Blue Moon

I get to make people go bonkers! YAAAAY!!!! But seriously, remember how in the prologue we said blue moons and eclipses both do funky things to magic? Well guess what.(Sylph's thing)

 

Blue Moon

Kaydra's Perspective

 

              I found Tao sitting on the belfry on the bell tower, staring into the full moon.

              I carefully climbed my way up the tower and seated myself beside him.

              "Guess what I found." I said tauntingly. "It was in some schmancy room they had me unlock so they could 'finally' clean it."

              "Oh, man," he said, turning to face me, "Not the family portrait! That thing's ancient!"

              "Yup." I said with a grin, then I frowned, "But I didn't see the Tao I know. I saw two identical twins, but that's not who I know. I know this Tao and Edvard, not a couple of clones. So I'm curious, why are you..what you are? Evidently, you two were identical when they made that, and now you aren't. Do you mind telling me what the deal is there?"

              He laughed and shook his head.

              "You notice too much." he said, "Most people can't even tell I'm related to the person in the painting, let alone guess which one I am. Oh, speaking of which, which one am I?"

              "Ah..." I said, thinking carefully, "This side." I lifted one hand on the side where the younger Tao had been standing. He laughed again.

              "Yup. And by the way, that's the right side for your information."

              "Isn't that redundant?" Then I remembered that Right was also the Not Left direction wise, and said "Oh!", whacked myself in the forehead and said, "That right."

              We laughed for a moment, but hey, curiosity killed the cat, so I guess the fox can get bitten.

I calmed down and said, "But really, I do want to hear.. that is, if it's not too personal."

              "No." he said, "It's fine. I probably wouldn’t tell, say, Auria or Avryn, but they're a bit odd that way and wouldn't ask to know either."

              I smiled and said, "Thanks." as I leaned my head on his shoulder.

              He held my hand to his other shoulder and we both looked into the moon as his story began.

 

Story Mode

 

              He was born a normal -- well, for a vampire twin -- child, and raised by his utterly unique parents. He and his twin brother, Edvard were true blue vampires to the core (except for maybe the the fact they weren't evil, but who can help what their parents teach?) and they absolutely LOVED high places. They would climb onto the roof tops and drop rocks on anything that moved -- typical little boys.

              But disaster seemed innocent before it struck.

              Once -- only once -- Edvard was sick and Tao went out alone. No one had told him the danger of doing such in a thunderstorm -- they'd never had a reason -- but some have to learn things the hard way. He was sitting on the belfry when the lightning started.

              It was amazing.

              All of the flashes of light dazzled him and the thunder sounded like a symphony.

              Until the storm grew closer.

              Then he began to grow nervous.

              He tried to climb down from the belfry-but lo, and behold, he was stuck. He was caught on the weather vane.

              He frantically worked his way free from the metal -- but he was too late.

              As he began climbing down the roof, lightning struck the castle for the first time in his life -- and what should have been his last.

              After the storm, they found him, broken and singed, lying on the cobbles.

              That was one of the Great Tragedies -- finding Tao pronounced dead in the courtyard.

 

Kaydra's Perspective

 

              I was riveted on the story.

              "I hit the ground so hard, the cobblestones shattered -- along with just about every bone in my body, but still." he said, still managing to keep the mood, "I couldnt feel it. I couldn't feel anything. I was trapped -- too numb to feel. When I woke up, I was in a dark, cold place made of wood. I'm the only person I've ever met that was buried alive -- I even had my own gravestone." He ran his fingers through his hair and somberly said, "You never know just how deep six feet under is until you try digging your way out of your grave."  Some emotion I hadn't heard in his voice was there -- was it fear? "I couldn't walk when I made it up to the surface, so I lay where I fell by my own burial site. Alex woke me up when he asked me something about who the heck I was and what right I had to be here. I still remember the look on his face when I said, "Alex, don't you recognize me?" He looked like the whole world had just flipped inside out and then backwards. He went and got my mom, and she fussed over me for a while.  I was pretty happy...that is until I saw myself in a mirror. I can tell you exactly what it looked like-gold frame, tarnishing surface -- but I can't explain the shock. You see, I had never seen myself in a mirror before. Never could until then. But I knew that before I didnt look like that.  I've always had a thing for having my hair in my eyes, and it was black.  It was like I was stareing at someone else..."

              I looked up at his pensive face and saw the pain hidden barely beneath the surface that had always been there, magnified by recollection.

              "Your parents treated you differently afterwards, didn't they?" I said bluntly.

              He looked down at the roof sadly.

              "Yeah." he said after a long pause. "They did. It was like they felt sorry for me. But what's worse, my parents deal with their mourning by dissassociating the deceased with themselves.  As you know, they thought I was dead.  I'd been that way for almost a week when I woke up." He looked close to tears. "I lost my parents that day."

              I wrapped my arms around him, ready to cry with him.

              "I'm sorry." I said through a tight throat.

              He made a noise that was almost a laugh, and said, "What for? You probably wonder why I consider Alex my brother, too, huh?" I nodded. "Well, when his family heard what had happened, they came as quickly as they could. They were just about to leave when I made it back to ground level. They decided to stay longer and help me-and my parents- deal with my change. I'm so glad they did. Alex was the first to accept me as who I was." He smiled a bit, then said, "I guess the freaks need to stick together. Byron was away at the time, and I'm glad. Heck, he would've teased me to no end had he not been told I was dead or seen me when I got back up to ground level. I was a mess." he was almost laughing, and almost crying too, and I felt tears welling in my eyes. "I will be forever thankful to my Aunt Celeste and Uncle Carlisle. Ever since my parents, well, stopped being my parents, Celeste and Carlisle took over, and I grew up the rest of my life as Alex's brother." He said. "I had asked Alex multiple times why he did it, but all he would answer was; " I don't care if you wear a cross around your neck and transform into a 5 headed pig-lion with pony teeth. You're still my brother, and you'd better not forget it." He said, chuckling a bit. I felt a new sense of respect for Alex.

              He lifted my face off his shoulder and wiped a tear off my face.

              "Don't cry." he said. "Too many people have cried over me, and I don't need you to do it now. I'm done with that story, but there's something more. I've never told anyone else about this part, but it didn't apply to them. While I was... well, I guess you could say dead, I remember having this dream. I was following a little girl around, but she was the only one who could see or hear me. Do you know who she was?"

              I stared at him almost remembering something a long, long time ago.

              "I'll give you a hint." he said, with a smile. "She grew up, became a dragon rider, and found me on the belfry so she could ask me about my past."

              I remembered. I finally knew why he seemed so familiar. It was my Ghost, as I called him.

              I had watched him change from the black haired, red-eyed boy in the portrait, to the pure white one I saw before me now when I was little, still within the grasp of those who had forced me into education. They'd told me I'd only had an imaginary friend...

And now I knew for sure they were wrong.

              In a way, losing his parents that way was crueler than my never knowing mine.

              I lay my head on his lap and the tears just...came.

              He stroked my hair and I fell asleep on the rooftop, listening to midnight bells toll in the belfry that had made the Tao I care for from the boy they said I'd only imagined.

Ari's Perspective

 

              I found Alex in the courtyard, staring listlessly toward the top of the belfry. I came up next to him. He took my hand and looked at me with concern. "Kaydra and Tao are up on the roof," he said as he pointed with his free hand toward Tao's bright red sneaks, "And they won't come down. Been up there since last night." I looked at him, smirking.

              "What exactly am I supposed to do about it, Alex?"

              "I dont know. I just figured you might've known why."

              "Eh... Nope. I don't."

              Alex shrugged. "M'kay, then."

              Tao's sneaks moved, and the end of his jeans became visible. Then the end of Kaydra's shirt sleeve was just barely visible over his shoes. "They moved." I said, stating the obvious. "Hey 'yall up there! You okay?" I shouted.  Some unintelligable words had been whispered and a moment later Tao's head was visible. "Hi guys." He answered, rubbing his eyes. "Sorry about that. I guess we fell asleep up here." He and I exchanged glances.

              "What're you doing up there?!" Alex said, sounding almost unnerved,startling me.

              "Uhm.... I don't know, exactly." Tao said confused, also sensing Alex's tension.

              Kaydra became visible. "What?" she asked, yawning and stretching. "What happened?"

              Suddenly she slipped and rolled forward. Tao lunged forward and caught her, just as she tumbled off the edge. Alex was as tense as I'd ever seen him, though the two seemed perfectly stable. Actually, the way he'd caught her was somewhat more romantic than dangerous. "They're okay." I said, putting my hand on his back, looking at him worriedly.

              "No." he said, "That's not it. I'm just remembering...well, last time he fell off of that belfry." He tore his gaze from the pair who had safely navigated off the roof of the belfry and onto the roof of the rest of the building. "I've seen Tao in a coffin -- seen him lying dead, still as a statue. He fell from that roof in a lightning storm."

              Suddenly, he looked pensive, then he grinned and said, "You know, he was the first Great Tragedy of the Royal family, and you see what came of that. He's better than ever." the pensive look was back, and suddenly tinged with sorrow.

              "I suppose the other two are just as important. You should know about them, since they explain some things. We werent after making it imaginative, so they're just called the Three Tragedies. Short, sweet, and to the point." He seemd to be rushing, as if, if he didn't get it out now, he never would. "The first, as I said earlier, was Tao. The second was..." he paused, suddenly choked, "was my parents." He smiled faintly after he calmed from his personal moment. He looked back up at me, his smirk spreading into a grin."I'll bet you can guess the third."

              I looked at him in puzzlement, then my eyes widened in realization.

              He caressed my face gently, and whispered, "It was your story." before kissing my forehead and greeting the pair who had instigated this revelation. "That was cute." Kaydra teased. He smiled gently, his hand skimming the small of my back.

              "By the way..." Kaydra said softly to Alex, "Thanks. For everything. You make a big difference in Tao's life. Thank you."

              Suddenly Kaydra gathered Alex in a hug, smiling at him.

              Alex smiled, almost seeming embarrassed and confused.

              Tao whistled, directed at the moment before the hug. They both had seen us get more personal than that, but they liked to tease anyway. Alex smirked at Tao with an expression that said, Shut up.

              Then Kaydra and I in remarkably good timing laughed and said, "We have to get to the parlor to talk to the Hyperions soon."

              Then Tao's face grew solemn, hints of pain and anguish lining the edges. Quite obviously he wasn't ready to face his parents after 12 years. I can imagine why. He'd been 'missing' for years, then poof! "Hi mom... Meet my girlfriend!" This could be a tough night for all of us. Especially trying to explain that I wasn't dead... Tao's parents don't even believe Tao's not dead. No matter how much Vikki and Eddie tried to convince them. They left the house at one point. That didnt work. Hey, Maybe this'll wake 'em up.

              Alex knew what I was thinking and grasped my hand. "We can only hope." he whispered.

              He caught Tao's arm before the two could escape and said, "Oh no you don't." pulling Tao onto the empty ground beside us.

Kaydra shrugged and sat. "You have to face Evellyn and Stefan eventually, Tao. They're your parents."

              "Not if they can help it." Tao muttered, pulling his knees to his chest and sulking. Kaydra put a hand on his, gentle sympathy in her eyes. Tao grabbed her hand and gripped it tightly before letting loose.

              Alex glanced at his watch, then stood up and said, in a softer tone, "C'mon bud. Up."

              Tao glared and said "No."

              Alex returned the glare. "Really, now?"

taoiSnoWbeingdrugupthestairs

Tao's Perspective

              "No! I dont wanna see my mommy!"

I wailed as they literally dragged me to the parlor.

              "Stop whining. At least they're acknowleging your existence!" Alex yelled over my wails. They drug me over the stairs(ow), *Thud Thud Thud*. I realized there were another 2 flights of stairs and reluctantly stood up and walked with them towards the rest of the way.

              "I'm sorry, Tao." Ari side-hugged me sympathetically.

              I snorted. "At least someone feels sorry for me."

              Alex side-glanced at me behind his shoulder, saying, "You could at least try to be a little more mature, Tay. This was supposed to be fun to have the girls here, to show them the home we always talked about."

              "Why do they wanna see me anyhow?" I grumbled.

              Kaydra grasped my hand. "I think they wanna see you because you're their son."

              Alex smirked. "We've been gone for 12 years, Ari even longer than that, and all of a sudden, here we are showing them their future home. A little odd, don't you think?"

Kaydra's Perspective

              Ari's eyes narrowed in a shocked realization and subconsiously shuddered. Alex must not've noticed of he just wasn't surprised. I felt the same way. I slowly realized they were hoping the next time we came here, we'd be eternally 'paired off'.

(Notice I said 'paired off'.) That... M-word seems too personal at the moment. Tao interrupted my thoughts saying, "Dangitt! It's a costume party!" We looked around, and, sure enough, everyone was dressed in one exotic ensemble or another. Great cover for our 'unusual human land' dress. It was a masquerade ball. Everyone was wearing something different, which I supposed was set up on purpose so we wouldn't stick out like a sore thumb as we usually did.

              I sat next to Tao, rubbing his shoulder. "Tao... maybe it'd be a good time to kind of get this off of your shoulders. I can see in your eyes how much pain this has caused you. Please, if you don't want to do it for yourself, than do it for me. I don't like to see you upset like this, Tay."

              His eyes softened, and he nodded, kissing my hand after lifting it off his shoulder. "Fine."

              "Well hello, Captain Obvious." I said. He ignored that statement and attempted to turn around and leave, once more stopped by Alex's massive arm, pulling him back with a death grip. "You're not going anywhere.Could you at least try to be a little more mature about this?"

              We "marched to the guillotine", as Tao put it, to meet them.

              Evellyn and Stefan had stone silent faces. We came toward them. Stephan glared at Tao and Kaydra from his throne. "Hello." He said gruffly, his jaw tightly set. He looked only a few years older than Tao.

              Evellyn's long, jet black hair was pushed back by a gold crown that reminded me of the sun, despite it's dark coloring.She sat ramrod straight in her chair, glaring at her husband through a masquerade mask. Her Victorian-Era dress looked heavy, with it's dark velvets and enormous skirts. Big, rich, scarlet eyes were set deep inside her round face.

              Stephan had a similar theme to his wife's, with the same era of clothing and color scheme. His crown sat eskew, and his mask hung on the side of his face. Stefan looked  almost exactly like Eddie. Dark haired, red-eyed, with very strong features and a sharp jawline. Evellyn was glaring at Stefan, and I smirked after I realized she must've whacked him hard upside the head or something.

              "Hello father." he said, bitterness tinting his words red. I put my hand on his shoulder- which was shaking. I lay my head on it. I felt like I was hanging on him- probably looked like it too- but he was steadying.

              "And who might this be?" Evellyn said, evidently looking at me. I stepped away, blushing. She stood and painstakingly walked toward me. "She's definitely a beauty.." She said, picking up my hand and examinig it, lifting it beside her shoulder. I'm sure my face turned a few shades lighter than her eyes.

              "Oh, I'm sorry, dear, I suppose I should be asking you. What is your name?" I shrunk back and whispered,"Kaydra." blushing even harder.

              "Kaydra." she said, her flighty voice barely a whisper, she grinned and said, "What a lovely name!" I was probably beet red by now, but I half-smiled back.

              "You didn't tell me you had a girlfriend." Evellyn whispered pleasantly. Tao looked at her, unamused.

              "Stefan, get your butt out of that stupid chair of yours and get over here."

              Not getting up from his throne, he looked at Tao for no more than 5 seconds, then caught sight of Alex.

              "Alexander?!" Stefan said enthusiastically, "Is that you? I could hardly recognise you! Look how you've grown!"

              Ouch. Poor Tao. I looked into his eyes, and I could tell even without looking that hurt.

              Alex looked sadly at Tao for a split second, then looked at Stefan, smirking, his arm around Ari.

              Ari laughed, trying to lighten the situation up a little, "Yeah, I guess 12 years will do that to ya."             

              "Wait." Evellyn said, giving me my hand back. Her red eyes darted to Stephan and back, peircing into Ari's.

              Evellyn looked at Ari, then dropped my hand. She walked slowly toward her, lifted her hand to Ari's face.

Ari's perspective.

              I took a deep breath, wondering what to think about this. Her eyes looked me over, as if drinking it all in, and a bizzare look of both pain and excitement flooded her expression.

              "Stefan!" she gasped, gathering me into a hug, sobbing erratically. "Stefan come quick!"

              "What, Ev?"  he sounded annoyed.

              "Ari! How long we've searched for you! I missed you so!You were like a daughter to me!" She sobbed.

              He stood up and eyed me cautiously, as if I came here with a gun. Then his jaw dropped to the ground. "It's....but...b-but it can't be...she's supposed to be..." he stuttered.

              Evellyn took over from there. She looked at me, squeaking, "Ari, my poor baby!! Oh, the long and painful searches we led turning the world upside down trying to find you! I thought you were dead!!!!" she sobbed.

              "-Yeah well, she's not. Just like I'm not." Tao interrupted bitterly.

              Evellyn's face grew somber, tears flooding her eyes again.

              She let go of me to blubber on Tao, which I kind of was exited about because now I was soggy.

              "Tao, Tao, forgive me. I'm so, sorry. I'm such a horrible mother. Leaving you when you needed me most! You're Aunt and Uncle!! Oh!" She blubbered, "Oh, I never had a chance to thank Celeste. Oh, Celeste, my sister! I am aghast with myself everytime I think about her taking you in before I. Oh, Celeste and Carlisle, the only ones that were smart enough to look past all the differences, the problems, Tao I don't know what to do to make it up to you... I'm so, sorry Tao." She was crying hard on Tao's shoulder now. She hugged him with the biggest hug a woman that small could manage.  He looked like that hurt worse.

              Oh, Tao...

              Stefan never apollogized. He didnt even look his way.

              Tao hugged his mother, glaring at his father for the pain he was purposely causing.

              The tears died down, and Stefan looked at us again. (Us being Alex and I. I don't like feeling like a bug under a microscope...)

              Alex finally relaxed for the first time since we got here, his arm draped from my shoulder to my waist.  He held me firmly, my head on his shoulder.

              Stefan laughed. It was surprisingly deep. Inside I raged. He had no right to laugh when all the rest of his family had just finished crying.

              "I see you've found her. Good work, Alex. I belive you two are soulmates."

              Hmm.. I seem to recall Tao telling me about that beleif their (well, I guess mine did too) family passed through the kindom.

              I uncomfortably shifted and hid like a child in Alex's arms. "Why do I feel like a bug under a microscope?"

I don't know why, but I caught a bad vibe around Stefan. Alex chuckled. Tao, for the first time today, smiled.

              "You must be exhasted after your travels. We should get to know each other! " Evellyn said lightly. She grabbed Kaydra's arm. "Say, do you like dresses?" she enthusiastically urged.

              "Ah, sure." Kaydra said, but I smirked as I saw her cringe at the very word,"dress."

              She pulled Kaydra out of the corridor, chattering exitedly to her. Alex and I laughed at Kaydra's expression as she was pulled out of the door. Tao smirked. "You just wait, Ari."

              He counted down from his fingers, and soon I heard Evellyn run back in saying, "Dear me, I'm such an airhead. Come, Ari, we'll catch up on things." Alex smirked as I was pulled out with the same panicked expression.

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Kaydra's Perspective

              When Ari and I were finally released about 3 hours later, the day was nearly done. I found Tao sitting on the outside steps leading to the courtyard, bunched up in a ball with his elbws on his knees and his head in his hands.

              "I'm sorry." I said, "About Stefan."

              " 's not your fault." He said, his voice muffled by his hands.

              I decided to change the subject.

              "Did you know that there's going to be a Blue Moon Tonight? And then a Solar Eclipse tomorrow? This one'll be for the record books." I combed my fingers through his hair.

              "Oh, man." Tao said, looking up at me. "You realize how much just one of those screw with magic, right? And then two in a row?? Oh gosh, we're in for it... whatever it is."

              "Well, this should be interesting." I muttered with a smirk. "We've got so much magic on us, who knows what could happen."

              He took a breath. "I don't know. It may just be small... but sometimes... things arent good. My whole incident with the lightning storm was in a Blue Moon, and Alex was born on a Solar Eclipse.. Which would be why you could never guess that he's vampiric."

              The sun was setting rapidly. "So," he said cautiously, "Just... be careful is all I'm asking."

              We watched the sunset from the steps in silence. It was gorgeous, but even it paled in comparison to the night sky. In the human world, a blue moon had been nothing too special, but here it held the northern lights, several other places in the sky were lit like the Fourth of July with shifting colors in staggered sheets, but the moon itself outshone them all.

              "Wow." I breathed in child-like awe.

              I heard Tao lurch sideways and say "Oh my gosh!" in obvious shock. What he would do that for, I don't know.

              I glanced over at him and basically did the same. He looked just like the moon right now- surrounded by a glistening crystalline rainbow.

              But he was staring at me.

              I cocked my head in confusion. I looked up at Tao. "Whoa.. Tao.. You're-"

              My words were cut off by Tao's, who had jumped back in shock."Kay -- you're glowing!!"

              "I am?" I said, looking at my hand. It looked just like Tao, but a bit less prominent.

              "Just like you!"

              He looked down, and stared back in awe.

              "Ari!" I called, "We have a situation!"

              She wasn't lit up like a Christmas tree -- I noticed that right off the bat -- but something about her was different. I couldn't quite place what it was...

              "Oh, My gosh." she said in disbelief. "Alex, check this out." Alex peeked his head out of the doorway and started laughing. He looked totally normal.

              I went back to staring at my hand, (Which, I noticed, happened to be more pink than earlier. Hm, I wonder if it's supposed to match my face?)

              My personal aurora faded away after a moment, but Tao's wasn't even slightly dimmer.

              "What the heck?!" I said, looking back at Ari (who was suddenly normal again too. Never did see what was different...)

              "Like I would know." she replied, brushing back her hair. Alex was almost able to stand again. Almost. Personally, I'm not seeing what's so funny. There's seriously something wrong! Well, I think there is...

              I don't get it." Huffed Tao. "And what's worse, I'm more than just glowing this time, I shimmer." he hmph-ed again and went back to having his face in one hand with a miffed expression on his face.

              Alex shook his head. "You're still Tao, dude."

              "Oh?" I said -- luckily, I kept myself from laughing-innocently, sliding closer to Tao, "And what's wrong with shimmering?" The lights had sortof settled into his skin and he looked fiber-optic the way the lights shimmered on his skin. I ran a hand through his hair (Obviously making him uncomfortable) and left it there. "I think it's lovely."

              "It's late." he muttered. "We'd better get some sleep. I'll be doing this for the rest of today and tomorrow if the stories are valid, so I'd better get used to it. Dunno what the eclipse thing'll do, but it's gonna be something."

              He stood and sulked back into the building, lighting up the hall as he went. I let out my giggle before standing and following the others. When I got to my room, I changed into one of the million nightgowns Evellyn had given my and was out before I hit the mattress.

              My dreams seemed to feature lots of colors, for some reason... don't tell Tao.

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              The next morning was mostly uneventful. I say mostly uneventful because we couldn't find anyone -- Not even Evellyn and Stefan -- in the whole flippin' castle besides ourselves. Oh, and beleive me, we looked. Ari, Alex, Tao and I were the only ones there until a bit after one in the Afternoon, when Byron, Victoria, Eddie and Megan flew in.

              "There you are!" Vikki laughed, climbing off of Raiona and setting her to lounge around the courtyard. "We were beginning to wonder if you'd all been abducted again." We were a bit miffed at the statement -- "We" being Ari and I.
              "Did you know there's supposed to be an Eclipse?" Byron asked Tao.

              "Yeah. It's supposed to happen really soon. We decided not to leave just yet because we didn't know whether the dragons would be able to fly during the Eclipse. Don't want to end up spiraling into a boiling volcano because the dragons have turned into crystal.”

              “When will it start?” Vikki asked anxiously.

              “ I'd say right about....” Byron started, staring up with his head partially shielding his face. He cut off just as the edge of the moon covered the edge of the sun The other two had frozen at the same instant, as the sun dimmed. I glanced at Raiona. Not only her, but all the dragons had turned to crystal the color of their scales.

              "Lanfen." I breathed, looking in shock at my stone dragon.

              "Alex?" Ari said. I looked to see her shaking his shoulder. "You alright?"

              He was frozen like the others- stalk still and staring at the sun. With....red eyes.

              "Hey, ah, Byron, I think the word is 'now'." Tao said. No response. Tao started to cautiously walk forward, reaching out a still fiber-optic seeming hand from the shadow of the overhang. As soon as the fading sunlight hit his hand, he froze. The eclipse became total and the world was cast in red light and shadow.

              They all looked like statues.

              "T-tao?" I said cautiously. "What's going on?"

              No response.

              "Tao?" I put my hand on his shoulder. Still, no response. I decided to risk stepping into the red glow (It pulled the markings of my warrior form onto my skin, but left me otherwise normal.) and looked him in the eyes. Big mistake. His pupils were dilated to pinpricks on a disk of dark crimson. His face had the appearance of the hypnotized. I forced my way into his mind and found out why his eyes were red. His vampiric side nearly had complete control over him.

              Run. he thought, merely an echo in his own mind. Get out of here! NOW!

              I pulled out and said, "Ari we have to go."

              Edvard and Victoria were slowly turning on us as I yanked Ari along with me. We ran to a door, nearly pulled off it's hinges opening it, and bolted in.

              I sat in the dark, musty storeroom, holding my head and muttering, "Oh, my gosh!" and "The vampires have gone berserk!" over and over. Then an idea popped into my mind.

              “They’re going to find us soon, you know that right?” Ari said quietly.

              “Yeah. Ari, you can fly, right?”

              She looked at me tensely. “Yeah.”

              “Better get transforming." I stuttered, my skin shaking. The door protecting us ripped away, Vikki and Edvard waiting for us.

              Ari was already 7 feet tall with horns, wings and draconic muscles that our opponents simply couldn't compete with. Ari growled and effortlessly flung them out of the way, knocking them to the floor after hitting the wall on the opposite side of us.

              She yanked on my arm and tossed me onto her back as the rest of the transformation finished. I only then realized how much larger she was compared to the rest of the Dragons.

              Hang on! Ari said in her draconic voice, bolting into the sky. The vampires roared and shrieked in anger.

              Then we were bombarded by flames left and right. A roar sounded from behind us. We didnt have to turn around to know who it was. D___ it, Alex Ari growled. I was shocked. Ari never swears. She weeled around and huffed a barricade of IceFire, as she called it.

              "Uhm, how long does your warrior form last?" I yelled over the wind.

              Not Long!! she hollered.

              "What?! I've never reached my limit!" I moaned.

              Well if you havent noticed, I'm a lot larger than you are. I think I'm changing back. quickly!! she said, horrified.

              Sure enough, she was dipping lower and lower until she had no wings at all."Crap." We both muttered as we looked at each other in horror, falling quickly.

kaydragetsanewappreciationfortrees

              Did I mention that I love trees?? Especially when they're strong and branch out a lot and they don't have thorns to land on.

In case you didn't catch that, we landed in a tree. I love trees. We found a suitable branch to slide off from and ran the opposite direction of Alex.

              "Where to now?" Ari panted.

              "Uhm.. we need to try and go back inside."

              "Back inside?!"

              "Do you have any better idea?"

              "No..."

              "Then follow me."

              We ran inside. "Why are we coming inside anyway?" Ari asked.

              "I forgot my harmonica."

              "Your...harmonica??"

              "Yes harmonica!"

              "We're going back for a harmonica?"

              " No, I'm smarter than that, genius. We've gotta find cover. They're going to wonder what happened to us when this all ends. And.. if they do find us.. We're going to have to face them some time." 

              We came to a door that lead outside. "The Vampires, and Alex are gonna kill us if we go out."

              "No just vampires."

              "And.. Alex."

              "Eh, no. If whatever Alex was would be going haywire, you'd be going haywire also. I think he's finally become a vampire."

              Ari looked at me. "Got a point there."

              "Got a point there? I'd be screaming like a little girl and hiding in a corner."

              "We've gotta face them sometime. It we don't face them sooner or later, they'll start breaking the dragons."

              "Got a weapon on you per chance? Like, anything?"

              "Not a one. Except you..."

              "Oh, yeah, now I'm a weapon." I sighed, slammed the door open and ran out.

              "Hey. Kaydra almost rips yet another door off of it's hinges..." Ari claimed quietly.

              It was very fitting to find vampires waiting for us at the corner in a red glow. Each one of them locked gazes on us.

              "Oh my gosh. Remember when I first got here and said they were cool? Well now they scare me to death. Bad pun. Sorry." Ari said.

              "Agreed." The formed a V-formation. Vikki was the leader. Wait.... Vampire starts with a V. Ironic. What??

              "Vikki." we both spoke in awe. "Why her? She's never lead anything."  Vikki rose her hand.

              "Crap." Ari said. Then Vikki pointed at us. Alltogether, they attacked.

              "Uhm... maybe we shouldn't face them."

              "Eh, yeah." Ari answered, spinning around and running away from the mob.

              We frantically found another door and tried to wrench it open. It was locked.

              "Umm, Ari... I suggest you get behind me since you can't morph into your dragon. I'll turn into my warrior form and try and jump get us over them." I muttered. She obeyed. I realized I sounded like a guard dog.

              We got away. Temporarily. Vikki sicked them on us. Eddie decided he wanted to play dictator and pounced onto Vikki. Then Byron and Megan joined in.Vikki struggled to gain leadership again.

              Alex and Tao marched forward, ignoring the scenario behind them.

              "There's no way you can take them both on." Ari said.

              "There's no way you can take on one of them." I replied.

              "Yeah, well.." she jumped off and ran straight at Alex. Well at least he's unarmed and out of power. All he's got left are his teeth to worry about. Which left Tao. Crap. I've got Tao. In two seconds flat, I had Tao's warrior form running at me instead of just Tao. Dang. He can fly, too! And swim for that matter. Scratch the river.

              Wait. I cant swim...River was never an option.

              After running to a wall, I turned to face Tao. He gained rapidly, approaching me. I leapt just in time for Tao to run head first into said wall.  I love that old style construction...

              In the corner of my eye, Ari and Alex were fighting it out Martial-Art style. Ari had bloodied up his nose and bruised his eye pretty bad. I don't think he cared.

              Just then, Tao tackled me from behind. Note to self: don't get distracted!! Tao always was an opportunist.

              I jumped onto the wall and began running its length, hoping desperately that that would give me enough time to think of a plan.

             As the shadow began to move off the sun, Our warrior forms spontaneously shut down for no apparent reason. I ran the wall now at top speed as Tao quickly caught up with me.

             Before I could formulate a plan, I was tackled off the wall.  I hit my head on the cobbles hard. I tried to pry myself up, but it was to no avail.  Tao caught me by my throat, pulled me to me feet, and held me against the wall.  There was a moment of hesitation where I could see that Tao was beginning to come back to normality, but it was no where fast enough.  As if savoring the moment, he cocked he head sideways, and gently pressed his fangs up against my neck.  His hand held me immobilized.  There was nothing I could do but close my eyes and wait for the inevitable -- which came.  As he bit down, I felt an electric current run through me.

             And then the world went black.

iguessyouknowwhathappensnex

Alex's Perspective

              The red haze faded and I dropped whatever I had been holding.Whoa, I think I blacked out there. Something in my mouth tasted funny. Had I bitten my tounge? No, it tasted...different.. my tounge didn't hurt either. I did, however, realize my canine teeth had grown freakishly long and sharp.

              Wait...

              I glanced down at the thing I had dropped. It was Ari, knocked out with a bloody bite at the back of her neck. I finally realized that she had been screaming moments ago. No... not Ari.... Crap.

kaydrawakesupnowwithabadheadache

Kaydra's Perspective

              I sat up, dazed and confused. My vision was blurry. I couldn't tell what was around me. I ached like no other. A sharp pain drew my hand to my neck. I fingered it, and dark, sticky, cold blood encrusted my fingers. Waves of firey pain shot through my body and I passed out again.

Nowitsfinallyaristurnagain

Ari's Perspective.

              I woke up in my room. Wait...what? My room? The night before flooded over me like ice water. None of that happened in my room. Then realization sunk in. I rolled over and sighed. Alex. I'd better go and find him. Most of you may think I'd be angry, or upset, or scared, but what did you expect? Spending the night in a castle full of Vampires makes this fate highly possible.

              My neck pulsed uncontrollably. I ignored it and searched for Alex.  He was not in the castle, so I stepped into the courtyard. Wow. It looked like a war broke out and then the battlefield had been ditched. Oh. Duh. That is what happened, doofus.

              I couldnt seem to accept that I was a vampire. The word vampire echoed through my mind over and over again. I don't know why... I was close enough to being one anyway.

              I won't let it bother me. I'm perfectly fine. Actually, I feel better. My body didn't feel like it was on fire anymore. That venom was basically hell in a liquid.

              Though I refrained myself at an unhealthy level, I'm sure I screamed most of the night away.

              What about Alex? He never knew for sure until now he was a vampire, though he had a completely vampiric family. Just another thank-you to a solar eclipse. BANG!! All of a sudden he's bloodthirsty and can't control anything about him.

              I took a breath and searched the places he would most likely be in.

              First stop: Mirror Lake. I looked around, then looked into the pond. Then gasped.

              My hair was two shades darker than it was supposed to be, I had black tipped hair, and my huge scar that used to run down the side of my left arm was gone without a trace. My eyes were more crystalline than before. Is that even possible??

              My mouth opened. Then I shut it again. Those were freaking sharp fangs. Fangs! Friggin' vampire teeth!

Then I heard a rustling around me. I followed the noise. Sure enough, it was Alex. Moping again. I thought He'd stopped! Gah!

              "Alex." I called out toward him. His hair had brand new tips too, and his hair looked more black than brown. He had bruiselike circles under his eyes, impacted greatly by his loss of sleep. His eyes peeked out at mine, then he tore his gaze from mine and looked at the ground.

              "I'm so, so sorry. . I.. I finally become what I'm supposed to be and I blow it... How could I do this to you? I.. I could've killed you." he said, ashamed of himself.

              "Alex, don't." I said, grasping his shoulder. I took his hand in mine, looking at him. "Don't you DARE say this was your fault. It's not your fault.You were being hypnotized."

              "Don't lie, Ari. It doesn't work."

              "It wasn't just you! It happened to all of the vampires. Why do you think Evellyn and Stefan locked themselves in their rooms? They knew this would happen!"

              "How can you act so calm about this?! I literally DEVOURED YOU! You could've died!" He raged.

              "I'M NOT DEAD, AM I???" I shouted over him.

              "You can't honestly be glad to know I changed you into a Vampire!" He said louder than I shouted.

              I glared at him. "Okay, so I'm a vampire now, so what?? If I ever have problems, I'll deal with them! I'm still me inside. I know that deep inside you haven't changed either. I don't care if I'm a vampire, werewolf, mermaid, or a FREAKING UNICORN, Alex. I'm still me. I still love you. That's not going to change, no matter what happens to me."

              He stared at me, then broke out in a grin. "Unicorn?" he teased.

              I heaved a sigh. "Okay, maybe not a unicorn. I'm rather attached to my hands. But that's not the point."

              "Sheesh, Bipolar much??" Alex muttered, raising his hands up in surrender and stepping back.

              I pulled a face that said, "Seriously?" then smirked and said, "I suppose so." I made a suspicious face and said,

"What about it??" threateningly. I do so love the faces people pull when I purposefully prove them right -- that face for when you want to say so many different things for a comeback, but anything you say just helps their cause. I love that face.

              I started walking off, his hand in mine.             

              The nostalgia faded away when I saw Tao. He held his head in both hands and appeared for all the world to be a prismatic sculpture of emotional torment. I slowed and stopped right in front of him. Startled, he looked up at me, his silver eyes puffy, dried tears staining his colorless face. I sat on the bench beside him and said "What's wrong?" softly. He groaned, and returned his head to his hands. "I'm sure it wasn't your fault, whatever it was." Judging by the lack of a Kaydra, I guessed she'd fallen prey as well, but I couldn't quite be sure.

              He sighed shakily, and dropped his arms, elbows on his knees, hands to the opposite elbow. "I know." he said, his voice still shuddering. "But, even if I convince myself it wasn't...wasn't me... I'm still not... still not sure she'll...be okay." Fresh tears wet the tracks that had just dried.

              "Ari," he said, his voice breaking,"you heard my story right? How I even had my parents, not to mention myself convinced I was dead? Well, my only hope right now is that she's doing the same."

              Oh, no. He thinks he may have killed her! What's worse.. there's evidence to support he has!

              "If I'm wrong, I'm a murderer, if I'm right, I'm a monster." he only barely managed to finish before he broke down and cried into his hands once more. There was nothing I could do, so I patted him on the back and whispered to him, "We're gonna fix this. You really think I'm going to let her quit that easy?" I smiled slightly. The tears slowed, but still fell.

              "Tao, I'm sorry." I gathered him in a hug and reassured him, "Hey. Alex bit me longer than you bit her. I'm right here. She'll snap out of it. I promise."

              Thisiswheretheygoseekaydra

 

              Kaydra lay still as stone on the bed, no breathing, no pulse, nothing to show she was alive.

Alex knew what I was thinking yet again and assured me that I was temporarily "dead" until I "woke up".

I hoped he was right. She looked pale, paler than I've ever seen her. All the color she used to have seemed to turn out like watermarked pastel. I didn't know what to do. Alex bent down over her and sighed. "What do we do now??"

              Tao shook his head. "I don't know. I just don't know." He looked close to tears. "I'm a monster."

At that remark, I whacked him upside the head. Well, Kaydra wasn't there to do it for herself. "Stop it Tao! Just stop it!! I don't want to hear that anymore, got that?!?!" He looked at me like I was bipolar just like Alex did. Who knows, maybe I am.

Tao listlessly ran his fingers through her hair, and kissed her forehead. "Sorry, Kay." he said, so much pain in his words it made me hurt.

              He held Kaydra's hand for a while, and sat down on the opposite end ot the room. Hours passed and I was beginning to lose hope when she stirred. I was completely shocked because none of her old color had come back.

But she was breathing. Her eyes were a deep blood red. She sat up and moaned. "My head hurts. This place smells weird. I'm thirsty."

              Tao jumped up and ran to her bedside, beaming. "Kay."

              "Tao." She said after a breif moment of confusion, it seemed. "Wait, what?! I was at a brick wall just a second ago..."

              Alex grinned. "I knew you'd make it."

              "We really need to cut down on these near death experiences." I muttered.

              Alex smirked. "Good. You're back to normal."

              "Not quite." I said. He too noticed the scar was gone. He fingered the arm gingerly, porbably reliving the "3rd Tragedy."I looked at Alex and smiled. Wait, since when did he have a black eye???

              Tao's eyes were silver again. (Mind you, they were black before, and he calmed down again.)

              "I feel weird." sailed Kaydra, drawing our attention back to her. Not only was she still pale, it was like the color was fading - turning her more and more white. Her hair was suddenly platinum blonde, where it had been somewhat dark. Her once tan skin had turned so pale whe almost seemed to be covered in flour. Her dark, blue-gray eyes were shot through with silver, accompanying her own golden highlights. The only things about her were still black were her pupils and her eyelashes. She made a comical wailing noise and flopped over. Dang, her fangs beat mine by a half! She gasped and sat up, eyes wide in realisation. Shakily, she raised her hand into sight. She glanced into a mirror. Though she could see herself, she wasn't herself. She screamed at the sight of her fangs and the rest is history. Or so I had hoped.

Tao'sabouttogetreallyemotional

Tao's Perspective

              We stayed at the castle for a few days because we wanted to make sure the girls weren't going to unexpectedly have something really, really wrong with them. I was helping clean up the huge mess after the Eclipse, when I heard sobbing from Kaydra's room. I crept toward the room, knocking on the door.

              "Who is it?" came the resulting question.

              "I-its Tao, sweetheart." I said uncomfortably. I felt horrible. There was a long pause. Then I heard her sobbing again.

I opened the door a crack, then came in. "Kay..." She made no effort to make eye contact with me.  "Kaydra... Kaydra please..."

              No comment.

              She kept crying, her head in a pillow.

              I felt a sneaking suspicion that I wasn't really welcome at the moment.

              "I'm so sorry Kaydra. You don't know how sorry I am."

              No comment. I kissed her on the cheek, turned on my heel to leave, and before I shut the door, said with a slightly crackly voice, "I'm sorry Kaydra. All I've ever wanted was to be your hero.  But I guess that's not possible anymore." And with that, I left.

aridecidestochastisealeXforawhile

Ari's Perspective

              Alex dissapeared again. I heaved a sigh. How convenient to be missing at a time like this. I found him in his usual spot, at the edge of a dropoff that lead to the lake. (This place has everything.) I was just glad he wasn't there to mope this time. He was staring listlessly into the horizon, his eyes telling me his mind wasn't here with us. He looked ponderous, like something was nagging at him. 

              I sat beside him, and put my hand on top of his.

              "Alex."

              He came halfway back, the dillema still haunting his mind. He looked into my eyes, grasping my hand.

              "Alex, what's wrong?" I tried again.

              He just looked at me again, a low growl sounding from him. His face became emotionless, staring back into the sky.

              "What's this about?" I questioned.

              He sighed and raised his eyebrows. "I bet you can guess." He replied as-a-matter-of-factly.

              I heaved a sigh and said, "This is about Tao again, isn't it? What, is it so wrong to feel that way sometimes?" I stared at him.

              "No. You're right. I.. I just hate how one failure... ONE failure can convince him that he's a failure. It bugs the crap out of me! He seems to forget all that he's done for us, that none of us had even come close to accomplishing, and forgets that none of us are perfect. He forgets all the good he's done and focuses on the bad. He says he wants to be a hero... He is a freaking hero! He just doesn't realize that we're a whole clan of leaders and heroes. The whole reason there's such thing as the Dragon Riders is because of that single fact. I hate all this crap he's saying about himself! Oh! it just bugs the crap out of me!"

              At this point, I'm thinking, Um, EARTH TO ALEX! YOU do the same freaking thing!!

              I braced myself for a HUGE ventilation session, but he just groaned and rested his head on his fist.

              I looked at him, astonished.

              "Alex... Do you really want to know what I have to say?" I said.

              No comment. Being me, I take that as a yes. "I think you're sounding a bit too much like his father. He needs your support right now. He just... couldn't handle seeing Kaydra like that knowing he did it. Let him get over this... scenario his own way."

              "You think it wasn't hard for me to see you like that??" he muttered.

              "Stop right there, buster. I seem to recall you doing this before our little spat with the Unicorn.You can't handle it any better than he can. He'll get used to it, just like you did. He just... doesn't realize yet that he's a hero among many." I said, my grip around his hand tightening.

              "You're a hero, too, Alex. You're my hero."

              He stood up, holding his hand out to hoist me up.

              I flinched as I remembered why I was searching for Alex.

              "This might be a bad time to mention this, but I came to tell you Kaydra's crying. She's not okay with the change, and Tao's feeling worse right now. I think he'll be happy when she accepts it, and I know she will, but right now she's sobbing that 'It all feels wrong' on Tao. I don't know how to console her because I'm fine with it, but you on the other hand, understand how she feels."

              I turned and started walking back toward where I'd left Kaydra and Tao.

              Alex caught my hand before I left. "Sorry." he said. "For yelling at you earlier. I didn't mean to."

              "Its okay, Alex. I'm sorry that I even came up here during your little private time, but she needs to help coping and you know best how she's feeling- well, at least in part.. Emotionally."

              "Okay." he said after a pause, hesitantly following me.

              I saw Tao had left for some reason. Kaydra's face was as red as it could possibly get anymore.

aleXandariarepeerindintotthedoorwaY

              "So," I said as Alex peered into the room, "What's the verdict?"

              "Uhm... It'll take a couple of minutes, but, it's solveable."

              "Yay." I cheered quietly. He kissed me lightly on the forehead before ducking into the room.

              I kept the door open to watch the master.

              Kaydra was sitting at a table in the library, hunched over as she sobbed. He sat right by her and put his arm around her shoulder. "Hey. I heard you're having a hard time with the vampire thing, huh?"

              No comment from Kaydra.  More Sobbing.

              "To me, the hardest thing is looking at my fangs. Especially when I keep biting my tongue. But do you know what I do to help that?"

              He looked around as if making sure no one would hear except her. "I file them down." He whispered, opening his mouth to show off his work. Dang! I have wimpy fangs!

              Kaydra snorted and laughed between sobs. That did it. She somehow managed to laugh hiccuping giggles in the midst of sobs. She looked into his mouth. Unexpectedly, she poked her fingers into his mouth and jabbed at the fangs. I snickered at the look of shock on his face."Nope." She said, "Didn't work. They're still pointy."

              "Dangitt!" he whined. "I'll have to work on them even longer!!!" as he dropped his head onto the table dramatically.

              Kaydra burst into a fit of hiccuping giggles.

              Alex elbowed her gently and said, "You know, this whole vampire thing is new to me too. But promise me that if I'll be happy, and get used to it, you will too?"

              "Okay." she hiccuped and wiped her tears from her face, smiling wanly.

              Tao walked back into the room, only to stumble back out in Kaydra's tackling embrace. He stuck his head back in and said,  "Whatever you said, it worked. Thanks." he voice sounded tense, but he smiled faintly and ducked back out of the room.             

              Then they left, And I have absolutely no idea where they went.

              I stepped into library, hugging Alex.

              "You've still got it." I whispered."You know,"I sighed. "I think this bothers him worse than her. It looks like it's killing him to see her like that -- crying over something his body did that his mind had no power over. I'd say it probably hurts worse than any weapon I've seen or felt, and you know what I've run across."

              Alex glared at me, then said, "Ari, you threw off my groove!"

              I laughed. "I'm sorry."

              "Seriously! I was having a happy moment, and you screwed it up! Ari!" he whined this time.

              I hugged him again and whispered, "I'm sorry." I kissed him softly.

              "Better?" I asked.

              His face twisted. "Maybe."

              "Then I'll have to do it again, won't I?"

              My lips brushed the corner of his mouth, then kissed him more deeply than last time, until his mouth curved into a smile.

              "Okay, okay. I give up."              

              "Oho! A smile!" I teased, running my hands through his shaggy hair. I smiled and layed my head on his shoulder.

              "Now let us remember that this is the only time I'll ever let you give up." I teased.

              He kept on smiling. "I'll try to keep that in mind." Victory!!

              "Yay." I laughed.

              "I love you." he said softly, his musical voice echoing through the room.

              He hugged me tightly, swaying back and forth slowly.

              Vikki opened the door, her jaw dropping. "I'm... not... interrupting anything, am I??" she said, embarrased.  She looked like she had been mauled by a pack of something with really scary claws and teeth.  Oh WAIT, she had.

              "No." Alex laughed, letting go slowly.

              "Okay... I was just... you know, I just wanted to get a book..."

              I laughed hard. "Vikki! You interrupted nothing! Why so embarrrased?!"

              "I don't know." She said quickly. Quite obviously she didn't beleive us. Before she left, she stopped and looked at me sadly.

"I'm sorry, Ari. I had no clue this was going to... turn into such a bad thing..."

              "What're you talking about? I'm fine. If anything, I feel more close to you guys because I actually know what it's like to be.. well, what we are."

              She looked at me, shocked.

              "Isn't she strange?" Alex teased me. "She actually likes it."

              I tossed a glare at him.

              "Well it's true!!" He said childishly.

arihadahardtimewith

              The first week after the Eclipse was the hardest. I just wanted to lock myself up in a closet and scream about how I was supposed to be elven. I didn't explain what had happened to me to anyone who wasn't there, namely Kaoru and Emmitt, because I'd

probably end up losing control while explaining it. They're smart enought to figure it out themselves.

              I practically envied Kaydra and the rest of the Hyperions for their ability to restrain themselves. I insisted I would eat normal food like usual, and I did, but it left me feeling like I was going to puke hours later. Alex assured me that this would go away. He's the only vampire going through the same thing I was. How the heck would he know?!

              Weeks went by and I still hadn't bitten anyone, but I'd salvaged the plates of animal blood drippings just to keep myself from having any unexpected outbursts. Kaydra weaned off from the average food -at least for the main source- and turned to batteries. I scoffed. Oh, shut up, little miss safe.

              "You realize I know something's up right??" Hanako said, while we were all gathered in the storeroom -- for no apparent reason, but hey. Of course, all being the vampire army we had inadvertently amassed -- you know, all 7 of us, and the coolest "zombie" in the world.

              "Up?" Kaydra asked innocently, picking up a jar of pickled greenbeans and looking through it curiously.

              "Wwhhaat do you mean by that?" Alex asked, shifting uncomfortably with his large crate of apples.

              She looked directly at him and said, "So you really have found your vampiric side... I'm proud to say I knew it was there."

              "Then why the heck didn't you tell me?!" he shouted, dropping several apples, -- which, thanks to Alex's new side, I caught.

              Hanako grinned.

              "I thought so. Ari, you've been moping just as much as Alex. Work on your subtlety if you're trying to keep this a secret." she then turned to Tao and Kaydra. She stared at them for a moment, and they stared back, fiegning innocence. Hanako cracked up.

              "S-sorry," she laughed, "I just can't take you seriously when you get like that!"

              "Like what?" Tao asked, trying with all his might not to change his expression. It wasn't working, so he tried to look confused.

It actually worked fairly well.

              "Don't give me that." Hanako snapped, composing herself. "All of us knew you hurt her Tao. What, you think the Eclipse didn't happen here too??" Kaydra stiffened, pain flaring back from the embers. A cold pain showed it's face in Tao's eyes. Hanako flipped the lights out and the two glowing energy vampires flinched.

              "We also know it wasn't your fault." she said softly. "Nothing you tried would have stopped this from happening, Tao. It's been coming since before you could have known." the light flicked back on. Hanako smiled faintly for an instant.

              "Now at least we can say Tao isn't the only person who glows in the dark." and with that, Hanako left.

              Kaydra's grip finally proved too much for the glass jar. It shattered, shredding her hand and coating the scratches in vinegar and cayenne pepper. That sent her over. Way. Over. She started to cry, yet again. Honestly, I think Tao was crying on the inside, and on the verge of tears on the outside, too.

              Life Sucks. Bad Pun. Yet again.

              She was soo freakishly lucky in a sick twisted way that she became vampiric when she did. Why? If not, she'd have been brought down soo much more painfully than before. The single upside in a very unfortunate event.

              "You can't put a wall in front of her eyes." I joked darkly.

              "No, no, she's sharp." Alex said, a quick smile, but before I could make a comment, it was gone.

I pulled out a bandage wrap I used on my scar before the Eclipse - which I still kept handy by force of habit and wrapped it around Kaydra's hand after pulling out some of the shards of glass with Tao and rinsing the crap off of her hands.

              Alex cleaned up the mess and discarded the glassy beans.

              "I know you don't want to hear it, Kay, but I'm still very, very sorry." Tao said, helping her up.

              "I don't need your apology." she mumbled, wiping her eyes, "I need one from that monster that bit me." Tao was startled by this comment. My mouth dropped.

              He hung his head, ashamed.

              Alex's eyes widened, a slight hint of anger in his eyes. "Tao, I'm sure she didn't mean it like she said." he said quickly, a sharp glance toward Kaydra.

              Vikki became very angry. "You have absolutely no right to say that!!" She shrieked. "It wasn't our fault! How could you be so...so pig headed!!" she said to finish it off, stomping out of the room.

              "COULD WE JUST STOP ALL OF THE FRIGGIN' FIGHTING ALREADY!!!! PLEASE!!!"

I yelled. They all looked at me and saw me in tears, pleading unquestionably etched into my expression. I didn't expect to fall apart, but hey, it got all of their attention. Even Vikki, who was nearly out of the kitchen.

              "I don't want our friendship to blow up in our face!! So something happened to us, something I'm sure we all wish hadn't,

So, WHAT?!?! We're still the same inside! Why doesn't anyone understand this beside Me??"

              Kaydra shook her head and laughed, which bothered Vikki -- so much, in fact, that she stomped back in. She started to snap at Kaydra, who raised her hands in submission.

              "If I had a dime for every misunderstanding...” she laughed, in another mood swing. Turning to Tao with sad eyes, she said, “You know I don’t blame you, Tao. We’ve been over this so many times, I’d think this wouldn’t happen. Just so, I meant it exactly as I said it. Tao, no matter what it looked like, it wasn’t you. It was a monster who I’ve seen a bit fleetingly ever since I met you. He’s in your smirk, he’s in your temper, and now, he’s in me. Sometime, I hope he comes back so I can give him a good fist to the face. Understood?”              

              We. Were. Shocked.

              “Wow.” I said, “Kaydra’s having mood swings as bad as me.” She laughed, proving my point.

              “Well,” said Edvard, unfreezing from this whole event and clapping his hands together, “I am officially confused.”

              “Ditto.” Tao, Vikki, Alex, and I echoed one after another.

              “Once I get myself figured out, I’ll tell you.” Kaydra said, smiling. She held her injured hand away from herself, grabbing stunned Tao’s in her other. ”You realize you’re helping, right?” It almost looked like a smile flickered across Tao’s stony face.

              They sauntered out of the room, leaving the rest of us there to be confused.

              “That made utterly no sense.” I whispered.

              Alex laughed. “You’d think we’d be used to it by now.”

              “Yeah, well,” Edvard started, I think that fall during the Eclipse may have jumbled up a few things.” he teased.

              “I heard that!” she hollered across the kitchen. Laughing, I helped haul the last of the apples in the storage room and followed the rest of the army back toward the Keep. In the courtyard, Kaydra was happily stroking Lanfen with a befuddled Tao and Grimloch nearby.

              “Slowpokes.” she teased when she noticed us.“You’d think a vampire could move faster than cold tar!”

Geez, I hope these mood swings stop soon. I can’t keep track of my own right now, let alone everyone else’s. It’s unnerving. But then again, we’re vampires. Unnerving is in the job description, alongside violent.

              And I practically accepted vampiracy now. Oh, well.

I bit my lip. Oh, bad Idea. What an idiot. How stupid can I get so as to forget my fangs?! Especially since I was still thinking about it!!

              This bites.

              Bad pun.

              Alex still took about 5 to 10 minutes to apologize every day. I told him the same thing every day, but he pressed on, apollogizing 300 miles per second. I think what drives him is my mopage. I never mope. Well, I used to never mope, is a better way to put it.

              He acted like he blamed himself for all of it.  This is what confuses me the most: Alex gained all of his elven traits back. Well, if not, at least the diet part -which is all that matters, in my opinion.

              He still had the looks of a vampire -minus the black under eye thing- but he was elven inside. That gave me hope that I could go back to -well, almost- normal.

              Maybe life could go on.

              Yeah, I know it sounds ironic coming from a weirdo like me.