EPILOGUE I

Business or Pleasure

Part III

In the elevator, Karou fiddled with her hair, straightened out her dress and checked over her makeup in the mirrored wall. She barely had time to panic over all the possible scenarios that lay ahead because suddenly, the floor bell pinged and startled her - easily done in her anxiousness. The doors slid open, and Karou stepped out onto the fourth floor - Warren's room was instantly insight as the elevator closed behind her as if to seal her fate. Yes, it felt too late to turn back now, but face to face with the shiny gold door numbers and the pensive peephole, her heart raced in anticipation. She wondered whether she ought to have waited a little longer before arriving. Do I look desperate? She pondered, but she'd already sent her hand up to the door and knocked thrice.

Warren answered promptly and simply shifted aside to allow her entry. So far, he'd said nothing but poked his head out beyond the jamb to check that she'd hadn't been seen or followed. The coast was clear, so he closed to door and finally, they were out the sight of any 'public'.

Hit by the reality of being alone in his hotel room, Karou's eyes anxiously flit about the place, taking in her surroundings. The crinkled state of the bedsheets and arrangement of his pillows suggested that he'd been sat up against the headboard watching the TV before her arrival. The book on the nightstand offered an alternate possibility. Still, the volume was turned down low, so at least there would be some background noise to fill in the silence that hung between them. The atmosphere wasn't awkward; it was just tense, just like it'd always been back at the Compound. Part of her wondered if he still lived there, but it was so long ago she thought that by now, he would have moved on. If nothing else, surely, he'd have grown bored with the geometric and monotone decor. He had always insisted it wasn't his style, and if her memory served her right, his room in Davikov Castle was proof of that.

Figuring she ought to act casual so as not to appear like a nervous wreck, Karou set her purse onto the room's desk and was slipping out of her heels when she felt him approach her and invade the personal space to her rear. It startled her enough to lose her footing when she turned to face him. How cliche, she thought as she instinctively reached out for him to steady herself. Just like that, her hand found the centre of his chest. Her dainty fingers curled about the button column of his shirt; as the momentum of her trip closed the gap between them.

They hadn't touched each other in thirty years...

Karou's shy and apologetic eyes met his. At her sudden touch, accidental or not, he didn't recoil or seem put off by the contact like he used to at their beginning. He was just as eager to touch her but was concerned about coming on too strong. If she took the lead, he'd allow it. So, instead of a negative reaction, he simply looked down at her hand and began unbuttoning his charcoal coloured shirt to where she grasped it. When he moved the left side of his collar over, that was the silent invite that Karou was all too eager to accept.

Instantly she pushed up onto her tiptoes to reach his neck. Humming into his sun-kissed skin, Karou kissed over the numerous previous places she'd bitten him in search of the perfect spot to do so again. Finding such a spot was instinctual, and she did so with enthusiasm. In reaction, despite trying to stifle the sound, Warren moaned along with her as they both felt his skin splitting beneath her canines. Since Karou clung more fiercely onto the fabric of Warren's shirt, she could feel how quickly his heart raced. She smiled into his neck because hers was too.

Warren, touch me.

Where? He asked her cautiously. He didn't want to overstep, though he couldn't deny that perhaps they already had.

Anywhere... She replied in an impatient whine. Honestly, at this point, she didn't care what he did or how much he undressed her to get to whatever section of her skin he desired as long as he touched her somewhere.

What he did took her completely off guard. He set his hands onto her shoulder blades and thought back to her; Your back feels tense. Why don't you let your wings free?

Hearing his request took the fire from her belly. Slowly she pulled back from his neck. The stain left behind by his blood had replaced the lipstick that had previously been on her plump lips that incidentally hung agape in bewilderment. When she turned her head, having hoped to meet his eyes, she found them indeed. They were still black and thirsty, but with his face a mere inch away, he stared ahead into her own that were now on their way to being well-fed and shimmering blue. Karou was stunned by what he had requested, but he'd felt it was an innocent enough suggestion.

The sad truth was that no one ever asked her to be both sides of herself all at once these days. In Enoch's public eye, she was never allowed to show anything other than nephilim qualities. Seeing as Eamon disliked her vampirism, perhaps more passionately than the court, she never felt comfortable being anything other than celestial in private either. Yet here was her Sire, making light of such a matter. It made her heart swell with happy emotion.

While the wave of emotion settled, she flexed her back in just the right way to allow her wings to stretch free of their confines. Out they unfolded and spread into the space behind her as an inky blue display of feathers fanned and ruffled in the warm air. Deep relief showed on her face; it felt blissful, and as you'd imagine, felt just like stretching after being curled in a tight space for too long.

At long last, before his awe-stricken eyes, his fledgeling appeared in all her glory. Fangs bared, lips bloodied, and stunning inky iridescent wings relaxed closed at her back. He'd genuinely never seen such a breathtakingly beautiful creature before or since. He swallowed deeply, and Karou watched his adam's apple jumped up his throat.

Bashful under his intense, adoring gaze, Karou's eyes focused back on his neck. The wounds she'd made had continued to bleed a little before the pits had healed. It was probably because she'd pulled away, shocked, while they still bled in mid-flow. Now, Warren had two runs of red blood trickled down his neck and chest; they had reached his shirt and pooled in the fabric. "Warren, I've gotten blood on your shirt," Karou explained timidly.

"It's fine." He said quietly, distracted by the way the low light of his room played over her feathers. To remedy the none-issue and appease Karou from any unnecessary worry, he simply undid the rest of his shirt buttons and shed it. No shirt, no blood, no problem. With his hands free again, he touched her just as she'd asked; and traced his fingers over the arches of her wings until they met her shoulders.

With his shirt removed, she ogled over his bare chest shamelessly. At first, she was cautious, and her hands only hovered over the place where she had previously been clutching at his shirt. But under Warren's gentle caress, her feathers twitched as tingles ran her spine, and a quiet, pleased sound escaped her lips. Bolstered by how he'd touched her, with such easy intimacy, Karou set her hands onto the bare skin of his chest just how she wanted to.

It felt surreal, though she'd dreamed of a moment like this, and more, endlessly since they'd parted. Closing her eyes to focus on the feel of his chest as it rose and fell breath by steady breath, she dared to set her forehead against him too. Her eyes flickered open a moment to wander down his chest and over his stomach to the waistband of his dress pants. She swallowed hard, imagining how easy it would be to unfasten his belt in that moment. She wasn't brave enough to admit why she wanted to, not yet.

"Karou, your eyes, they're still thirsty. Won't you carry on?" Warren asked matter-of-factly. One hand had traced over her shoulder and found its-self cupping the back of her head, where he gently ushered her back to his neck.

Impulse took over once more; Karou didn't need any persuasion. This time, she didn't bite him in exactly the same spot, but with her lips locked around the new bite wounds, she could lap at both sets at the same time. It was impossible to reign herself in, and Karou's hands wandered over the bare skin she had access to with Warren's shirt out of the picture. One hand spanned out over the centre of his chest, her fingers feeling at the light smattering of chest hair he had there. Her other hand stroked up the free side of his neck and spanned his chiselled jaw. Moaning into his skin as she withdrew her fangs and kissed his skin clean of any remnants of blood. Inhibitions and any sense of moral judgement were blurred by blood lust, so when she noticed the two runs of blood down his chest, she licked those away too, which caused Warren to loll back his head and sigh as if the sensation of her lips had been the last straw and aroused him fully.

"Is this why you asked me to come up to your room?" Karou asked breathlessly, her face nestled by his collar bone. Now that she set back down onto the flat of her feet, that was as far as she could reach.

"I didn't actually invite you, did I?"

Pulling back a little, Karou shot 'the lawyer' a look; he knew exactly what game he'd played, and so did she even if there hadn't been any verbal contract made. "Where is this going?"

"It certainly isn't going to leave this room..."

"That isn't what I meant." Karou rooked her eyes though he couldn't see. "Warren... Y'know, your eyes are thirsty too. Aren't you going to bite me back?"

"I don't think that's a good idea, Karou." Warren held her back some so that the warning expression he wore was visible, but kept his hands on her upper arms.

"Why?" She tipped her head to the side to tease him, or was it just her natural body language? Even now, he could never tell.

"Once an addict, always an addict."

"It's not like I'm crack cocaine..." Karou whispered suggestively and leaned closer to him again. On her tiptoes once more, she pressed her lips into the hollow of his neck while slowly reaching around the back of hers to unfasten the chain she was wearing. She tossed it aside in another silent invitation, but on her part this time.

Warren took his cue from there and didn't put up much of a fight against his nature. Tonight, she was there, just for one night. He would've been a fool not to take her up on anything she offered him. His nimble fingers tugged down the zipper of her deep pink dress... Karou was willing enough to remove her arms from its straps to let it fall to a pool at their feet. I don't want to get blood on your dress. Warren explained telepathically. It was only a half-lie.

Karou giggled and encouraged him to continue by sending her hands into his hair to guide his head towards her neck. He didn't really need any coaxing and closed his eyes, surrendering one of his senses to immerse himself in the smooth feel of her skin beneath his lips. After only one kiss, he pulled back and wiped his thumb over his lower lip. He could taste something out of place... It was the makeup she was wearing over her scars, and in opening his eyes, he saw it too; it didn't taste all that pleasant.

"Ah, crap. I forgot about that! They make me cover my scars when I'm working. It's uh, not very 'nephilim' to have bite scars." Karou bit her lip as she explained. She was so ashamed that she allowed other people, the Enochian Court no less, to tell her what parts of her body were acceptable. Now she was worried she had ruined the mood and didn't dare meet his eyes.

His finger hooked under her chin in an attempt to make her look at him. When he finally gained the attention of her eyes, he tried to smile. Even though what he'd discovered bothered him, it wasn't Karou he needed to punish. "Wait here."

Warren flit into the bathroom, where he dampened a hand towel and returned to find Karou had perched herself on the edge of the bed - toying with her fingers and looking down into her lap rather sorrowfully. She always seemed so small; even her wings couldn't make her appear any larger when they hugged so tightly to her body.

"Hey, look at me." Kneeling before her with the towel in his hand, Warren coerced her to make eye contact again, while he wiped away the makeup from around her neck. He took his time to uncover each of her scars. Karou stared blankly at his face and took her time to examine and remember all the lines and angles of his face. "Is there anything else you're hiding?"

She was still staring at him in a daze when she replied with, "Only what's beneath my underwear..."

If he'd been the blushing kind, he might've, but instead, he just swallowed hard. After all, she was sitting in front of him in just her black lacy under-things. It was all too much to resist. Hmm, but whatever's under there isn't a secret; I've seen it all before. On his knees, he pushed himself forward between her thighs to press his torso up against her. Once more, his hand found its way into her hair. It wasn't necessarily that he wanted control, though he did it to position her neck for the benefit of his fangs, but it comforted her and made feeding more intimate. If I wanted, you'd take everything off for me, wouldn't you?

Every reaction to his movements was so automatic that Karou barely thought about what she was doing. With him between her thighs, her legs naturally coiled the back of his hips and held him close. Her head tipped back into the secure hold of his hand as she invited his lips to her neck with a relaxed sigh. Every word that weaved its way into her mind made her feel feverish, and as if breathless she replied with a simple; yes.

Her hands... they explored again, his neck, jaw, shoulders and shoulder blades, and even down his back. As she felt over him, her body ached for his. The release that came with him biting down into her neck couldn't have come soon enough, and she moaned without care. It had been so long since he'd bitten her, and no one else had since, but she couldn't forget the sensation. For thirty years, she'd craved this.

The moment her golden blood hit his tongue, he lost it. She was as sweet as the first time, but where then it had been a surprise; now it was a sweetness he knew well and pined for. Growling into her skin, he fed vigorously, desperately even. As though he couldn't get her close enough to him, his strong arms coiled her body, and his hands grasped at any part of her they could find. He couldn't, wouldn't let go until he'd had his fill.

Both swept away, Warren taking and Karou surrendering to the thrill of submission, but at some point, they knew he would have to stop. The only way he could ever get himself to was to imagine the pain he had felt before he'd Sired her when he thought he'd killed her. The haunted feeling that brought to him was enough to make him pull back and preserve her life; it was so very precious to him. Still, to ease the bittersweetness of letting go, he kissed her wounds until they healed beneath his lips.

Then out of the silence, Karou made a request. "Don't stop."

He knew what she meant, and continuing to explore and let their feeding session progress into something even more intimate would have been so easy, but... "We should stop. You're married." He muttered his reason against her skin.

That was when he felt her fingers press into his lips to halt him. "Don't. Please don't stop? It's just once. Maybe I'll never see you again." Her eyes pleaded like her lips.

"I can't allow you to do something you'll regret." Warren insisted and dropped his hands from her to set them on the sheets, either side of her hips. Though he couldn't escape her when she still had her legs wrapped about him, and now that he'd let go of her her heels pressed desperately into the back of his thighs.

Karou stared blankly at her hand, which still rested on the centre of his chest. She sighed and glanced at his watch. "I would never regret that... But if you're sure you won't... Then, in that case, it's gone midnight, so I should get back to my hotel..."

"You can stay a little longer if you want. Unless you're only here because you're interested in nesting?" Warren asked, knowing she understood he meant the common vampiric behaviour that usually considered of sharing blood and sexual favours.

"What? How can you say that?" Karou glared at his face with an offended expression and withdrew herself from him.

"Fine, I take that back. I admit I know better." Freed of her legs, Warren stood from his knelt position and picked up Karou's dress from the floor. He folded it neatly and set it onto the desk beside her purse. While in the vicinity, he retrieved his blood-stained shirt too and folded that and placed it into the laundry section of his suitcase.

"Alright... but if I do stay longer, what are we going to do?" Karou asked as she watched him continue to get undressed.

He unbuckled his belt, tugged it free of his trousers, and rolled it up around his first. It amused Karou how meticulously organised he was, even now. Everything had its place, and everything was always to be in its place. He removed and folded his trousers too and placed them into his suitcase as well. "Isn't whatever we decide to do wrong, seeing as we're both in just our underwear?"

"Perhaps, but that isn't a good enough reason to throw all caution to the wind, is it?" Karou asked almost sarcastically. She really wished it had been enough.

Warren glanced back at her from over his shoulder, his brows arranged in such a way that made Karou blush.

Sat on the end of his bed after a hard day at work, feeling completely satisfied having fed well, was how she'd imagined she would consummate all of her days, once upon a time. If she was honest, even now, she was the most content she'd been in a very long time. Watching Warren get undressed and ready for bed reminded her of how her life with him at the Compound had been nearer to what she imagined married life would be than like, rather than what had become her routine in Enoch with Eamon, her actual husband. "Can we lie in bed and watch a movie together?" Karou asked, hoping he would let her reminisce some more.

"Of course, why don't you pick something?" Warren agreed, just like he used to, and turned around with a faint smile on his face as he made his way back towards the bed.

Looking around, it didn't take her long to locate the remote on his bedside table. Crawling up the sheets, Karou grabbed the black device and turned to aim it at the TV unit.

Watching her crawl over the bed almost made him regret his decision not to give in and have sex with her. After all, he'd just gotten the most perfect and tempting view of her rear and supple thighs in the scanty underwear she was wearing. Now, he was staring at her intently, his hands balled into fists as he fought a thousand carnal urges. The way she looked up at him 'oh so innocently' only made him want her more.

"What?" Karou asked with her blue eyes wide and unsure as they stared up at him.

"You-... You're my side of the bed."

"Oh... I guess I am." Looking around the bed, she realised that she was sitting on the side that he always seemed to favour. For the sake of 'shielding her', should someone intrude on them, it was always the side nearest the door.

Shuffling over the mattress, Karou lifted the sheets and invited Warren underneath them with her. Once he was comfortably propped up against the headboard and pillows, they settled down to watch the movie she'd chosen. On the other side of the bed, Karou mirrored him and relaxed back against the other pillows with the sheets pulled up to her chest. For now, they didn't touch.

When the movie's plot was winding down to its end, Karou had had enough time tucked up in the warm bed to start feeling sleepy. By then, Warren had turned out all the lights so that only the TV's backlight shone upon them. He'd already closed his eyes and was dozing when he felt Karou's head contact his upper arm and found upon opening his eyes that she had lulled over when her eyes had closed.

"Karou, are you asleep?" Warren whispered, just in case she was; it seemed unfair to wake her yet.

"Hmm, no. I'm watching the movie, I promise." She grumbled, unwilling to move.

"Sure, you are..." Warren rolled his sleepy eyes and moved his arm away, which earned him another displeased grumble from Karou. Propping herself up, she opened her sleepy eyes to look at him. Figuring he didn't want her to touch him anymore made her a little sad, but she supposed she'd taken plenty of liberties earlier.

"I should get going; the movie is almost over anyway. I guess we're both ready to sleep."

"It's gone two am."

"Ugh, really? Damn it. I have to be up at six." Karou yawned into her hand and reluctantly tossed the sheets from over her legs like she was about to get up.

"You're really going to make me get back up and get dressed so I can walk you back to your hotel room at this hour of the night?" Warren asked.

"What? No, of course not. I'm a big girl Warren. I can walk back to my room by myself. Besides, you're sle-"

He had reached over and taken hold of her forearm before she could escape his bed altogether. "Just... Accept that I'm not getting up, and I'm not letting you leave this room at two in the morning, Karou. You're going to have to get back in bed."

Karou thought about it. he wanted to stay, but she had a condition... "Okay, I'll make you a deal."

"A deal?" Warren was intrigued; the way his brows arranged over his eyes told Karou so.

"Yes. I'll stay all night and won't sneak out once you're asleep, but only if you hold me."

"You're really testing my resolve here, Karou." Warren sighed and flopped back against his mound of pillows. The way he positioned his arm was yet another silent invite for Karou to snuggle into his side. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he watched her crawl towards him over the sheets. Oh boy, you really are such a tease...

With her shoulder nestled into the nook of his underarm and her head laid on his chest, Karou nuzzled her face into his skin with a contented sigh. Unreservedly she placed her arm over him and set her hand onto the other side of his chest; she even wrapped her leg over his too. "So, you're going to hold me for the rest of the night?"

"If you stay, yes." Warren agreed and kissed the hair atop her head by way of bidding her a good night.

Since Karou had gotten herself so close and comfortable, he figured he might as well relax. Boundaries were undoubtedly being pushed to their limit, but at least she could go back to her husband sexually unadulterated. Even if his hand found her waist, and his fingers traced over her soft skin, suggesting he was itching to explore her more. If only she'd let her hand, which lay on his chest, wander too. To stop his seedy thought, he took hold of it and held it tight.

Warren lay in the darkness feeling Karou fall asleep quickly in her comfortable curled-up position at his side. He thought about how she fit against him so naturally and focused on her completely, refusing to close his eyes for the sake of missing one moment of her company. She looked peaceful, and that made him happy. Although he didn't know, she fell asleep feeling safe and content that night, curled up next to the only person that had ever made her feel whole.

Maybe this is what our life might've been like if I hadn't let you go. At the time, I knew I had to, that I wouldn't have been enough to sustain you as you grew into a woman and found your purpose. But once you'd been gone a year or two, I realised that you'd changed me. Before, I would've never considered settling down for anything, for anyone, but for you, I think I would have. That's all you actually wanted, wasn't it... to stay with me?

How could I possibly tell you how much I've missed you when I can't even admit it to myself most of the time? If only I could've given you children, and... maybe married you, perhaps I would never have had to let you go? Now you're married to whoever this Eamon guy is - you have a life with him in Enoch, and your daughter too. There's no way I could forgive myself if I interfered with your life any further and made you unhappy in any way. Hmm, I do wonder, though, if you are happily married and in love with him? Why have you found your way into bed with me, if you are? Ah, who am I kidding?! I insinuated you should come to my room! After that, wasn't everything we did just 'blood lust' and force of habit? Hasn't there always been sexual tension between us? Even after I sired you, it just got worse and worse until we both gave in! Regardless of how much we'd fight, and as much as I hate to admit it, I think sometimes I enjoyed making you cry because it made me feel Godly... and flattered my sick ego. But I still wanted to kiss you better afterwards and be the one you turned to. I still wanted to hold you, wanted you so close that you became part of me.

Despite how I feel, it's too late now. I can't have you back. In a few hours, we'll get up out of this bed, and I'll have to let you go all over again.

Karou hadn't heard any of Warren's private thinking, but she could sense that his mind was still busy, in overdrive even and that he certainly wasn't asleep or lost in a dream. At his side, she was comfortable but thought that perhaps he wasn't. Sleepily and unwilling to open her eyes, she nuzzled her nose into the underside of his chin. Are you not sleeping?

Oh, I just got lost in thought... You... didn't happen to hear any of it, did you?

I don't think so, but I could feel how restless your mind was. Why was it something you'd rather I not know? Karou thought back with her nose still nuzzling into his neck and jaw, over on the other side of his face, her fingers were stroking over the patterns his bite scars made.

Hmm, something like that. Warren thought as a throaty chuckle rolled behind his lips. What Karou was doing felt incredibly good, soothing but at the same time arousing.

Karou's eyes shot open when she heard him chuckle. She'd completely forgotten what it sounded like to hear him laugh. It wasn't something he often did, even back in their Compound days. Without thinking of the consequences, she pressed her fingers to his lips. You wouldn't dream of kissing me right now, would you?

Seeing as you know that I have and quite recently, at that, I don't know how you want me to answer. If you're asking if I will right now? Then the answer is no, of course not. Do I have to keep reminding you that you're married and you being here is scandalous enough as it is? Think of all the rumours that could be assumed and spread by anyone who knew that you'd spent the night in my hotel room, Karou?

I'm well aware of my marital status, Warren... Karou rolled her eyes and tucked her head back down against his chest; he'd defeated her with his statement. If that really is your stance on the situation we're in though... Looking up at him through her lashes, Karou continued her train of thought as her hand ventured down his chest to rest below his navel. Why aren't you making the most of it?

Her act of innocence was just a ploy, and Warren wasn't blind to how she was trying to seduce him. She was rather good at it historically, and truth be told, where she'd placed her hand had gotten him instantly riled up. Back up to your old tricks, I see. You're not having numerous extra-marital affairs, are you?

You should know better than to ask me that. Karou scowled; she wanted to tell him all about Eamon's transgressions but figured that that would just make her appear more desperate, petty and even manipulative perhaps. Deep down, she knew that using Eamon's infidelity as an excuse to stoop to his level wouldn't make her feel better. She had to be the better person for the sake of her own conscience as well as for Alice. At least that way, if it all went wrong with him, she could honestly say that she'd given their marriage her best shot, even if he'd barely tried to be a decent husband the moment he'd gotten the ring on her finger.

You're right. It was disrespectful of me to ask that, but I wasn't serious. You're not weak like me; I know that.

You're not weak, Warren. At least not for just thinking about it, and you haven't made a move on me yet. Karou rolled over onto her stomach; though she remained snuggled into his side, she could look at him directly. Reaching over, she swept his hair back from his forehead tenderly and smiled. After all this time, and after all the life I've lived in between now and then, I thought that being with you would feel different somehow, but it doesn't... I feel twenty again.

Hmm, it is rather a cruel trick of fate that it feels exactly the same, isn't it? Like no time has passed at all. It certainly makes not reminiscing and re-enacting everything more difficult. Warren's eyes widened as he put some emphasis on the word 'everything'.

I think so too... and that being the case, I know you're not weak because you didn't give in to me when I asked you not to stop after you'd bitten me. You haven't kissed me either.

It's not for lack of wanting, Karou, but I'd never want to put the status quo of your life in jeopardy by giving you a secret burden to carry.

Karou couldn't question Warren's resolve; she knew he was right. So she settled back down beside him, doing the only thing that he would allow; to sleep in his arms. A few restful hours passed, and before long, it was time for them to get up and go their separate ways.

Warren was first to wake up and found Karou still snuggled into him and fast asleep. Kissing her hair, he peeled himself away and retreated into the bathroom, where he showered and went about getting himself ready for the day.

While Karou was slowly coming around, he dressed in a navy blue, two-piece suit over a crisp white shirt. Today was the last day of the conference and vote day.

He'd finished fastening his shirt buttons when she rolled over in the sheets and performed an obnoxious yawn; she was still exhausted and lacked the motivation to get up. When her sleep-ridden eyes focused on Warren standing before the window, though he had kept the curtains drawn while she was still asleep, he was putting on the tie he'd chosen to go with his outfit.

"Mmm, good morning." Grabbing hold of one of the pillows he'd slept on the night before, she hugged it into her chest and shamelessly took a deep breath of his scent from it while she nuzzled her face into the satin fabric. She figured that she wouldn't have an opportunity to enjoy his smell after she left his hotel room with their night together being a one-off.

"Good morning," Warren said distractedly; he was focused on doing up his tie. Though he did them so frequently that he didn't have to concentrate too much, still, he turned to check out the quality of the knot and its position and appearance in the full-length mirror that hung behind him. He could see Karou in the reflection as she lay in bed, with his fingers still pinching the knot of his tie; he froze and watched what she did to his pillow. Memory, along with a pang of yearning, tied his stomach into a knot like his tie. It set his jaw stiff too. He wasn't angry. He just wished that he hadn't gotten dressed yet and had spent a little more time in bed with her, enjoying waking up next to her. Screw it. He thought and yanked his freshly knotted tie from his neck and began quickly unfastening the buttons of his shirt.

Karou hadn't noticed Warren frantically undressing at the foot of the bed yet. She was still dazed from sleep and just waking up.

"I think it's worth paying extra for a nice hotel because the price tag really correlates to mattress quality, don't you think?" She mused as she flopped back into the mound of pillows on her side of the bed. Upon reopening her eyes, she found her Sire crawling toward her in only his underwear. "Weren't you like, fully dressed a second ago?" She asked wide-eyed and surprised.

"That's far too deep a thought for so early in the morning..." Warren noted casually, even though impulse had taken over. He pushed his way between her thighs and coiled his arms beneath her shoulders to pull her into his chest. Though he kept the sheets between them, he nuzzled into her neck and took in deep breaths of her delicious scent. He allowed what being so close to her did to him to completely take over, unlike the night before. Warren moaned freely into Karou's skin and kissed her neck repeatedly.

Swept away by the sudden display of affection, Karou moaned too and wrapped her arms about him any way she could. Her fingers splayed into his hair, which messed with the style he had persuaded it into. I must still be asleep and dreaming.

Close your eyes. Dream a little longer. Warren replied, apparently that gave him an 'out' and was enough to change his mind on something he'd been so adamant about the evening previous. He kissed her everywhere.

Time disappeared with Warren close to her. Slowly she came around from the haze of a certain kind of ecstasy and curled up her naked body in the thin satin sheet to take rest in his arms.

"Hmm, I wish we could lie here all day. That would be so much better than having to sit through any more pointless discussions..." She muttered as she snuggled herself back against Warren's chest as she spoke.

Curling himself into Karou from behind as they calmed down was blissful, but when she wriggled back against him, her feathers tickled his ribs. He chuckled into the nape of her neck. That tickles... He thought in passing, openly and not knowing or minding if she heard or not.

"It certainly didn't need to take three days of your time, that's for sure. The outcome of the vote was always highly predictable. Anyone who is paying attention to world politics at the moment would've been able to guess that everyone would end up voting that the Elven Court in Isadora or their French Enclave, should be the ones to aid Alabaster. Mostly because they'll come up with a seemingly flawless 'not so violent' tactical plan. The drama will die down, and then out of nowhere, they'll be disquiet within their court, and they'll claim that settling their own unrest and protecting the safety of their own race outweighs the importance of the issues in Alabaster."

"You've either been eavesdropping on the discussions for the last two days, or you're a better politician than anyone in that room." Karou rolled her eyes. How had she not expected him to know 'everything'?...

"Maybe I'm just that smart, besides you know I read the newspaper every day. As I said, I know what's going off in the world right now. It isn't difficult to make an educated guess. Or... are you questioning my intelligence?"

Karou turned over to face Warren. He adjusted the position of his arms to hold her while putting enough distance between them so that he could look down at her face.

"I'm saying that we could do with someone with your deductive skills in Enoch... No one in Cam's court seems to ever have any idea what's going on outside of the palace, never mind the city. It's more than a little disconcerting actually..."

"Maybe Cambria likes it that way. She doesn't exactly enjoy people questioning her authority, now does she?" Warren raised his eyebrows in such a way that made Karou giggle. "Besides, it seems Cambria's court also doesn't like fanged creatures." Now his brows fell over his eyes in a way that told Karou he found that very disconcerting.

"It's true, the Enochian Court isn't multi-racial but then again, neither is the city they preside over. Only a quarter of the cities population is non-celestial, and only a tiny portion of that consists of vampires. Many old Enochian Noble families wouldn't like it if they found out that their Queen regent is half-vampire. Old pure-blood families of any race are apparently very racist."

"Yes, and that ever shall be. However, it doesn't mean I have to accept that way of thinking. You shouldn't either." Warren understood her point, but it still didn't sit with him when Karou was perfect the way she was, to his mind.

"Cambria makes them give me allowances, arguing that the Morningstar bloodline has always had a predilection towards vampires..."

"She has to say that because her daughter was involved with Lucian Black. It still doesn't excuse the fact that you're made to hide your bite scars, though, does it?"

"I just do it to appease them, for an easy life Warren. I'm personally not ashamed of them." Karou smiled up at him, hoping to lighten his mood.

"Just don't ever let them convince you that you should be anything other than what you are, Karou." Warren's hand cupped the side of her face as he looked down into her eyes in earnest. "And don't forget about me."

"Never," With her hand clasped over his, on her cheek, she pushed herself up the sheets a little with her lips and eyes looking such a way that Warren knew she meant to kiss him. "You're never far from my mind."

He pulled back so that she couldn't reach his lips. It hurt him to have to do it, but it was for the best, he told himself. "And neither are you ever far from mine."

"D- don't you love me anymore?" She asked, wounded by the fact he'd pulled away. He'd always kissed her instead of saying 'I love you' - it'd kinda become their 'thing'.

"Haven't I kissed you enough already?" Warren answered with another question. She hated that; it was a tactic he had always used to escape having to answer her. "We should get up; otherwise, you're going to be late."

Once she'd showered and dressed in what she'd been wearing the day before, Karou exited Warren's room first. She took the elevator ride down to the lobby alone, but just as she was about to step out of the Hotel Vida's doors, she turned to watch Warren exit the same elevator.

He had redressed and was buttoning his suit jacket distractedly while she took one last moment to stare at him. There was no goodbye, just a parting of ways, but it still felt very final. I hope I don't have to wait another thirty years to see you again. Karou thought to herself as she turned to exit the hotel, wiping away the few tears that had strayed from the confines of her eyes.