Caerwyn looked uncertain for a moment, a fact that frightened him. He was never uncertain. He was never frightened. He had lived too long, seen too much. And yet . . . the pain had felt so familiar. The voice one from the distant path yet so close it seemed like he had heard it only yesterday.

She knows I'm here. She knows I'm alive. The voice was barely a whisper around Curse's mind, as if he were talking more to himself than to her.

----

Indigo nodded his dark head once, sharply. He had known as soon as he had shifted. He lay next to Satin, keeping his head up and alert.

"How did he find our camp?" Selena asked sharply, looking directly at Mr. T with a slight frown.

Pavel shifted uneasily, hoping no one suspected him of turning in the location just because he was new.

Indigo turned his head at Selena's question and looked pointedly at Cotton with dark, accusing eyes. A low growl rumbled in the back of his throat.

----

Thomas stiffened under Elisabeth's hand and shrugged it off his shoulder. He was almost about to tell her where Mother could put her worry, when the mysterious woman came up and revived the dead Detective. He inhaled sharply and watched the scene with wide eyes. Suddenly he grabbed Elisabeth's arm.

"Did you see that? Did you see? That woman was dead! I know she was!"

Ian had arrived soon after Ms. Scope had screamed and had taken pictures throughout the course of what took place. Shocked at the turn of events, he hurriedly found Cyrano and made his way over to him.

"Was it a vampire bite?" he asked eagerly, taking some more pictures, wondering who the heck that woman had been.

Melanie suddenly appeared by Cyrano's side. "More Unnaturals?" she asked with mild curiosity as she surveyed the scene without surprise.

Jason could only stare down at Kanti in complete shock for a few moments, while Ms. Scope demanded for arrests. When the giantess finally left, he knelt quickly beside the Detective and placed a hand on her forehead, lifting her eyelids one by one to check the irises.

"You're alive," he murmured in surprise, feeling the warmth of her skin against his shaking hand.

P.S."Brooklyn!"

Neal contemplated for a moment volunteering his knowledge of bullet wounds and such to Cotton, but after seeing how intense the bounty hunter was on helping Satin, Neal decided to leave the man alone. He seems to know what he's doing, anyway. The Darkling thought as he stood up.

"That explains why it was so easy to break into Savage manor. There was only a scant skeleton crew working, maybe 16 men at the most." Neal said as he walked over to where Mr.T was sitting. "I don't believe he is responsible for this, Indigo," the Darkling said motioning to Cotton with his head as he folded his arms over his chest. "Any thoughts on this, Terrance?"

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

So far, Karl was enjoying watching the reactions from the townspeople to his "grand entrance". The Hybrid was still awaiting the guests at the ball to finally make their way outside. "Gwen must have had some fun of her own tonight..." Karl said with a chuckle as he lit another cigaret and inhaled.

As the Hybrid exhaled the smoke, he noticed the familiar figure of Mrs. Scope making her way outside. "Good. It's about time you came to see what I've done...." he said as he watched the woman step out onto the sidewalk.

Tearing Satin's sleeve open further to clear the wound of debris before cleaning it, Haleh lifted her head when Abijah returned to the glen. Relief began to spread upon seeing that he was unharmed, though her expression never changed. Seeing that Lark was nowhere in sight, however, dimmed her ease. Her jaw tightened as she resumed caring for the wounded girl.

===

Never reaching the balcony, the trapped serpent watched as her escape slipped from her reach, unable to flee with the hunter waiting to spring behind her. "No more than the ones in the hall suffered from yours," came the smart reply. Senses climbed higher in the darkness, every sound, sight, smell increased by aid of adrenaline, every muscle taut, every nerve alert.

Aware that she was being baited by the hunter, the serpent coiled, quieting as she prepared to strike any who dared provoke her. Pride more than cheek hindered her from running. Kes slowly turned, her eyes catching Eslatar's in the soft glow coming from the windows, the flicker of flames reflecting on his face. He had caught her, but the game was far from over.

Her latest sojourn through his dreams brought to mind with his presence, her hands slid behind her back, fingers curling around the hilt of the knife that she had hidden from sight. After all she had done, she figured that he would still try to make good on his threat.

Her red eyes remained unblinking as she stared at him. "I suppose I'm in trouble," she said to him softly, the corner of her mouth twitching as her grip tightened.

===

Hook tensed as Emma stumbled, steadying her before turning his attention back to the flaming skyline. "I... I don't know," he answered in truth for the first time in months. He grimaced when another small explosion, caused by the expanding heat, reached his ears. People were slowly starting to emerge from their homes, a murmuring crowd gathering in the streets.

A few brave souls ventured closer to the damage, some running to see what had happened.

Sirens sounded in the distance. A few faint screams were muffled by the chaos.

Ruth had been responsible for the last arsonous destruction, maybe she had- Ruth! His meeting remembered, Hook turned, looking down into his wife's fearful eyes. He grabbed her face in his hands again, directing her attention towards him. "I want you to take the car, go home, keep Curse safe. Alright?" he nodded encouragingly, running a thumb over her cheek.

"Jason" said Von "I've got the hotel in complete lock down" he looked around as his men began spreading across the balcony that encircled the entire ball room. When he was flung off his feet by a sudden exsposion "What was that!?" he yelled at one of his men when he recived a transmision "Vo- under- atta ahh" Von instantly reccongised the voice of his friend Ryan who had gone back to the police station. "Jason the police office!"

"Who?" Curse asked, wondering who this person could be that would cause Caerwyn so much distress. The thought of someone coming to harm him came to mind, making her feel uneasy.

---

Terrance tilted his head to look up at Neal, cat eyes glowing in the firelight. "I have many thoughts on this..." he replied vaguely and glanced at Cotton, "None of them however implicate you in this Cotton. If you had done such a thing you would have run away by now considering your personality and general lack of a spine."

Cotton managed a brief glare, but was more caught up in helping with Satin then in getting back at a kitten.

"One thing's clear," Pepper offered, having just returned from scouting out their new location. "There's someone on the inside selling information. The attack was planned just when we were missing many people...it's too convenient."

"Hard to tell," Mr. T replied, not sounding very convinced.

"I don't really care about all this right now," Abijah suddenly inserted. "Where is Savage's location now? We need to get Lark back."

"I've a feeling that'd be just what Savage would like," Terrance answered. "You go after her with your pack in tow and you'll find Savage is more than willing to welcome you all with open arms. Getting out...now that's something else."

The kitten rose and paced once around the circle of the fire. "We've given him a blow too- at least," he said with a bit of a growl and glanced up at Neal, "It was a success, I'm assuming."

---

"I...saw," Elisabeth replied, momentarily dumbstruck. She looked back through the crowd, hoping her stepmother would appear and whisk them away. There was no way she could drag Thomas away now.

Cyrano nodded, "Yeah she had been bitten- she was dead though, not turned...completely dead and then some lady," Cyrano looked around but found that the woman had disappeared, "She was here before...she touched her and suddenly she was alive again."

The reporter's eyes suddenly narrowed, "That means she's an unnatural now, even if she isn't a vampire. According to the new laws she'll have to be tried just like all the other ones in town. Imagine going from a police detective scouting out Unnaturals to one accused and shipped off to who knows where..."

"I thought I'd been turned..." Kanti said, suddenly crying in relief. Of all her nightmares, becoming a vampire seemed like the worst. The idea was revolting and terrifying. But if she wasn't a vampire...was she still human? Kanti knew Ditto Town's new laws well enough. Not dying after an attack like that would classify her as an unnatural. The memory of Ms. Scope demanding arrests came to mind and she realized the woman had been talking about her.

"What am I going to do?" she asked hoarsely, suddenly feeling panicked in the close, crowded space. The intelligence from the police officers on the station being blown up came through her ear piece. Would the night's surprises never end?

---

Emmaline nodded, "Where are you going to go?" she asked, not letting go of Hook yet. "Come home with me. It'll be safer," she pleaded- looking quite the disheveled picture with her hair falling around her face and makeup smearing.

---

"That would be a bit of an understatement, don't you agree my dear?" Eslatar responded as he took another step towards her, wondering how much it would take before she snapped. "You know, we're the same now. Not fully vampire anymore," he lowered his voice to a hissing whisper, not at all like the seductive tone he'd so often used with her, "We share the same blood."

---

Ms. Scope stared at the inferno for a few moments before the sound of fire trucks started ringing in her ears. Stumbling back, she passed the door to the newspaper headquarters and noticed a piece of paper, fluttering against the door.

Quickly she crossed over to it and read the contents in the shifting, quivering light of the blazing fire.

"Very much so." Neal said as he pulled the two discs from inside his trench coat. "I made a back-up copy as well, if we need it." he said with a nod to the second disc. "I hope that is satisfactory." the Darkling added.

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

The sound of fire truck sirens echoing through the town was akin to music for Karl, the perfect compliment to his chaos. The Hybrid watched as Mrs. Scope noticed his "post" and read it, an evil grin crossing his face as he watched.

"I suppose I should check on dear Gwen....." Karl said as he threw his cigaret butt over the roofs edge and jumped down into the alley behind the buildings. The Hybrid began whistling a cheery tune as he walked along the towns edge, looking for Gwen.

Mark who had been quietly sitting in the fire light next to Abijah, considerd that Mr. T's words were ment for him as well as the werewolf for though he, Brand, Will and Josh would fight for their siblings the would be overwelmed in the end. He looked at Abijah and wispered "wisdom flys from his mouth again, but if you are going to try and get Lark back, me and my kin are with you for we suffered as much as you have" Brand who was laying behind Mark nodded his head with aproval.

Caerwyn seemed to realize suddenly that he had been "voicing" his thoughts. He seemed to pull back suddenly, not physically, but something closed in his expression, and he took a deep shuddering breath.

It's nothing. He gave her a slight, and not very convincing, smile. Don't worry about it.

He climbed back into the chair and looked over at the open cupboard.

We were getting food? he suggested with another weak smile.

----

Indigo did not look entirely convinced that Cotton was not behind the attack, but he let it go without complaint.

Pavel knew nothing of Savage or who could have given away their position. So he remained quiet and cradled Satin's head in his lap, brushing the stray hair away from her face gently.

----

Then Jason did something he never, ever did. He bent the rules.

"You were dead," he told her firmly. "Everyone here saw that you were." Turning, he pointed to a short boy standing beside the Princess. The boy looked slightly familiar but Jason was too caught up in the moment to figure out who he was. "You there! You saw her right? She was dead and didn't come back of her own accord?"

Thomas was so stunned that the police man was talking to him, he did not know how to respond for a moment. Finally he nodded his head vigorously. "Y-yes. Yes, sir."

Jason turned to look at Kanti. "See that? You didn't wake up on your own. Some woman raised you from the dead. She is the Unnatural. Not you. And I'm sure everyone here would agree." He looked back over at the boy.

Thomas nodded again, not knowing that by doing so he was helping Jason bend the rules of Ditto Town's laws. "Yes, sir. You're right. That lady was an Unnatural. She had to be. This woman was completely dead." He gestured to Kanti. "She couldn't have risen herself from the dead." He suddenly got the feeling he was talking too much, and so he shut his mouth.

Jason nodded and reached down to pick Kanti up, bridal style. "Out of the way," he barked and strode toward the kitchens, needing to get Kanti away from the probing eyes of the suffocating crowd. He found a non-busy part of the kitchen and set her down on an abandoned counter tucked into a corner. He pulled back then, his expression unreadable. He pressed the button in his earpiece and spoke to Von.

"Get some men and take care of it. Also, look for a woman with brown hair and bright red lipstick who went out the back way." He took a quick glance at Kanti's temple where the lipstick had made a mark. "She should also have a lip-ring. She's an Unnatural. If you find someone meeting this description, don't, I repeat don't arrest her. Detain her at your position until I get there. Leave the station to the fire department, it's out of our hands now. Oh, and Von? It's Sergeant Croft or "Sir". You got that?"

Without waiting for an answer, he cut the communication and turned to Kanti.

"You alright?" he asked gruffly.

Ian lowered his camera as the Sergeant took the Detective away. He glanced over at Cyrano and his sister. The calm look on Melanie's face disturbed him slightly, so he turned to Cyrano.

"What do you make of this?" he asked in a low voice.

"I think he likes her," Melanie stated absently.

Ian glanced sidelong at her with a frown. "That's not what I meant. That has nothing to do with this."

Melanie turned slightly to stare at her brother. "Doesn't it?" she asked innocently.

----

Gwen was standing eerily still when she saw Karl walking toward her. She curled her lip slightly when she saw him.

"Explosives, Karl? Really? Hardly subtle, dear. What will Tallulah's coven think of it?" She clucked her tongue lightly, but her face remained deadly impassive.

P.S."Brooklyn!"

Von hated to admit it but the only reason he had call Sargeant Croft Jason cause quiet honestly; he panicked but he reclaimed his calm behavior and radioed back "Yes sir, sorry sir I'll get right on it" he motioned at his men who were not spread across the ball room and said "Come with me, we are going after the unnatural that revived Kanti" one of the men said "Von, I belive that Sarg intends to break the law and protect the detective" Von replied "We'll deal with that later, the unnatural comes first" the man replied "Yes sir"

"It's just my way...." Karl said with a shrug and a smug look as he stood by Gwen, admiring the view of the fire from the new angle. "you kill college boys and leave the corpses to be found, while I go for a more.... theatrical approach when it comes to letting the residence know that I'm in town." the Hybrid said with a grin. "As for what our mutual acquaintances at the coven will say about all this.... I'm not worried with what they may think. I've learned to never pay head to what other think of your actions. Besides, it's usually never good." He finished with a glance at Gwen.

"You seem to be extra cool at the moment, dear." Karl said after a minute or so. "Did your meeting with old Elsatar not go as planned? Or did you slip up and cause some trouble of your own?" the Agent of Chaos inquired as he looked at Gwen's emotionless face.

Gwen glanced sharply at Karl, for a moment looking positively murderous. Then she got control over her emotions and the mask slid back into place.

"I accidentally made mental contact with someone I thought was long since dead," she explained delicately, inspecting her nails. She saw with a frown that the paint was chipped on one of them. "This person is a threat. I must figure out a way to find him and kill him." She sniffed slightly, as though his very existence offended her. She glanced sidelong at Karl.

"Do you like children, Karl?" she asked absently.

P.S."Brooklyn!"

Karl barely even flinched at Gwen's sharp glance. He had been on the receiving end of many deadly glares, looks, ect in his lifetime to the point where such things were almost expected at some point.

The Hybrid listened to Gwen's explanation with some interest. It must be a powerful vampire to make her want to kill him so badly..... Karl thought when Gwen's question about kids suddenly entered his ears. "Hmm, children, kids.... Can't stand them. Messy, overly sentimental little creatures. Most females seem to love them though, must be that "maternal instinct" thing." he said as he stuck his hands into his jacket pockets.

"Why do you ask?" Karl inquired a few seconds later.

"I'm going to see if I can do anything to help. Go on, I'll find you later," Hook promised, kissing Emma quickly on the forehead before he pulled free of her grasp. He started off down the street at a run before she could say anything else. Pushing his way through the growing crowd, he could feel the heat from the inferno that used to be the police station radiating on his skin.

"Professor!" he heard someone shout from somewhere.

Glancing around him, Hook noticed a black vehicle parked further down the street, away from the mayhem of the explosion. He frowned, but headed towards it. Daniel stood by the door, looking rather pale, but collected...somewhat. "Ruth is waiting for you," he informed Hook.

"Was she responsible for this?" he demanded as he approached.

Daniel held the door open, "Please, sir, just...get inside." Hook glowered at the younger man, but did as he was requested, yanking the door shut before Daniel could close it.

===

As he spoke, Kes shook her head in denial, standing rooted to the floor with her jaw tightening in growing anger over his words. "No!" she shouted when he reached his mark, squeezing her eyes shut against the sudden pain that shot through her head, temper weighing on her strength. "No," she repeated, pressing the heel of her hand up against her temple. Her other hand remained hidden behind her back as she fought to keep her calm, clenched fist quivering in fury.

"We share nothing. Nothing," Kes hissed at him, "My blood, Eslatar. It was my blood. My blood that you took. It was nothing shared. I never-" she paused, her head tilting. Her heated response to his callous approach had only served to aid in her own destruction; the weakened walls of her mental solace crumbling faster now that her attention was drawn away from them.

"Father was right about you..." her voice trailed off in a murmur. It was then that she realized her slip, too late. Her eyes widened for the slightest moment as the words echoed back in her ears, in a way that could be described as fearful, before once again narrowing.

Curse watched Caerwyn with a slight frown. She didn't know what to do to get answers, but decided making him feel comfortable might be a better task. Sighing, she nodded and turned back to the cupboards before opening the fridge. "There's leftover pasta," she offered, looking at the contents of a plastic container.

---

"Perfectly satisfactory," Terrance said with a nod. "We'll have to find somewhere safe to use the information for research...but that can wait."

"I thank you," Abijah replied to Mark quietly. He wasn't sure what action they should take at the moment, but preferred this tentative alliance with the elves to a guessing game with a kitten.

"We'll leave the questions of traitors for now," Pepper offered to the group. "I've a feeling they might have found us out just as easily through their own means. We've known Savage has a wealthy backer- our hideout wasn't that hard to find with the right resources."

Cotton wondered if the zombie always so easily changed her mind- but figured that decision was better than suspecting him.

Satin stirred slightly, eyes coming to focus in the flickering firelight. The pain in her arm had turned into a dull, grinding ache that she couldn't ignore, the pain was what brought the realization of her condition and the desire to figure out where she was.

---

Elisabeth squeezed her brother's shoulder, trying to will him into being quiet as he conversed with Jason. As the policeman and the detective dramatically exited, she turned her face towards Thomas with a slight frown. "We need to go, now."

Cyrano watched the scene play out and then smirked slightly at Melanie's observation. "It might have something to do with it...don't know that a straight-laced guy like that would disobey Ms. Scope and the laws if he didn't feel something for her..."

He turned to Ian and Melanie with a smile, "Well, she's alive anyway- and we have a front page story."

Kanti barely had time to process the conversation Jason was having with the...was that the prince? She heard his conclusion, relieved but doubtful of the idea of not being an Unnatural and then found herself picked up and rapidly taken into the kitchens. When she could finally focus on something other than strange people and flashing cameras, she was sitting on a counter in the kitchen, staring back at Jason as he radioed Von.

When he turned back and asked her about her condition, she was surprised to discover he seemed a little angry. With me? For causing this mess? She looked down at her blood-stained dress and then back up at Jason.

"Yeah- I suppose I am. I- It was too fast to do anything, she didn't wait, didn't...I couldn't even reach for my gun," her voice was shaky, "I'm sorry Ja- sir. It was all my fault." Kanti felt completely exposed, unable to hide behind her expertise, reputation or intelligence. After all, none of that had stopped a vampire from killing her...

---

Eslatar was confused by Kes's passionate response. Had she really been bottling up all this hatred from his attack? Hadn't she betrayed him in a worse way first? Hadn't she changed his life forever? The injustice angered him and he grabbed at the arm she'd raised to her hand, gripping the wrist.

"Father was it? Did he teach you your little tricks? He can be an amazing teacher, that I won't contest," Eslatar hissed into her face through gritted teeth, "But you'll soon find that living as his subject is even worse than spending your life in a cage- I've done both thanks to you, I think I'd know."

---

Emmaline watched Charles leave and disappear into the growing crowd. Frowning, she wiped at her tear-stained cheeks and got into the car, slamming the door shut before she started up the engine. Time to leave.

Mark didn't respond but simply turned and walked over to where Pavel was sitting with Satin and said "I could heal that for you if you wish" the sooner she was healed the less there was a chance that this vamp would turn on the girl.

Von went out the back way with two of his men while he sent two squad cars through the allyway around the back flooding the small road way with their lights "See anything?" he asked the man beside him "No sir, nothing"