The start of it all

Kallias took his arm from around the priestess and began to walk. He gait was quick, but not too much so. He did not want Aiyana to fall behind. He shot momentary glances at her from over his shoulder, but did not turn his attention to Elessar until he stopped before the kitchen door, “Would you mind sleeping outside tonight, Elessar? I would not want you getting any fleas into the house. Do not worry, the other animals will only bite if you mess with them, and Aiyana will be perfectly fine. We have some of the most renowned of immortals under this roof with us right now. No one shorter then the best is a part of my staff.”

He held the door open for the two, Aiyana mostly, of course, though. The kitchen was massive. The type that all chefs could only dream of owning, and like the rest of the house it was extravagantly decorated and particularly clean.

“Hmmm, I do suppose that you could help me make some pasta. All that you have to do is boil water, which you know how to do, throw in the the noodles, let them cook until soft and then add sauce,” he said with a smile as he began to set up, his steps swift and graceful, “I am perhaps the best tracker in the land. I am faster then your average immortal and on top of that I have many unfair advantages,” Kallias informed Elessar just in case the cat got the bright idea to leave.

The leopard laughed under his breath as Aiyana ignored him, setting up the water to boil.

"Oh yes, I'll sleep outside, and leave Aiyana under your care. Not if you were the last leech on earth, you filthy blood-"

"Elessar," Aiyana hissed, cutting him off. She began to stir the water needlessly, staring at it with large emerald colored eyes.

"I assure you Elessar has never had a flea in his life. He does travel with a priestess who is an expert in potion brewing, you know. Besides, he and I have slept side by side since he was just a cub. I see no reason to change that now. If you are very firm in this decision, then I am afraid I shall sleep outside as well. I'm sure your gardens are lovely at night," she said quietly. Her voice may have been soft, but there was nothing unsure about it. The leopard's golden eyes practically glowed as he smiled triumphantly at Kallias.

The water began to boil, and Aiyana put the noodles in gently. She also added a few herbs and spices from a small pocket inside her robes. The water glowed blue for a moment, but the color soon vanished. Elessar smiled again.


"Poison detector potion," he explained brightly. Aiyana blushed.

"It's a precaution we use before every meal," she added quickly, glaring at the cat.

The vampire lifted a hand to smack the leopard, but forced himself to drop it to his side. He could not harm Elessar. He and Aiyana were close, and he could not afford to lose her trust over some stupid animal. “I am done talking to you, kitty. You are not worth my time,” he said, starting to cook. “You will both be sleeping inside. I would not want you out in the cold, Aiyana. I trust your word. If you say Elessar is fine I believe you,” he said to the human, contemplating how best to teach the leopard a lesson. “Nothing will be poisoned.”

Elessar actually looked disappointed that the vampire hadn't started a blood bath in his own kitchen, but Kallias was at least satisfied that the cat fell silent, if only for a little while.

"No, Kallias, I would never expect it to be poisoned. As I said, it is something I do before every meal. My Lady Priestess taught me to always be cautious, though I'm afraid I did not always listen to her," Aiyana answered, laughing softly to herself. The leopard grumbled, but Aiyana glared at him.

"If I had always been careful, we would have never met, you know," she snapped. Elessar dropped his gaze, and settled himself in a heap on the floor. The water began to bubble more rapidly, and soon Aiyana was straining the pasta over the sink. She put it back into the pot, and added the butter and sauce that Kallias had provided her. She looked at it with approval, and then around the kitchen once more.

"Are you sure there is nothing else I can do?" she asked with a warm smile. The leopard made a face as if he were going to puke.

Kallias walked past Elessar, 'accidentally' stepping on his tail, on his way to grab plates, “Opps,” he whispered, “I am sorry. I was not paying attention,” he explained, grabbing two plates, one for him and one for Aiyana, and a dish to put Elessar's stake in. “I am fine for now, Aiyana, but I do have a few things to do after we eat. You could help me with those if you would like.”

The leopard snarled in pain, and crept underneath the table and out of reach.

"Save your apologies, leech," he muttered with a final growl. Aiyana sighed, and gave Kallias a chiding glance, but didn't say anything.

"I wouldn't mind helping you with your chores after dinner at all," she replied, "I'm quite good at cleaning, you know. Lady Priestess used to work me to the bone to keep the shrine spotless." She smiled, bringing the pasta to the table.

"Somehow I'd wager he's not the cleaning type, unless by cleaning you mean-"

The leopard would have continued his accusation if Aiyana had not kicked him under the table. She was no mind reader, but she knew the cat well enough to pass for one.

“I am no leech,” Kallias muttered to himself as he set their plates. He could not stand being called, leech, bloodsucker or any of the other names they had for vampiress. He was not a vampire, even if he did pretend to be so.

He sat Elessar's dish under the table, then he placed one in Aiyana's spot and on it his. He took a seat and smiled warmly at her, “You will not have to so any cleaning. That is what I have Visha for,” he said, “If you like to clean, you can attempt to straighten up the books in the library if you would like. None of the children put them back were they belong. I can not stand kids.”

Elessar would have debated whether or not Kallias was a leech, but apparently the sight of a steak in front of him was a better situation, though he did snort in humor when he mentioned Visha. Aiyana ignored him, and ate at her leisure.

"This is wonderful. I wouldn't mind organizing the library. I love books. Do you have children?" she asked. She blushed slightly, realizing how much she was talking.

"I'm sorry. I'm not used to having any company besides Elessar," she explained.

“You will have a lot of fun here then. I have a copy of nearly every book ever published in the library. Most of them are first editions.” He snorted as Aiyana asked if he had children, “No, thank the lord,” he replied, taking a bite out of his food.

As the human's cheeks turned scarlet he reached across the table to caress one of them, his touch gentle, “I like when you blush. You look nice,” he complimented before taking a bite from the pasta she had made, “It is good.”

After recovering from the shock of his touch, which had made her blush even brighter, she had muttered a thank you under her breath, while staring down at her plate. She quickly returned to subject to something besides her own looks.

"Do you really hate children that much? They can certainly be a handful, but...well, I don't know...I think it would be nice. I know the Lady Priestess had her hands full with me when I was younger but we became so close. I don't know what I would have done without...her," she said, beginning to stammer. She knew exactly what she would have done. She would be dead if not for the priestess. It was an odd turn of fate that had brought her to Aiyana's village. A terrible plague had swept through the tiny human community. Some even called it a curse. Aiyana was the last one alive, barely holding on to life, when the priestess found her. She took the small child, and healed her, and raised her as if she were her own. Aiyana felt an uncomfortable lump in her throat. She missed the Lady Priestess more than she could ever put into words.

“I do not that despise children, I simply dislike them. I have a short fuse and children have a tendency to light that match. My sisters children are absolute terrors. She has her sixteen year old twins and her six year old son here right now, and I assure you that by the time Lucretia picks them up tonight that they will have their rooms trashed and most of the rest of the chateau in ruins as well. A few of staff have young children. I dislike them because I can not stand the way they scream and cry when they do not get their way.” Kallias explained to Aiyana as he continued to eat. The fact that true vampires could not taste had never crossed his mind. He ate normal food all of the time. "There is only one child I like," he added before growing silent.

“May I ask you a few questions pertaining to your priesthood,” Kall asked her, before taking a sip from a glass of pricey wine, “Why did you become a priestess? Was it simply to impress your lady, or because you truly wanted to be one? Were you really willing to make all of the sacrifices you made? You can not love, you can not have a family, nothing. You are missing out on a lot.”

OOC:// OMG! That was such a good post! If I had any brain funtion-ality right now, I would post, but I want to do it justice. I'll be on tomorrow...wait, it's like 2:30am..ok, I'll be on later today! Can't wait to chat with you and see how you're doing!

Aiyana giggled to herself as he spoke about his sister's children, and smiled. For once, their conversation was uninterrupted by the cat under the table.

"Surely, they can't be all that bad, Kallias," she exclaimed, almost as if she were rebuking him.

“Why did you become a priestess? Was it simply to impress your lady, or because you truly wanted to be one? Were you really willing to make all of the sacrifices you made? You can not love, you can not have a family, nothing. You are missing out on a lot.”

Aiyana's smile faded quickly, and her large emerald eyes dropped to stare down at her now empty plate. The vampire mix heard Elessar shift uncomfortably under the table as well.

"I...well, the Lady Priestess came upon my village after a...plague had been through it. I was...the only one left alive. She took me in, and raised me like a daughter. She was the kindest person I'd ever met, and I wanted to be like her. She cautioned me, of course, when I said I wanted to take the sacred vows. It's true. I...did not really understand everything that I was giving up but now that I do...I don't regret it. I'd be lying if I said I do not wish I could fall in love, have children some day, but I have found other joys. After all, I suppose I could be a grandmother someday, if Elessar finds a mate, couldn't I?" she asked, a smile returning to her face. She kept her thoughts far away from the village. She hadn't told the whole truth. It had been a curse set by a demon that had taken her world from her, but she kept that secret. The leopard underneath the table shifted again. He knew she was trying to lie to a mind reader, and he wasn't sure that it would be completely believable.

“I ma not kidding with you, Aiyana. All three of them are terrors. I will introduce you to them later, if you would like,” Kallias said to her. As Aiyana looked down at her plate the halfbreed placed a hand under her chin and lifted her head up so that she was looking at him, “I am sorry if I hit a sore spot,” he apologized before listening to her story. “You are missing out on a lot, Aiyana. Everyone deserves to be loves. Don't you want someone to love, someone who will hold you close when you are upset and tell you that everything will be fine? Don't you want a family? Children who look up to you and want to be like you,” he asked her. “Now, tell me the truth about how you lost your family.”

Aiyana shook her head out of his grasp, and stood up. She walked to the other side of the room, and stared out the window at the gardens. Elessar picked himself up, and stood at her side. His tail twitched every now and then, but he did not look at Kallias either.

"Of course, I want those things, but I have made the decision to sacrifice them. If I've learned anything at all, it's that living the life of a priestess is sacrifice. I have dedicated my life to others, and because of that, I must deny myself. There is joy in it, Kallias. It's simply...a different kind of joy," she said slowly. Elessar grumbled unhappily. Apparently, this might have been the only thing that he and the cat agreed on. Aiyana sighed, and closed her eyes.

"A demon put a curse on my village," she said. She stopped abruptly and tried harder to keep her thoughts away from it. If he asked details...well, then things would get difficult.