Chapter Three

The Aftermath

Since they hadn't gotten to bed many hours before, dawn came quickly. Warren was still fast asleep, even as the sun started to rise that winter morning. Their active night had tired him out enough to make him sleep past eight, which wasn't like him. Karou could easily sleep past noon on any given day, and the morning after the night before would be no different.

Wide awake by quarter-to-ten, Warren rolled out of bed and into the shower leaving Karou to hog the sheets. On the few occasions she spent the night in his bed, he'd noticed that even before he'd gone from the room, she'd snatch up his pillow, curl herself around it and squeeze it into her chest; it was adorable. When she woke up, that was where she'd find herself.

Before her sleepy eyes could focus, she could smell Warren as she nuzzled his pillow. Immediately, she knew she must have spent the night in his bed as he'd promised before their evening had taken a turn. With the turn of events in mind, Karou giggled into the pillow at her face. Oh, so it did happen then… Wow.

"Indeed," Warren muttered from the doorway; he'd been stood watching her wake up. He had two mugs of coffee and what appeared to be her bloody breakfast tucked under his arm. He was dressed, but not for work; Karou had expected him to be shut away in his office by now. "Did you sleep well?" He asked and perched himself on the edge of the bed. First, he offered her one of the blood bags and set down her coffee on the nightstand. He sipped at his own as he eyed over her; the way she pulled the sheets up over her chest modestly amused him. It's a little late for that. He thought to himself.

"Yeah, I slept well," Karou replied as she juggled opening the package without spilling while still keeping the sheets held to her. Warren could see that she was struggling to multitask and wouldn't let go of the sheet or allow it to fall into her lap so that she could have full use of both of her hands. He smirked and took the package off her, and handed it back once it was open. "Thank you… You're not going to work today?" The feeding had become ritual now, and she drank it down without a fuss.

"You're welcome, and no, I might answer a couple of emails later, but I needed to sleep in. There are perks to being your own boss." Warren stood from the bed and took his coffee with him. "I'll let you wake up. I've left you some fresh towels in the bathroom."

"Uh, Warren... I have kinda an awkward question to ask." Karou started, which stopped Warren in his tracks. He listened to her without saying a word. "We… We didn't use any, Uhm, protection last night, and seeing as I can't leave the unit, should I call someone from the clinic to come and see me?" Karou did not like bringing up the topic but thought that now was better than never.

"Male sired vampires are sterile; you don't need to worry about that. If you're concerned about anything else, though, I'll call the doctor for you." Warren stated to the point and turned back around and wandered away. He understood why she'd asked, but sometimes, he hated how his Siring had affected his fertility; it'd taken so much more from him than Karou had known before.

Karou sat there, not sure what to do with the information Warren had given her. She hadn't meant to insinuate that she might've caught something from him. Oh God, I hope I haven't offended him! She thought. She felt like an idiot for bringing it up now and grumbled into her hands when she planted her face into her palms. The question was meant to have been entirely about the scary possibility of pregnancy! She had no idea that sired male vampires weren't fertile. Even if the topic was a rather dark one, it had spiked her curiosity despite her embarrassment. Maybe it's best not to ask Warren, she thought, but Magnus, he might talk to me about it.

Normalcy returned as quickly as it had disappeared for the brevity of one evening. Another Sunday was approaching, and Karou found herself anxious about spending time alone with Warren. Now that the most intimate of physical barriers had been crossed, one might've thought that they should have been closer than ever, but that was not the case. Warren had simply reverted to his usual anti-social behaviours, yet Karou had pulled away out of fear of the unfamiliar territory. Although she had been wary about how to act around him since her siring, her feelings of anxiety about the nature of their relationship had magnified tenfold.

Warren worked late into Saturday night. It was gone nine o'clock when he closed his laptop. The long day of staring into the backlight of the screen had made his eyes sore, but the real reason for his headache was thirst. Since the middle of the week, he'd been struggling to keep his appetite at bay; he put it down to overworking himself. Since he'd taken most of Monday off, he had to work hard to catch up. Grabbing a quick meal from his office safe, Warren exited into the lounge and spotted Karou curled up on the couch.

"Hey. You worked later than usual. Everything okay?" She chirped but didn't take her eyes from her book. When she realised Warren was walking past his scotch decanter, she looked over at him, finding that behaviour unusual.

"I'm fine, Karou, just tired and thirsty; I'm going to relax in a hot shower."

"Alright." Her eyes followed him into his bedroom, where he started undressing with the door open. Ironically, now that she'd seen him completely naked, it seemed even seedier to watch him, so she averted her eyes. When she heard him walking down the hall in his underwear to disappear in the bathroom, she glanced back over her shoulder, their eyes met for a moment and they briefly smiled weakly at one another.

First, he filled the sink with hot water and submerged his meal to warm while he showered. Facing up into the rainfall of hot water relaxed and soothed his aching eyes, and for a time, he just stood there. The water cascaded down as warm and gentle as summer rain. It washed away his fatigue while the pitter-patter distracted his mind from stress and brought about tranquillity. Once he'd washed, he repeated, just standing there relishing the peace of mind.

Warren hadn't been in the bathroom long when Karou was roused from her book by the sound of his cell phone ringing in his office. She ignored it the first time, assuming it was probably a late work-related call. Then his office phone rang, and she ignored that too as it just backed up her assumption that it was work-related. It wasn't until his cell phone started to ring again that she stood from the couch. She missed the third call, but it began to ring in her hand as she walked to the bathroom door.

"Uh, Warren... I know you're busy, but your cell phone keeps ringing..."

"Who is it?" Warren asked from the other side of the door; Karou could still hear the shower running.

"I didn't mean to look, but it's Magnus." She called back.

"Alright, come in."

"What?" She asked though she had heard him; she was just surprised by his request.

"I said you can come in. Oh, and answer the phone."

Karou opened the bathroom door with a roll of her eyes, and slipped inside. Why can't he just come to the door and grab it off me? - It felt he was being intentionally difficult but she had no idea why. Taking a seat on the closed toilet lid, she stared ahead at the wall cabinet, trying to avoid looking at him; he was still naked.

"Couldn't you just get out and answer it?" Karou asked, but then the cell phone in her hand began to ring again. It seemed pointless to protest and ignore Magnus' call again, so she answered it. "Hello."

"Oh, Karou! Is something wrong? Why isn't Warren answering my calls?" Magnus asked; he sounded a little distressed.

"Uh, he's just..." The water turned off, and she instinctively looked in the direction of the shower in time to catch Warren running his hands back through his wet hair as he walked around the glass screen. "... Getting out of the shower right now."

She'd watched him exit the bathroom plenty of times, but now she was on the other side of the door and watching him get out of the shower without the modesty of a towel to cover him; it seemed a hundred times more perverse. His nudity wasn't to last, though; fortunately, he grabbed one from the towel warmer and wrapped it about his waist. Rubbing the water from his stubbled chin, Warren held out his hand for the cell phone.

The sleek black device slipped from her hand and into his. When she moved to stand, Warren set his hand down onto her shoulder and pushed her back down gently. "Magnus, sorry I didn't answer. It's been a long day. I needed a moment to unwind."

Cornered by Warren, Karou was helpless to sit there and wait. Eager for a distraction from her scarcely clothed Sire, Karou kept her head down and her eyes trained on her lap, particularly at a freckle on her thigh that gave her something to stare at other than Warren's dripped wet torso, which still lingered in her peripherals.

"Ellis is on a plane; she's on her way to you right now. She left just after I went into a meeting with Roman; she has been gone at least six hours already. Warren, she knows about Karou." Magnus spat out what he was calling about straight away.

"Right, so I have what… Five hours before she gets here?" Warren glanced to Karou, curious about her reaction. Instead of finding her wide, inquisitive blue eyes peering up at him, he was met with the top of her head. He waited to see if she'd look up at him of her own free will. "I suppose she's pissed?"

"My boy, I think that is putting it lightly. I am tying things up here as quickly as I can. I will be there in the morning, but I can't be of any help to you tonight."

"I appreciate that, Mag'."

"Don't let her into the Compound if you can help it, Warren... She wants blood and vengeance."

"Against me?" Warren rolled his eyes. He knew there would be violence. Ellis had a flair for the dramatic, and she often wasn't happy unless she was warring with someone. As long as she brought her wrath upon him, he couldn't care less, but he couldn't allow Karou to be in the firing line.

"The both of you, I think. That is all I can gather from the few thoughts I've picked up on. You for your 'betrayal', as she puts it. As for Karou, she thinks she tricked you into it." Magnus cleared his throat and continued in a whisper. "I... I know now isn't the time to ask, but how are things?"

"Thank you for letting me know, Magnus. I should've known this was coming." Even though he'd just learned some rather disappointing news, he smirked at Karou's persistently shy body language and sought to rectify it. He set his finger under her chin to tip her head back so she would have to look at him. He watched how her pupils dilated into the deep blue of her irises when their eyes met. In the hot, steamy bathroom, her scent was too potent to ignore. His thirst was distracting him from the enormity of the issue he was discussing with Magnus. "Now isn't a good time, no," Warren said calmly.

"Warren..." Magnus' tone suddenly sounded disciplinary. "Why is she in the bathroom with you?"

"Like I said... Now isn't a good time. I'll call you later." Warren hung up the cell phone and set it down onto the vanity, so he could focus the remainder of his attention on Karou.

She asked immediately. "Warren, what's happening?" She'd gotten a little of the story tied together already but hoped Warren would divulge exactly what Magnus had said.

"Ellis is coming to stick her nose in where it isn't wanted again. She will be here in about five hours. Unfortunately, I don't think we'll get the chance to enjoy our Sunday together..." Warren allowed Karou to stand but herded her back against the vanity in the small bathroom as he said, "I'll deal with the malicious bitch when she gets here, but right now... Hmm, when your skin is warm, your scent is-..." He could not find the word, but the look in his eyes combined with what he had said indicated what kind of mood he was in despite how jaded he looked.

"That - that's just bloodlust talking, Warren..." Karou shuttered nervously. "But uh, Ellis? So, that means she's really angry that you've sired me, right?" Distracted by the topic of their conversation Warren had coerced her back into another corner without her realising; when her rear collided with vanity units counter, naturally, it spooked her.

"Yes, I'm very thirsty." Warren admitted readily, to his mind his thirst didn't make what he said any less sincere. The intensity of his gaze didn't let up, he squared up to Karou; homing in on her neck. He wasn't interested in talking about his Sire when his fledgeling was so enthralling.

Warren's predatory aura put her on edge so quickly, even if she wasn't as defenceless as she used to be. Looking away from his eyes in the hopes of gaining some composure Karou noticed the meal Warren had intended to have, sitting in the sink. Hoping that distraction would be her salvation, Karou plucked one plastic package out of the water and offered it forward to him. When he took what she'd offered from her hand, she smiled, her anxiety eased some but it was short lived; she shouldn't have let her guard down so quickly.

Warren dropped it back into the sink, open or not, and leant closer. "I'll let you go first." He whispered suggestively.

"What, right now?"

"Is now... a bad time?" His words lingered on his lips, just as suggestively as his previous comment.

"I-... I guess not. It's just that you're only wearing a towel." Karou was trying not to notice the way beads of water had been running down his torso as he air-dried. In a split second of weakness, she'd imagined licking them from his skin, and the thought alone caused her to squeeze her thighs together to stave off the tingling sensation it caused between them.

"Would you prefer that I wasn't?" Warren didn't ask permission and suddenly grabbed the back of her thighs and lifted her to perch on the edge of the vanity. Positioned how he wanted, he came to be stood between her knees.

Karou whined uncomfortably and squirmed atop the vanity; her heart was pounding away in her chest out of nervousness. Her brain felt so muddled, and so she kept her eyes away from his and asked in a mousy, shy voice, "This isn't going to be like last time, is it?"

He had already offered himself to her by craning his neck to one side; he was ready when she was, but her question caused him to retreat and turn his head to try and gain the attention of her eyes but found he was stood too close to meet them. She refused to look at him, anyway. "Why're you bringing that up now?"

Just by him asking such a question, Karou figured that, no, it was not going to be like that and that perhaps not ever again. Of course, she had pursued him knowing that it was most likely a one-off; still, the feeling of rejection stung. "It's just this feels…" Karou couldn't find the right word.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, Warren picked up on the stray thought that had flashed through her mind. "Seedy?" He asked, his brow furrowed in slight confusion. "You- you think I'm offering my body to you in exchange for yours?" Warren had picked up on more than she'd bargained for.

"Well… I didn't mean to imply-" Karou sighed and gave up trying to explain. "Sorry."

"The goalposts of what's socially and morally acceptable for certain interactions have shifted since you're no longer mortal, Karou. I warned you there would be consequences…" Warren tried to explain, but honestly, he could see why she'd gotten confused, but he was just too proud to admit his fault.

In reply to what he'd said, she simply nodded in acknowledgement.

Her quiet resignation had been enough for Warren to concede; he was about to back off and let her down from the vanity when her hand reached for him. Her touch was electric and killed any desire he had to put distance between them. When she finally found his gaze, her eyes pleaded for him to remain still, and once he abided, she was at his neck and biting down into him. Karou's shyness melted away, and the frenzy his blood caused allowed her to let loose. Grasping at him with an immovable grip, she moaned into his neck as her thirst was sated. Just like before, the wounds were messy, but Warren didn't mind. In fact, he was amused by the irony that his newborn fledgeling wasn't as violent as his seasoned Sire.

Warren had a level of trust in Karou's restraint for such a young vampire that he figured Magnus would've attempted to talk him out of. Oh, but he relished how Karou felt at his neck! It was easy to surrender; he just held onto her waist and relaxed under her fangs. It was an amount of intimacy he could rationally explain away without having to rack himself with guilt afterward.

When Warren sent his hand into Karou's hair to encourage her back from his neck, she didn't fight him or gnash her fangs to get back at him. No, she calmly lapped her lips and opened her mouth wide to retract her fangs. "Hmm, no offence, but that's so much better than blood bags; I know they're your business and all..."

"That doesn't offend me," Warren muttered quietly; he was still coming around from how having let blood for her had left him dazed. He cleared his throat and spoke. "It's common knowledge that fresh blood is better, but blood prostitution just isn't accepted by the wider market like it used to be. Vampire's grew morals and a taste for ethically sourced food."

"Yuck. When you talk about it like that, it takes all the - I don't know, it just takes something away from it." Karou said as she gathered her hair over one side of her neck.

"Well, to put, whatever it is, back into it… Nobody else I've fed from compares to how you taste, and it's driving me a little insane that I can't figure out why..."

Karou was stunned by what he'd admitted. How he could say something so flattering made her heartache because, already, she'd accepted that she shouldn't get to attached to him, regardless of him being her Sire or not. What she knew of his character already had convinced her that he'd never truly open up to her; Warren Howard was an untouchable entity that lived his lonely life indifferent and seperate to others. Why should she be any different? It only meant that her blood was special to him, she thought. She blushed despite, even if sometimes the sentiment of his words confused her. Her realistic summary flashed through her mind in seconds, and by then, Warren was already biting into her. Though it didn't physically hurt, the pang of emotional pain was enough of a substitute despite how he gently cupped the opposite side of her face and groaned into her skin. She'd sighed with some semblance of relief when she felt his fangs, and without thinking, she reached her hand around his neck and rested it at the nape. What she didn't expect was that her legs would wind themselves around his hips to keep him close as if they had a mind of their own.

Warren didn't flinch at all when she touched him like that - he took his time and savoured her and drank his fill. Eventually, he withdrew and kissed over her wounds until they had healed entirely; he didn't free himself of her legs straight away; he waited to see if she realised what doing so insinuated.

She did, of course, she did and instantly felt foolish. This was just a blood exchange, after all, not an introduction to sex. That she had square in her mind now, no matter how much she wished it could be otherwise. "Sorry."

"You don't need to say that at every verse end, Karou." He grabbed her by the waist again and helped her down off the vanity. "We should try and get some sleep before Ellis arrives."

"What're you going to say to her?"

"I don't owe her an explanation if that's what you mean. She wrecked my life when she sired me, and it took me a long time to come to terms with what I became. She never apologised. She refuses to talk about it, so she has no right to tell me what I can and can't do or with whom I do it with." Warren said as he left the bathroom and walked the short distance to his bedroom.

The conversation didn't necessarily feel over, and Karou found herself following after Warren to continue. When he removed his towel, he was quick and discrete about putting on underwear; Karou fixated her eyes on something else in the meantime. Sat on the edge of his bed, she could look at him a little easier now that there was no chance of his towel falling off. With lounge pants on too and next, a t-shirt, it was getting easier. "What if she bites you like last time when she was mad?"

"I told you before, that isn't the worst thing she's done to me, and besides, she's got to get to me first... Are you sleeping in here?" Warren asked, noticing Karou had sat herself down on his bed. It stood to reason that she might; she was already in her pyjamas and had been since he came out of his office.

"Uh- No. Sorry." Karou jumped from her feet and straightened the sheet where she'd disturbed it.

She was saying sorry again, which made Warren grimace. He wouldn't have minded her sleeping with him. "Look, I'd appreciate it if you were straight with me, Karou. I can sense something going on up here, but I don't know what it is exactly, and you're acting weird. What's wrong?" Warren gestured to his temple, meaning he could tell she was on edge, skittish even, as he walked towards her.

"I'm just hetup that Ellis is on a manhunt, is all, and that she's hunting us down. You... I mean. Not us. I don't know why I said it like that."

"That niggly feeling has been there since before you knew about that. Since I said, you could come into the bathroom."

"I- I just- I still don't know how to act around you. I didn't know the aftermath would affect me this much, and you're different too. I guess it is nice that there doesn't seem to be as much of a wall between us, but you keep pushing little boundaries, and it just throws me off-kilter."

"I didn't realise that I've treated you any different since... last weekend."

"No, you haven't, not all week, but tonight was different."

"Magnus doesn't keep calling unless it's urgent. Usually, he will wait 'til I can call him back if I miss his calls. I hadn't finished my shower, so I told you to come in. You've... seen me naked already, so I didn't foresee that my momentary nudity would upset you this much."

"What about afterwards?" Karou was now standing with her back to the door jamb, her hands tucked behind her so she could pick at her nails - her anxiety was running wild now that it was seeping into the open through her big mouth. "When you wanted to share blood again?"

"That's a perfectly normal thing for Sire's and fledgelings to do together..."

"You don't think it was a little… intimate?" Karou was treading carefully; she didn't want to insinuate anything by accident.

"So you are upset that we haven't had sex again?"

"What? I- no..." Karou spluttered and blushed because he'd said it so matter-of-factly.

"Because Karou, I told you to make your intentions clear. I'm not trying to hurt your feelings. I'm not always the best at picking up on these kinds of things. I thought you wanted a casual encounter in which you could lose your virginity, without judgement?" Rubbing the back of his neck, Warren glanced away from her face and continued as if talking to himself. "I admit I'm still a little surprised that you persuaded me into it, but then again, you did get me to Sire you too."

"You're making it sound like I tricked you..." Karou's brow furrowed.

"I didn't mean it in a negative way." Warren was trying to be sincere, "I understand if you regret it. I hope I didn't hurt y-..."

Karou cut him off. "Look, I know it didn't mean anything. I'm sorry I'm acting weird. I'll figure it out." Karou was rapidly getting upset - somehow, there had been some miscommunication and talking about it only seemed to be digging the hole of confusion deeper. Just like that, she was gone and had shut herself away in her room.

Warren was left to stand in his room with more questions than answers. One thing resounded through his mind, though; she said that it had meant nothing. For some reason, he didn't like the way that made him feel. He couldn't pinpoint the emotion, but it wasn't a pleasant one. Sure, he'd assumed, it'd been casual, but he wouldn't have said it meant nothing. That would be to dismiss how much he'd enjoyed it. Perhaps she just regretted it? Somehow, he'd overstepped, even though she was the one that had invited him to deflower her. At the time, he thought they'd both had a great time. To him, it was fulfilling, incredibly so, and he thought she felt the same. It had, at the very least, achieved what she wanted.

Now he was left scratching his head as to what he had done wrong. Though it was true that at that moment in time, he'd preferred to have just gotten his fill of her deliciously sweet blood, that didn't mean that he felt sex was off the cards. In fact, he'd already wondered when they'd do it again. Perhaps he'd been too tender with her? He hadn't wanted to bruise her. He'd wanted, no, needed to savour her. After all, he wasn't particularly fond of rough sex; Ellis had long since spoiled that sort of sex for him with her abuse which he excused as overenthusiasm. But was that the thing that was confusing her - had he somehow been too familiar with her tonight too? That wasn't like him at all; usually, she accused him of being too cold. Maybe she didn't actually want him to feed from her again? He wished she'd said. She didn't have to let him after all.

Amidst his confusion, he decided to distance himself again like he had all week. He realised he'd be walking on eggshells because too much distance also seemed to upset her as well. Alas, to his detriment, he was too guarded to reveal any of his internal struggles. It was a dire shame because that was what would have quelled all of Karou's anxieties.

Warren sat down on the edge of his bed and combed his fingers back through his damp hair to soothe away the mental turmoil. You're an idiot, Warren. You should never have gotten involved with her in the first place.

Meanwhile, in her room, Karou was silently screaming into her pillow. Despite knowing that last Sunday, she'd been committing to something that was most likely a one-time occurrence, she still found herself wanting more. If she could keep her distance, the urge didn't rear its ugly head, and coping with never touching him again was easier. He obviously wasn't going to allow that, so now she would have to suffer through the intimate moments they'd share while feeding and accept that was as far as it would ever go. Having him so close at hand, yet still so out of reach, was torture. You stupid girl. You shouldn't have gotten so close to him.

Warren knew that night would be sleepless on his part, so he retired to the couch where he idled over a crossword. He had made sure to call reception and inform Ms Finch that Ms Ellis Denver was not to be allowed entrance into the Compound. Even though he knew that she would relay the message to the guard towers, he took the time to call them individually and reiterate the instruction. Three am rolled around, and at around half past the hour, Warren got a call from the west gate's watchtower. Ms Denver had arrived and was requesting entry. "I'll be there shortly. Do not open the gate, understand?"

Karou couldn't sleep. It felt impossible to settle or get comfortable when her mind was working overtime. She knew Warren hadn't gone to bed and was just waiting for Ellis to arrive. When she heard him walk down the hall into his bedroom, she assumed correct;y that he was going to get dressed to go and deal with her. When he came out of his room, he was pulling a sweater over his head and bumped right into her as she exited her room. Caught by his hands, Warren steadied Karou on her feet; she was the clumsy type and easily unbalanced - it seemed that some things were unchanged despite her siring. He stared down into her face, finding her eyes in the dark. "Karou? Why aren't you in bed?"

"I couldn't sleep." Looking up at him with worried eyes, she found herself making a request, "Don't go."

"What? Why not? The guards know they can't open the gate and let her in. I'm just going to tell her to go back to Magnus."

"Even if she can't get to you physically, you're going to talk to her, and she's... mean. What if she says something hurtful?"

"She most likely will go for low blows, but I've got thicker skin than that, Karou."

She couldn't imagine having to sit and wait for him to return, dreading the thought of what state he might come back in. What if the worst happened and Ellis got in and to him, and then what if he didn't come back - then what would she do? Before she could overthink it, she was making another request; "Can I come with you?"

"You shouldn't leave the unit."

"But it's so late, no one will be around, and I'll be with you." Karou opened her blue eyes wide and grinned up at him hopefully. "See, I'm not even thirsty."

"So, you're going to protect me from her, are you?" He smirked.

"Please, just let me come with you?" Karou pleaded, wrapping her tiny hands about his wrists as he held onto her arms.

"Fine. Put on some clothes, and if Ellis addresses you, whatever you do, do not answer her. You said yourself she can be mean. If she isn't getting the answers, she wants she'll get petty."

"I think I figured that much out about her already..." Karou stepped into her bedroom and absentmindedly stripped out of her pyjamas with the door wide open. Wiggling into a pair of skinny jeans and a hoody, she was ready in minutes.

Warren watched her change; he couldn't help it, even if he knew he shouldn't, especially not since the conversation they'd had earlier. With that in mind, he stopped her at the door. "Karou... If what you were upset about earlier is something she can use against me, you should probably tell me now regardless of the damage it could do to us. She's very good at reading people and manipulative, so it's best I hear it from you and not her."

Karou paused, taken off guard by his request. It seemed she'd have to tell him, even if it made her look pathetic. Still, she supposed she could see his reasoning. "How you approached me to instigate feeding felt like you wanted more but then what you said contradicted that we'd ever -…" Her eyes cast to the floor before she continued. "- Do more again."

"Alright. Just as I thought, I might've been too familiar. Your scent and blood make it easy to get carried away." He nodded, contrite. It was not quite an apology, but then again, he was not particularly good at those.

"And I think I lied." Karou reached out and grabbed the sleeve of his sweater to stall him just in case he'd been about to walk away. "Last Sunday woke something up inside me that I didn't know was there. I think I was a little put out that there wasn't more. I didn't know how it would feel if you came that close again. I didn't think I could feel a fraction of that after last weekend, but earlier, there was... there was something."

"You can always share blood with me, Karou, as intimately or as mundanely as you'd like. Now, I understand that I have to be careful, I know you think it doesn't mean anything." Warren patted the back of her hand and unlocked the unit door. "We should get going; the longer we leave her waiting, the more pissed she's going to be when we show up."

Karou didn't dare tell him that she had lied about it being meaningless, too, so she allowed the conversation to end so they could face Ellis.