wasn't fat.

He looked up at me as soon as I closed the door behind me. "Ah, Miss May. Please, come in." His had a pleasant demeanor, but I knew all too well about his charm and deception to be taken in by it. I walked over to him, and smiled as he stood up to shake my hand. There goes the long legs, I thought to myself. I surpressed a giggle when I realized I was almost two inches taller than him. "Such a pleasure to finally get to meet you."

"The pleasure's all mine, Mr. Prince." I wasn't sure how to address him politely, oddly enough. He looked at me funny when I said that. Apparently, that's not how he usually is addressed. I shook my head softly. "Sorry, sir. I've never had the pleasure of addressing a prince."

He smiled at me when I said that. "No worries, Miss May. I quite like it. It's like... Mr. Presidant," he said slyly.

I sighed, internally rolling my eyes but keeping a proper posture. LaCroix looked at me oddly when I sighed, and I soon realized why. Vampires often still breathe just to blend in with humans more, but I noticed the way I had sighed, I looked as if it was a needed thing. And it was, but I didn't want him to know. He looked as if he would dismiss the suspition for now, which I was grateful for. I wrote up a mental note for me. No realistic breath, no fast heart rate, and no blood rushing to the skin. Really, I couldn't think of any reason for fast heart rate and blood to the skin to happen besides embarrassment, excersize, or... something of an intimate nature. I didn't think I'd have to worry about any of them.

There was an uncomfrtable silence that ensued. Averting my eyes and straitening my posture, I asked, "If you don't mind me asking, why was I asked to come here?" I knew what the answer was; it was obvious. But it was also a good conversation started, assuming he's a talkatve one. Or at least one with good manners.

He nodded before gesturing me to sit down in a chair opposite his own. I did so, and so did he. "I've heard of your recent... interest in me, Miss May, and I was curious as to what it was for."

I nodded thoughtfully, acting like I was considering my answer. "I'm not sure if I have a good reason, Prince. I just had heard so much about you, and I had to come to LA to meet you."

"And yet with all this information on me, you still asked around my city for five weeks? And not only about the opinions of others, but my own personal history as well? I may be misstaken, and correct me if I'm wrong, but you've also asked about the persons that enter this tower, am I correct?" I nodded. So much for this 'best friend' thing. He seemed to contemplate the situation.

With a slight tilt of his head and a glimmer in his eye, he asked, "And how many kindred did you manage to trick into believing you're one of us?"

Chapter Four

I was shocked. I couldn't breathe. Was he going to kill me? Was my opportunity really going to go so fast? How had he figured it out? The screaming in my head to run and hide overwhelmed me, but I kept a proper posture and my head stayed on. I swallowed slightly. "Whatever do you mean, Prince?" I was surprised by how steady my voice sounded. Maybe, if I was careful enough and I didn't do anything suspicious, I might be able to keep it going.

But he was sure. "Miss May, hold your breath," he said calmly, coolly. I was nervous, and I could tell I wasn't going to make it out of there.

I stopped breathing. Werewolves had a much stronger and larger lung capacity than humans. Maybe if I held it long enough, he would believe I was kindred. Two minutes passed by, and I could finally feel the effects on my chest. My face turned red and I gasped for air, cluching my throat. I suffered a coughing fit. My eyes darted towards the prince's smug look and I stared at him. I could feel the slight effect the stare had on him, but it was usuless. Only humans backed down with the stare. Vampires were no match for a mere look.

The smug look turned to impressed. "My, my, Miss May. That was quite a while for a human. My congratulations."

My eyes widened in shock once again, but only for a split second. He thought I was human? He hadn't figured me out? Thank the mighty beastress! I let out another couph, then a few grunts to try to make my still sore lungs feel better. My throat started to burn. That had been harder than I had anticipated.

"Water, Miss May?" LaCroix offered my a glass of water. I took it graciously, sipping it as I turned my gaze back to him.

"Thank you," I whispered.

He nodded. "Now I ask you again, kine, why were you asking about me?" His voice was loud and powerful. I almost shrunk against the chair, subconsciously trying to hide from him. But I caught myself, and stayed upright.

A plan was brewing quickly in my mind, and it was briliant. It would not only get me out of this place alive, but it would allow me to stay close to him and gain his trust. If it did it right, that is. I took a deep breath in, and looked at him with my dark brown eyes. People always told me I was excellent at acting. Let's see if they were telling the truth or just making me feel better. I added seriousness to my tone of voice, sprinkled with a little sadness and iced with anger. "I've known about the creatures of the night since I was a little girl. When I was six, my family was slaughtered by what I thought was vampires. Ever since then, I've been hunting them. Revenge. But only just recently, I learned that it was not vampires, but werewolves." A nice touch, I thought. At least I'll know what he's talking about when he addresses the lycans.

His eyebrows raised and he sunk back into his chair, nodding thougtfully. He seemed to consider what I had said. "And you wish to become more powerful to hunt them, then?" he asked, a tone of impressment in his question.

He think I want to be a vampire? I shook my head. "Become kin? No, no... I just want the backup when I go to hunt. Werewolves are really strong, hardy beasts. I'm going to need help when I go out."

"That's obvious. But I don't think you realize just how powerful they really are. They're monstrous, wild things. They have no control over themselves, and I seriously doubt they even have consciousness." That hurt. "Thought I guess I can't speak for that. I've never seen one that's not attacking." He paused to look at my face. I made sure to look slightly worried. It was crazy how vicious they made us out to be. I mean, come on guys, you started it! He went on. "They've killed hundreds of us. In fact, they've made it a game to come in ever hundred years or so and kill a prince."

My ears perked up. Again. I'm a dog, remember? Was he referring to my mission? I smirked to myself. I put on a hopeful, yet reserved, expression. "So you're already set up to defend against a werewolf attack? That's great!" I jumped up, putting maybe a little too much emphisis on the human giddiness. Whatever.

One of his eyebrows shot up. "That doesn't mean I'm willing to help you," I acted like I didn't hear him. "Miss May!" he shouted sternly, and the command in his voice suddenly pulled me back into my chair. Discomfort shown all over my face. And I wasn't acting. "I said, that it doesn't mean I'm willing to help you. Why should I help a pathetic kine seeking revenge?"

I looked at him seriously. "I am not pathetic, thank you. If you haven't noticed, I'm almost twenty-nine. That means I've had twenty-three years of hunter training behind me. Do you know how many I've killed in that amount of years? About twohundered. Yeah. Alright? I'm badass. Besides, it's not like I would just sit around here all day and wait for some werewolves to come into the area. I'd work for you. You don't have to pay me, and I'd do just about anything you'd ask for. C'mon, I could help you out big time."

LaCroix sat up more. "You want to be a personal assistant?"

I shrugged. "I guess you could call it that if you want to. I suppose it'd be a lot like that." I looked him straight in the eye. "Whatdaya say?"

A long pause. He rolled his eyes. "I suppose I could use some help filing."

Chapter Five

Over the course of the next year, I became LaCroix’s personal assistant. I fear I hadn't made much headway at all. The first few months were the worst, however, when he would only allow me to get packages from the lobby or fetch him some blood for the night. About halfway through, however, he trusted me enough to help sort through some of his files. He left the really important ones out, though, so I wouldn't be tempted to snoop. But even so, we were far from friends.

About a month or so ago, he had a few guests over to discuss something important. I had intruded rudely during one of their sentences, and afterwards he only scolded me instead of lashing out physically, which I was relieved. The prince seemed to like violently forcing people into submission once they've proven they're not just some random visitor there to say hi. He liked showing his workers who their boss was, but the beast inside me didn't like it at all.

Though, now that I think about it, he was hardly being rough. He thought that I was kine, so that helped me out greatly. Even though he openly disliked me for quite some time, he did not want to kill me. He paced his blows and made sure not to hit too hard. For that I was grateful, because even though my bones are a bit thicker than a human’s, I'm not much different in that form. There may be a slight enhancement in my bone mass, eyesight, and strength, but I'm only about the same as a muscular male kine.

Though, as I was saying, there wasn't much improvement. At least, not until today.

I was walking into his office, swaying gently to a song that was in my head. I had a fancy glass with some blood in it for him, just because I was being nice. Aren't I the best assistant in the world? I smiled, and started humming the tune to Rihanna's 'Disturbia'. "Bum bum be dum bum bum be dum bum," I said as I approached his desk. I sat the glass gently on it and smiled. "Brought you something to drink, sir. You're favorite." And it was his favorite. Nice and wealthy.

He looked up form some paperwork and smiled halfheartedly. "Thank you, Miss May." Even after a year of work, he still called me Miss May. Well, I suppose it's not like I call his Sebastian or something.

"You're welcome!" I smiled brightly, turning to walk away and do something for some other rich dude in the building. There were tons of people out there asking for help that I could be giving instead of standing around here, doing nothing but niceties for my boss. But his voice surprised me.

"Miss May," he called, and I immediately turned back around to look at him. I was curious. He usually never acknowledges that I am here when I do something little and unnecessary. I searched his eyes, but all I got was that damn wall Paul was talking about a year ago.

"Yes, sir?" I asked, like a good little assistant.

There was a pause, and I wasn't sure he was going to complete his thought. His crystal blue eyes bore into my brown ones, and I began to feel something... odd in the pit of my stomach. I shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. Finally, he answered, "What was that tune? The one you were humming just not?"

I was a little taken aback by his request. When had he ever taken an interest in what I was doing? Especially the kind of music I sang? Slowly, I tried to explain the song. "Disturbia, sir. By Rihanna, one of the more modern singers."

He nodded slowly. "Ah. Could you... sing it for me, please?"

What the hell? What had gotten into this guy! He used to even shout at me for talking to him when he didn't address me, and now he wanted me to sing to him? Argh, this man was the most unpredictable, self-centered, uncaring, beautiful person I have ever met! ... What? My eyes widened. Had I just thought that? Beautiful? I... I couldn't even think straight. I mean, sure, he was a bad guy kind of handsome, but... beautiful?

The prince noticed my speechlessness and raised an eyebrow. "You know, you don't have to, Miss May. I was merely curious."

I gulped. Oops. That was awkward, had I really just been standing there like an idiot? Finally, I found my voice. "No, sir, I was just a little surprised. I can sing you the lyrics, if you are really that curious," I said cautiously.

He laid back in his chair and gestured for me to come closer. "Please."

I walked beside his desk and cleared my throat. I was usually okay with singing, but for some reason singing to LaCroix alone was making me nervous. I began to push the words out of my lips, and I was glad when they sounded much better than I felt. The prince seemed pleased when I'd finished, but the blood in my cheeks was apparent.

"A fitting song for this life, is it not?" the prince said weakly, slumping into his chair. I noticed how unfamiliar his movements were and I wondered if something was bothering him.

"I suppose so," I answered. His eyes did not meet mine, and I wondered if he would tell me what was wrong. "Is everything alright, sir?"

He finally looked up at me. After a short pause, he sighed. "Just tired, Miss May."

Chapter Six

Another year passed, and I was beginning to see a light. The menial tasks stayed the primary use of my assistance, but I could tell something was going on in his head that said, 'This girl isn't half bad'. How did I know? There were signs. Every once in a while, there would be a tiny smile that reached the eyes directed my way. A shared glance between us that revealed slight contentment. A playful promise of a reward here and there. Physical punishment was completely gone, and even when I did screw up, it was met with and angered glare or I was sent away. Or both. Mostly both.

Every now and then, I would catch myself drowning in inappropriate fantasies. I couldn't help but think about what had happened a year ago. I had finally blatantly admitted to myself his attractiveness. I called him beautiful. Although it's not usually used to describe a handsome man, it was fitting for the vampire prince. I smiled when I pictured his slight smile at something embarrassing I had done to myself. He always seemed so happy when I made a fool of myself in front of him. I sighed, shaking my head disbelief. How the hell did I manage to stumble so much in front of him and he never tire of it?

I had caught him looking at me from time to time when he thought I wasn't paying attention. It had always seemed a little odd the way he did so, but I disregarded it as his normal suspicious attitude towards everything. The same thing had happened to me on numerous occasions; him catching me looking at him, that is. I couldn't get over how handsome he really was, even with the pale as snow skin, neat blond hair, and uptight attitude. He wasn't really the kind of guy I usually ogled, but I couldn't help it. I knew I was developing a crush on him, but I also knew how not to let it interfere with my mission. I was trained to ignore emotions when it was crucial to a job.

Another thing that struck me odd over the past year was his interest in my musical preferences. Ever since the 'Disturbia' incident, he often asked me to sing a song to him. He requested one of my favorites, but by now I was running out of good songs - or at least ones I remembered the lyrics to. I started searching songs and learning the words so I wouldn't be caught empty handed next time he asked. I knew it was strange and a bit desperate to please, but I liked how happy he was with me when I finished. Though today when he asked, I wasn't ready.

For some reason, my mind started working on a song before I even knew what one. I was thinking of Evanescence or a Nightwish, but to my great surprise, Leona Lewis began flowing from my lips. It was a song I knew well, but I hadn't even thought about it recently, and I was surprised at LaCroix's reaction. He knew it.

"But nothing's greater than the rush that comes with your embrace, and in this world of loneliness I see your face. Yet everyone around me thinks that I'm going crazy, maybe, maybe. But I don't care what they say. I'm in love with you. They try to pull me away, but they don't know the truth. My heart's crippled by the vein that I keep on closing. You cut me open and I, I keep bleeding. Keep, keep bleeding love. I keep bleeding, I keep, keep bleeding love. I keep bleeding, I keep, keep bleeding love," I sang a bit of the song, not knowing why. But for some reason, I could feel the lyrics. They came easily to my lips, and I could feel... some sort of emotion flow with them. It was hard to understand. I also couldn't help but notice small words in the song you wouldn't think twice about. Embrace? A world of loneliness? A vein that I keep closing. You cut me open and I keep bleeding. It was weird of me to make the connection, but I couldn't help but feel this perfectly fit a childe in love with her sire. Or, more loosely, a werewolf in love with someone she can't have - try a vampire prince?

I finished the song, but the fear of what I'd just thought lingered. A werewolf in love? Love? Where had that come from? I shook my head violently before LaCroix would turn around, smile, and thank me. I waited, but he never turned to face me. The silence began to make me feel uneasy, and I shifted uncomfortably. Slowly, I cleared me throat. "Sir?" I almost whispered, silently begging him to say something. Maybe he had noticed the emotion behind the song. The nerves and fear that came with that thought hit me like a train. I began to panic. "Prince? Mr. LaCroix?" I forced myself to calm down, but the feeling was brought to the surface again when he didn't respond.

Before I could catch myself, a word fell from my lips. I hadn't meant to, but there it was. "Sebastian."

I could hear LaCroix's breath hitch slightly. My brow furrowed in confusion. What was he thinking? Why was his name such a bit deal? Again, on impulse, my hand touched his shoulder. As soon as I realized what I had done, I swiped it back quickly. A tremor of panic swept over me. I took a deep breath, and forced myself, almost painfully, to calm down. I was almost breathing steadily again. I wasn't going to get a response out of him, I admitted, and turned my feet to walk away when he spun around in his chair and grabbed my arm.

It was my turn to gasp at the contact. I had neglected to wear my raggedy old coat today, so his palm was in direct contact with the skin on my arm. It was so cold, but it was a strong grip. He looked into my eyes. There was a silence there that frightened me even more. Why was he having this effect on me? All because I chose a different song to sing? Was it because of my emotional attachment to the lyrics that was causing this? I didn't know, but I was definitely scared.

The silence loomed still, until he breathed into speak. "Why did you choose that song?" he asked me. I could have sworn his voice shook slightly, but I was too self-conscious at the moment to notice it. I tried hard to form a thought, but failed miserable. My body stated to shake again, and I noticed his hand was still on my arm. I tried to look away, but his gaze was too hypnotizing. "Luca," he whispered.

I closed my eyes at the sound of him saying my name. I swallowed hard, and I removed my arm from his grip. But he stood up now, and grabbed onto my shoulders. When I opened my eyes to see what had happened, his face was only inches from my own. "Why did you choose that song, Luca?" he repeated his earlier question. I shivered, feeling the cool breath of his words on my face.

I shook my head. I wasn't strong enough to handle this. But I was foolish enough to. "I don't know," I breathed out. "I felt it was the right song to sing. I... I don't even like it all that much."

The faintest smile I had ever seen twitched at his lips, and I was suddenly entranced at how they moved. Another silence fell between us as his smile faded, but it wasn't uncomfortable. In once swift movement, he wrapped his arms around my waist and crushed his lips against mine. My eyes widened in surprise, but the sensation of the prince's mouth on my own brought me down and I returned the kiss.

I wrapped my hands behind his neck and pushed his closer to me. His hands then roamed up my back and rand through my hair. I moaned softly, the feeling tickling my nerves. When I pulled back for breath, he bit his lip with his fangs. I stared in confusion when a tiny bit of blood revealed itself. He leaned into kiss me again, and the blood met my own lips.

I had had my fair share of vampire before this, but I had never paid much attention to the rich, velvety feel of it in my mouth. Maybe it was the passion between nus that made it so delicious. Or maybe it was LaCroix himself, but I knew one thing for certain. It was to die for.

I suckled lightly on his lip, causing LaCroix himself to moan into the kiss. The sweet sound fed a fire far too deep inside me. A feeling of hunger coursed through my veins, and a low growl rumbled at the end of my throat. Realizing how far gone I really was, I quickly pulled myself off of the vampire. I mentally scolded myself for letting it go as far as it did. How could I be so stupid! I growled again, a familiar warm sensation crawling along my body. "What's wrong?" LaCroix said weakly, obviously still being affected by the intense kiss.

I shook my head violently. My voice almost failed me before I finally let out a croaked, "The beast." Should I tell him I'm a lycanthrope? No. Did I want to? Yes. Was I ready? Definitely not. Did I have a choice? Not at all.

A small smile spread across his lips. "My dear, I've got it handled. My beast will not trouble you, I promise."

Fool, I sneered inside my head. "No. My beast, Sebastian." I knew the use of his name would get through to him. His confused look made me feel instantly guilty, but it was so uncharacteristic of his features I couldn't help but feel a little pride in getting such a different reaction from him than anyone else. "I'm not kine," I finished, my voice growing weaker.

"But, you're alive. I know it, I can hear your heartbeat when I kiss you, and your skin is so warm."

I shook my head sadly. Was it really this difficult for him to believe I'm a werewolf? Did he really think so low of my kind? "I'm a lycan, Sebastian."

Chapter Seven

The uncomfortable silence that ensued made me quadruple doubt myself. I wasn't sure what his reaction was going to be, and he just kept staring at me with a furrowed brow and a question in his eyes. Then, slowly, his expression changed to slight anger. "Miss May," he stated as if the whole passionate kissing thing had never happened. "You know very well that I dislike jokes of such a serious nature."

I scoffed. How thick-headed was this guy? And I know what you're thinking, 'didn't you just say a minute ago that you might be in love with him?' And you're right. I did. That doesn't mean I'm at all blind to his ignorance. "I'm not joking, LaCroix." I said as seriously as I could, keeping steady eye contact and breathing evenly.

He raised an eyebrow questioningly, but the anger he felt still shown through. "I said; don't joke about such serious matters. Stop it now."

I snarled at him. "You don't believe me, huh?" I began transforming my snout, the bones in my nose and jaw snapping and rearranging themselves. I could feel my unusually sharp teeth growing even sharper and stronger. My snout grew inches. I breathed in deeply, letting a loud growl escape my throat and waft passed him. I seethed, staring straight into his eyes.

His look of utter horror made my heart drop into my stomach, and I returned my mouth back to normal. The rush of quilt quickly evaporated, however, because as soon as my mouth returned to normal, a look of pure rage and insanity grew on the prince's face. "Get. Out."

I quickly suppressed the feeling of betrayl and regret, as I was trained to do. If I let my feelings get in the way right now, I wasn't going to come out of there alive. A new flood of emotions replaced the ones that left, and I was engulfed in anger and cockiness. "Aw, does the little prince want to be alone? Is he upset his girlfriend's a big meanie monster?" I taunted him. Finally, he took a swing at me, but I dodged it just in time. He was just as good as people said. "I'm sorry, Mr. Prince, but I don't think that I'm going to leave my assassination target alone to tell his employees that his right hand girl is a werewolf." I dodged another blow.

The surprise in his features told me he hadn't yet figured out that I was the 'one in a hundred years prince killer'. Meh, he knew now. I smiled at his confusion, but he took the opportunity to finally hit me. His fist rammed right into my jaw, making my head fly backwards. I stumbled back a few paces, but regained my composure quickly. So that's how it's going to be, huh?

Growling, I lunched forward with a force that made him stagger backwards, just as I did. But this time, I had grabbed into his arm and bit into it hard, my teeth easily tearing past the fabric on his coat. The puncture on his arm made him gasp, and I could feel him fight back a moan. So it was the wound that was pleasurable to vampires, not the blood, huh? Mentally noted.

He shook me off his arm, and threw me against the wall. The sound that came from him then was not like the usually sinister hiss I heard, but it was more of a feline-like growl. The power it had surprised me, and I was caught off guard when he grabbed onto my head and flung me across the room again.

The familiar sensation of my blood boiling brought me back to my feet. Something snapped in my brain and I charged forward, knocking him back and tossing him against his desk. He lay on the ground in a heap. Suppressed emotions threatened to return when I realized he didn't try to get back up. I shrug away the feelings and casually walked over to him, satisfied with me victory.

But as soon as I got close enough, he jumped up and grabbed onto my leg, throwing me. With a surprise, I came crashing through glass and flying through the air. The wind whipped my face horribly, and I landed atop another building with an earsplitting crash. All my bones were broken, I could tell. I couldn't move, and my eyes were welling up with tears of pain and anguish.

I don't know how long I laid there, but all I could think about was how stupid I could have been to except this job. And how stupid I was to still love the man that may have well just killed me.

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

Chapter Eight

The first thing I noticed was a frightingly bad headache. As soon as I tried to move, however, my thoughts were turned towards the pain in my bones. I could tell I had been really badly injured, that was obvious. But I wasn't sure if I was healed up yet or not. I tried to get up from the concrete of the roof, and almost successfully fell backwards. Luckily, I regained my balance and managed to sit up.

As soon as I sat up, I could hear footsteps approaching me quickly. I rubbed my temples, then tried to focus my eyes on who was coming towards me. I didn't have to, though, because he spoke first. "Ah, thank God you're alive! Well, I guess... undead. I'm glad you're still undead, but not dead dead. I thought you'd received Final Death. I mean, you would have evaporated, but you know... You're special, so I thought..." the bumbling vampire nerd named Evan rambled on.

Evan was one of the prince's more well-known contacts. Every time he needed some dirt on someone, or a way to not be tracked... or really anything having to do with computers, he contacted Evan. Or, had me do it. I always kind of liked the guy. His crush on me was obvious, but he was the kind of person that would never have the nerve to say anything. Really, I wondered how he got into all this vampire business in the first place.

At first when he started rambling on and on about me being undead and Final Death, I'd forgotten that he didn't know I was a werewolf. And LaCroix was the only one who was supposed to think I was human. God, this whole identity thing was a mess, but I figured it would soon be cleaned up. LaCroix was hardly going to keep this all a secret.

Finally, I started to listen to the poor boy's ranting. "... Never mind that. How did you end up here?" The worry in his eyes was obvious, so I gave him a quick reassuring smile, though I don't think it did any good.

The smile faded when I thought about the whole scene that had happened up in the tower. A tear rolled down my cheeks, the suppressed emotions from earlier leaking out to mix with the lingering pain from my wounds. "LaCroix," I whispered softly, trying hard to stifle my tears. "I messed up bad and we started fighting."

His mouth gaped open as his jaw dropped. "H-how... What did you do to piss him off so badly? I thought you guys were... well.... like...." he didn't finish his sentence. I knew what he meant, but his crush on me was preventing it from saying it out loud. He was a sweetie, but he was a bit weak when it came to feelings. Well, I suppose we all are if you think about it.

I shrugged at his question. I didn't really want to tell him about my lycanthropy, but he was going to find out sooner or later, and I needed to vent. "He thought I was a human. You think I'm a vampire. But I'm neither," I explained to him slowly. He didn't seem to catch on at first, but then an expression of shock slapped across his face.

"Y-you're a werewolf?"

I nodded slowly. "But don't worry. Just because you know what I am now, doesn't mean I'm any different. I'm still the same friend you've had for two years." I smiled at him, but his expression stayed the same.

Then, slowly, he processed the information. He seemed to take it well. "So you told loverboy and he freaked?" The way he was speaking started to worry me. He seemed much calmer than usual, instead of more twitchy and awkward. I kept an eye on him.

"Yeah. I don't think he'll be loverboy anymore," I whispered weakly. Another tear trailed along my cheek. A long pause loomed over us as Evan sat, trying to comprehend everything. He really was a sweet guy, and he had been a great go-to friend over the last two years. But since I'd blown my cover, I don't think I'll be coming back to the city for a while.

With that thought, I started bawling, startling Evan in the process. "What?" he said suddenly. "What's wrong?"

A sob shook me before I could gasp for air to speak. "I won't be in town for much longer. And... and when I leave, I won't be able to... to come back. And," I let out another sob, the pain overwhelming me. "I can't return to my clan as a failure. They'll... they'll never ac-accept me again..."

Evan lovingly wrapped his arms around me and hugged me close, but made sure not to aggravate my wounds. His unusual warmth (well, at least warm for a vampire) wrapped around me, giving me slight comfort. He allowed me to calm down, and slowly but surely, the sobbing seemed to die away. I wondered pleadingly why I couldn't have fallen for this sweet little guy instead of the uptight blondie that tried to kill me.

I sighed, finally letting go of him. "Thanks for being so cool about all of this."

He smiled casually, very unlike himself. At least, when he was around me. "Oh, Luca, I'm not calm. I'm merely in shock," he said sweetly. "But you might want to recover some and leave before I break out in hysterics."

I blinked in surprise. I... suppose he would react this way. His mind didn't know how to react to this, and it was just taking its sweet time to think it through before bursting. I stood awkwardly, trying to ignore the pain all over my body. I smiled at Evan before limping towards the rooftop door.

Chapter Nine

This is what I like about Africa.

Sure, there are a lot of angry, man-eating animals out here, but come on, do you really think I worry about them? Naw, just standing here. Just standing. Butt naked, standing. Slight breeze, warm air on my skin, hair lying gently along my shoulders, the sun just barely glinting over the horizon. This is what life was about. Standing.

It's been years. Not much has happened since the fight with LaCroix. After the rooftop talk with Evan, I ran. I ran as fast as I could as far as I could. I never looked back, and I never thought twice. And this is where I ended up. In Africa. Butt naked.

It may sound crazy to you, but I like it here. I have a little hut out in the middle of nowhere. I hunt when I'm hungry, I sleep any time, and I piss where I want. Life couldn't get better than this. I mean, who wants a stuffy blond in a giant city full of bums and drugs? Not me. Not me at all. I like the wide open spaces, where I can be who I want to be; roaming with the wild animals and howling at the moon.

. . .

Ah, who am I kidding? I loved life in the city. It was exciting. I had friends. I had a purpose. Sure, I had to work a bit and keep myself from barking at people, but that wasn't really all that hard. Life out here was hard. I had to do everything on my own. I wasn't incapable, but it was... lonely. And as much as I fantasize about such things, I am no lone wolf. I need social interaction. And talking to lizards doesn't count.

And the thing I think I missed the most was LaCroix. It's sad and pathetic, I know. Only I could see the charm in him. No, not the charisma - that was obvious - but the true charm. The way his eyes would sparkle at you when you did something nice out of nowhere. The cute smirk when you stumbled and he thought you weren't looking. The heavy sighs and hand-through-hairs when he didn't want to admit he was stressed. On the outside, Sebastian LaCroix was a stuck up Venture with a thing for squishing little people; on the inside, he was the most adorkable little French man you've ever seen.

And I missed him so much.

It had been so long. So long since I got to see the sparkle in his eye. Or the smirks. Or the sighs. Four years, it had been. Four years since I got a dose of that stupid charm of his.

And I want it back.

So there I was the instead I thought it; running like mad to the nearest town, getting a jeep, and driving off.

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

I'd now been in Santa Monica for a while, gloomily hanging around in places no one knows about. I've been trying to decide whether I should just go up and say hi and hope for the best, or figure a plan out. Either way, it's not looking so good.

About a month or so after arriving, a meeting was called. It was for really anybody who lived in Santa Monica, so I thought, 'hey, I get to see him, right?' and went.

The meeting was held in an old abandoned theatre. The entrance used was in a dark alleyway so no one would see it. I waited for the crowd (of about ten people, I might add) to enter and snuck in after them, sticking to the shadows. I made sure no one was able to see me.

As the crowd took their places, four kindred stalked on to the stage. It seemed that two of them were holding two others - a male and a female. This piqued my interest. For how thorough I am with my planning, I hadn't even bothered to figure out what this meeting was about in my haste to see LaCroix. But this was... odd.

The gorilla came in after the four kindred, and trailing behind him was... I gasped. It's been so very long. I gulped audibly and my heart stopped when he spoke. "Good evening," I suppressed a giggle. His 'manners' knew no bounds. "My fellow kindred. I apologize for disrupting and business or interfering with prior engagements you may have had this evening. It's unfortunate that the affair that gathers us here tonight is a troubling one."

I could see out of the corner of my eye that Gangrel that I had met my first night here. The stupid beast that was in the Last Round, as I learned later the name of the club. He was whispering to a man beside him - Brujah. I glared at the two. They were making me lose my focus on the prince.

"We are here because the laws that bind our society - the laws that are the fabric of our existence - have been broken. As prince, I am within my rights to grant or deny the kindred of this city the privilege of siring. Many of you have come to me seeking permission and I have endorsed some of these requests. However, the kindred that sits before you tonight was not refused permission. In fact, my permission was never sought at all. They were caught shortly after the embrace of this childe." The fidgeting in the audience showed that they weren't listening as well as they should have, but I couldn't do anything to bring their attention to the right place, so I settled for glaring.

"It pains me to announce the sentence, as up to tonight I consider the accused a loyal and upstanding member of our organization. But as some of you may know, the penalty for this transgression... is death." I grimaced. I knew what was going to happen next, and I didn't want to see it. Sure, I'd killed many vampires before, but to chop off a man's head in front of the entire Santa Monica kindred (again, not that many, but still...) was cruel. Instead of staying to watch, I took one more long look at my love and left the building.

Chapter Ten

The next couple of days were excruciating. It was so hard trying to keep myself away from LaCroix. I wanted to march right up to the tower in downtown and pronounce my love for him - then we'd make hot, passionate love and life happily ever after. But I knew that was impossible, as he would most likely kill me on sight, and even if he did... I, uh... don't think the 'making hot, passionate love' was an option. Heh.

But still. It was hard. I'd been trying to sort things out; figuring things up as I'm going isn't really working out well. I mean, come on, I went to Africa! And there wasn't really any reason, either! I mean, I met some nice people and a few other werewolves to howl with, but really, it was the most boring thing I've ever done.

But this... waiting for my brain to come up with something to do was horrible. I thought as hard as I could to figure something up, but there just wasn't any reasonable thing I could do. How many times does one find themselves in this kind of position? The guy tried to kill me! Although, that was four years ago...

And here we go again, bouncing back and forth between thoughts like it was an everyday chore. Should I just pop in? No, but what else could I do? If I came in armed and dangerous, he would assume I was there to kill him again. But if I come in without anything, he might try to kill me anyway, and I wouldn't have anything to defend myself with. And if I just sit around here thinking about these things rather than doing anything, then what was the point of coming back to L.A.?

And just like that, a thought struck me like a bolt of lightning. There was no thinking about it, there was no going back and forth between answers, there was a solution. An idea to solve everything.

I jumped up quickly from the couch in my apartment (Oh, that's where I was. Did I forget to mention that? My bad...) and started rummaging through drawers in the kitchen. I pulled out a pair of scissors and swiped them across my shoulders, chopping off at least a foot and a half of ratty, dusty-brown hair. I threw my raggedy jacket in the trash and carefully ripped the sleeves off of my shirt. I did the same thing with my torn 'flare' jeans, making them dangerously close to booty-shorts. I flung my shoes across the room and snapped three loose hairbands on my wrist.

As if on a mission, I flung open the apartment door and headed out, going to every possible store I could. I bought red hair dye and colored contacts, plus a completely new wardrobe. No more old, crappy, 20-year werewolf rags! I got new shoes, tops, pants, skirts, jackets, accessories, anything you could ever want. I picked the outfits and laid them out, more excited about this extreme makeover than I thought I would be. Once I was done with that, I lay down on my bed and K.O.'d. This whole 'looking pretty' thing was hard work.

The next night, I took at least two hours getting ready. It was about eleven at night, so I had to hurry a bit. But I wanted to look good.

I took a good, long shower before anything else. The feeling of cleanliness was amazing. Don't take showers for granted, kids. Anyways, afterwards I straitened my newly-made ginger hair with the most expensive straightening-iron I could get. I gently placed bright blue contacts in my brown ones, and picked out the most flattering outfit I could find. By the time I was done, I looked gorgeous.

From there I strutted out of my apartment, holding my head high as I walked into the LaCroix tower. The first thing I noticed when I got in was that Amelia (the "smart" teenager that was the previous receptionist) was no longer at her desk. Instead, there was a burly man with thinning hair and an enormous grin on his face. And he was in uniform. God I hope he's smarter than the last one, I thought.

Nope. "Why hi there pretty lady. What's a girly like you doing in a place like this?" his accent sounded almost Minnesotan. Or Canadian. Or both.

I smiled my sweetest smile at him. "I'm just visiting a friend. Could you please let me see Sebastian LaCroix?"

He looked at me with sorry eyes. "Sorry, but no can do, lady. Restricted access, you see."

I sighed. I really hadn't wanted to do this. Avoid impersonating a federal officer, always. Unless you have to. I held up a badge I stole a while back from an FBI agent. I let the tone of my voice change from lighthearted to commanding. "I understand you have your orders, sir, but so do I. Now let me up."

The police officer seemed to look more nervous, but nodded nonetheless. "Yes, ma'am."

I walked passed him, putting the badge back in my pocket and headed to the elevator I'd used so much so long ago. Coming back to this place was like coming back home. I'd spent so much time here it was hard to think I'd ever left it. I began to have second thought on my plan, but I was already at the Penthouse level. I took in a deep breath, and started down the hallways.

The lights were off like the first time I came in. It was strange. When I'd started to work for LaCroix, he made sure that there were always a couple of lights on in the halls so I could see when I came and went. But now, it was dark again. Like I was no longer welcome. My heart ached at the thought.

When I finally reached LaCroix's office door, I froze. What if he saw right through my disguise? I shook my head. It's far too late for that. I grabbed hold of the handle and pulled it open.

LaCroix's head shot up immediately. He seemed more alert than the last time I came in unannounced. Maybe it was because now he knew there were werewolves after him. He eyed me oddly for a moment, giving me a once-over. I tried to keep a calm expression, but it was difficult. After a moment, he seemed to calm down a little and raised an eyebrow at me.

I cleared my throat lightly and parted my lips to speak. Apparently I had absently licked my lips, and the feel of wet lipstick threw me off a little. I wasn't used to wearing any makeup at all, let alone this much. I tried to ignore the sensation, and let my voice rise a little bit. I let my words come out a little smoother than usual, because a werewolf usually has a very deep, rough voice from howling so much. And a 'normal' female wouldn't be so rough sounding. I also added a slight, almost unrecognizable to human ears, British accent. "Prince Sebastian LaCroix."

My character was supposed to be a lot like me, but it seemed that it was taking its own personality. She seemed more straightforward and to the point. She, or I, trotted over to his desk and held out my hand to shake. He eyed me funnily before taking my hand in a firm grip.

I smiled, my bright red lipstick tickling a bit. "Pleasure to finally meet you."