Rosalie wished that Leo would find her soon. She was alone and frightened, jumping every time an animal moved through the underbrush. After about ten minutes since she'd paused to rest, the sharp breaking of a branch was heard just behind her. She whirrled around quickly, frightened, thinking that the cure-seekers had caught up to her. "Leo!" she cried out happily, when she realized that it was her friend and mentor, "What took you so long, I was becoming worried! I'd feared the worst..."

Without realizing her actions, she flung her arms around him, laughing happily. After Rosalie noticed what she'd done, she backed away, blushing. "I'm sorry about that, I.. I don't know what came over me..." She looked away, taking another step back, trying to hide her reddening face.

Leo laughed.

It was the first time in over a hundred years. (let's see, he was 17... Yes, he was about 130 years old now, still young for a vampire.) A took a long stride back over to Rosalie and hugged her, as he hadn't really had enough time to precess the hug the first time they embraced. He squezed a little, still taken aback when his heart rattled in his chest, shaking his ribs.

As he pulled away, he shived the sleeve of his left hand up a little, revealing the the now sealed cut he had given himself, still pink with anger as opposed to his usually blue- white pigment. Still smiling he said, "Sorry, I came as quickly as I dared. I was leaving off a fake trail for them; I'm lucky they didn't catch me, actually."

He didn't wait for an answer as he reached for Rosalie's hand. Again his heart thumped, sending blood through his body again, which created a sort of uproar in his dead cells, which fidgeted and faught eachother as if moving further would bring them back to life. It made Leo's stomach churn a little, and Leo was glad for the sensation. Leo, unlike before, knew what he was doing. He had quickly decided that he didn't want to be separeated from her again.

That's not true, some thought stirred inside him. You don't want to be alone again.

Leo let the breeze lick his face. It was unfelt to his skin, but he breathed it slowly into his lungs, which almost burst from lack of use. This was one of the things Leo missed most about living. Breathing itself was so unappreciated in other races, but to vampires, forcing themselves to suck in air was rather pleasurable.

You're wrong, he told the demon in his head. I don't want to leave her ever again.

The other voice was quiet, quickly subsided and overcome by Leo's persasion. He was glad his demons were weak and unable to take him over. Most NightHunters, trained, skilled or practiced, lost control when they feed or murdered. That was one of the reasons Leo didn't feed in large quantities. When he was so hungry his demons could threatan to take over, he would find some gitt, killer, or just plain up jerk and give them a could scare, and maybe some internal damage they'ld take their whole life time to fix. He would drink enough to hold him over until he came to the next town or lush habitat, even if animal blood was not near as sweet as human. Never once in his vampiric years had Leo turned somebody. He was careful with that.

Leo continued to hold Rosalie's hand in his own, much larger one, his pale fingers wrapping deliacately around her own. He breifly remembered when he was in school, and decided that he'd never felt like this about any girl or any family member. No, not even his past clan could compare to the sensation Rosalie's meere presance gave his unbeatting heart.

Rosalie looked up when Leo laughed, a bright, clear sound. "Leo, what is so...-", she began to ask, but he cut her off with a hug, a tight embrace. She felt her face heat up, but wrapped her arms around him as well. Her heart stopped for a beat, as it always did when he touched her, although she unconsciously believed that it was skipping for more romantic reasons. 

"Don't leave me like that again", she said softly when he pulled away, looking sadly at the scratch on his arm, "After you didn't show up for so long, I began to fear the worst. I thought they'd caught you... I thought you were a goner..." She stopped when he took her hand, looking at their interlocked fingers. She felt the wind toss her hair, and watched Leo take a deep breath of the crisp breeze. 

"I though vampires didn't breathe?" Rosalie asked, her heart fluttering as she watched his hair be tousled by the breeze, lining his soft, pale face.

"We don't have to." Leo said calmly, taking a couple steps northwest, slowly changing their course. "Since our bodies are dead, so are our blood and organs. Therefore, we've no need to resparate." He chuckled and said, "If he did, I would be incredable winded from my run back here.

"Breathing," he continued, "Is a sort of... luxury." Leo inhaled again, this time not near as deeply. In a much lower, sader tone, he added, "It's probably one of the things I miss most about living."

Unconsiously, his grip slackened from Rosalie's hand a little, but he quickly reenforced the touch as if nothing had happened. He forced upon himself a little smile, continuing to breathe. He pricked his ears. There was still no sign of the CureSeeker band, but then again, his sences weren't as keen as he'd like them to be, but it'd likely take the band a while to catch up to them. If they didn't stop tonight, they could make a small camp and prepare for Rosalie's change the next night. They would be able to rest a while, as there course would be changed from heading slightly west, while the band continued north.... Hopefully, most likely.

Leo smiled at the prospect. A sit- down would be nice, not to mention Rosalie's wonderous company. Maybe he would be able to find out more about her, what she did in the city, where her parents where... Her company would be nice. Rosalie's company. He unconsiously looked over at her, almost beaming.

"I sometimes forget that vampires are not living like werewolves are", Rosalie said softly, "It must have been weird for you to adjust at first from the transition from living to dead. I was born like this, and I still have a beating heart and have to use my lungs. I cannot imagine what it must be like to not live as all other species do."

She looked behind her self-consciously,  making sure that the cure-seekers hadn't caught up. When she turned back, she found Leo looking at her. She blushed, looking into his eyes as well. 

"Leo, tomorrow night, when I turn, if I attack you do not hesitate to fight back. I have yet to be gravely injured in my werewolf forme and I heal quickly. I'm worried about hurting you, not the other way around. I can hold my demon in most times other than the full moon, but I can never control it.", She said after a few minutes of merely staring at her friend.

Leo felt his face get warm under his eyes again before quickly turning away, looking forward and breaking a branch so it wouldn't wack his face. "On the contrary, Rosalie. I've a plan for you." He looked up to the east sky, more behind them now. He gestured twars it. "Before dawn breaks, we'll make a little camp. I don't think we'll have to worry about that particular band of cure- seekers now; they're far behind us."

Leo smiled, thinking about an ideal camp spot and comparing it to what they might find. They had already traveled five or six miles from the city's edge, and would probably come across a smaller one soon. He would jack some bottled water from a store, maybe, and they would continue on. Going at this pace they would make another three or four miles easy.

The vampire, being what he was, didn't like the day at all. No, it wasn't true that vampires exploded in sunlight, or broke out in boils and burns. No, it was slightly different for each vampire, but none as savere as the rumors had made them out to be. Leo himself was actually one of the more fleshy- vampires. Being younger, he was more spry and tollerent. The sun itself didn't bother him, but if he looked at it for too long, his eyes would itch. After about forty minutes of being under the light, Leo would slowly go crazy and itch like a fire blazes in hell. His skin would be red for a few hours at most, then slowly go back to being a pale vampire color.

Truely why the race hated the sun was because it made them exousted. Their blood cells would begin to rise and eventually boil, making the creatures mad and sometimes even ill, as in Leo's case. They would begin loosing blood to it, upseting their usually still veins even more. It was madening, though nothing else really happened. Leo knew, though, if he practiced a little everyday, he would be able to stand longer periods of time in the sun. It was a long, painful process, but well worth it in the end. Of course, being a rather insomniatic race didn't help, either.

"I'm... sorry if I wasn't clear before." Leo said after a few secconds. "About letting your demon out without achknowladging it. It's a more adavanced techneque; I wasn't thinking clearly." Leo's rushed tone betrayed the embarasment that lingered in it. If his body was more willing to comply with his head, he would have blushed a little.

"A plan?" Rosalie asked after a few minutes, looking away from Leo, "And what might that be...? " She thought about what he might've meant, his plan could be many things. "And what will we do once we make camp? How will you cope with my demon tomorrow night?"

She paused, looking back at him. If Leo had been human, she swore he would have been blushing. "Don't worry, we're safe now, right...? Your quick thinking saved us both." 

((Sorry for post fail, I'm tierd. x.x; )) 

Leo let out a warm, but wan chuckle. "After we make camp and rest abit, I'll teach you an exersice that you should preform regularly. You can do it anywhere, by yourself, with others, in a city street, in a lush swamp. So long as you can consentrate for a few minutes, it will help keep you demons at bay."

He dropped down considerably, his height quickly folding, then straitening agian as he avoided a branch. He continued on in a soft tone. "It's all about breathing," he said calmly, noting that that wasn't all true as he didn't need to breathe. "You have to relax, say 'hello' to your demons, tell them you're tired of them taking over. I warn you: The first few times will be hard, but it'll get eisier." He beamed again, gracfully avoiding a neck- high branch with a quick little duck. His tone became a similar soft sound in the forest air again, two words calling out in the still night air: "I promise."

~~

((Sorry, I'm brain dead. Time skip?))

Leo nodded, recalling his past clan breifly again. "Yes. I once knew several werewolves that could control their demons and transformations nearly entirely at will."

~~

Things were just as Leo had suspected. The pair had p*censored*ed a small town, where he took a couple bottles of cleen water, saying simply that he refused to take anything else for the time. They were about two miles from that city, finding no traces of other NightHunters. When the sky first began to show signs of dawn, Leo quickened the pace until they found a large clearing once inhabited by a family of large birds that had gone for the cold seasons. The male had thought about starting a fire, but decided that the sun would be warm enough once it rose abouve the tree line. He took a swig from one of the water bottles and sat at the base of a tree on one side of the clearing, staying and enjoying the night as long as he could. He swished the water between his fangs before swallowing, not needing much at all to keep himself hydrated. Usually live, water- filled blood would do this for him, but he hadn't gotten as much as he had hoped out of the murderer before.

By the time the sun was completly visible above the tree line, Leo was already feeling tired. He leaned on trees' westward sides, moving as little as possible while getting as much shade a he could. After a while of shifting and changing trees, he finnaly gave a rib-cage rattling sigh. He was satisfied with his place that would last him a few hours, the only sunlight comming through was what filtered through te branched, touching the top of his eyes, parts of his hair, and other random freckles. So, he tried to keep his eyes closed. The only down side was that when he opened them, the sun shone on in him. It was annoying, but otherwise it was about as good as it was going to get. He looked over at Rosalie, hoping that she was relaxing more successfully then he was.

The sun shone of his eyes, making them glint in several shades of green and blue until he looked away or shut them tight again. They were luminecent, like a cat's eyes under a full moon, his pupilt thin as they could possibly be, giving him a very other- worldly, almost celestial look.

Rosalie had followed Leo as they traveled through a small town, picking up a few drinks and leaving. She now sat on a tree root, leaning up against the rough bark of a pine, looking at Leo pityingly as he repeatedly changed position, trying his best to stay out of the sun. When he opened his eyes, they sparkled with an array of beautiful colors. He clsed them again and she sighed slightly, taking another sip of the refreshing beverage. 

She had no problems with the sunlight, and, unlike her companion, rather enjoyed the illumination. The way it filtered through the leaves, casting a green hue on everything it touched, painting the forest with a mystic glow. The way it brightened the pathway, made it look magical and exiting. The way it made Leo's eyes twinkle... "Enough, it's not like me to think such things... I've never quite felt this way about anyone before. It's a good feeling, no doubt, but a strange and foriegn one", she thought, looking away from Leo, as if to deny the feelings she was suddenly expieriancing.

"Leo", she said softly, hearing a branch crack suddenly, "What was that? It must've been a pretty large animal to make a noise that loud..."

Leo's body had just relaxed when his ear pricked and he shot upright. HE wasn't sure what his ears had detected, since no sound made it through into his head. Was he just being paranoid? But Leo didn't have time to think about it, as Rosalie had asked him about it just after. He felt his eyes get warm again, and this time he almost did blush, beside from the fact that he'd nearly smacked his head into a branch in his quickness. He said nothing, closing his eyes tight as he tried to focus on what wasa round him. He slowed his own breathing, hearing Rosalie's in turn.

Nearly a minute p*censored*ed, and the vampire didn't hear anything more. Of course his ears slightly rotated and pricked to every small sound he detected, but none of them seemed conserning. Was he really not hearing it?

Leo's stomach turned, a disturbing thought stirring him. Where his senses really not as keene as he'd like, worse than he thought, or was there nothing? It was possible that Rosalie had only been paranoid, but Leo had too much faith in her to beleive that just yet. That left one option his head could muster: Leo's blood was getting hotter, and his sences were begining to over heat. He could deal with fires and lava, but there was something about the ultra violet rays that vampires found very sickening.

After what seemed like along time he leaned back against the tree, his mucsles refusing to relax, but at least the sun would touch less of his body. He shivered, a tingling twitch going down his back and through his ribs. To say he hated the sun would be false, but it was nearly impossible to even enjoy it. All the same, Leo pulled his legs closer to him and shifted his position so he wouldn't hit his head again. Any feelings that were possible romantic about Rosalie had p*censored*ed, overcome by his instincts. These told his body to run, climb a tree or both; to mask his vampire scent in pine and fern and mud until he was untrackable, but a trace of fear held him back. He did, after all, have a pack to protect now, a young female that had warned him to begin with.

Leo relaxed a little more, rolling his shoulders back a couple times. A loose fighter was a quick one, he knew. He took slow blinks, putting him in the mindset of staying calm and colective. He knew from experiance that if his instincts controlled him, he would never do what he had set out to acomplish. No, wisdom was probably his greatest strength, and he would use it.

"Rosalie?" He slowly swept the surrounding trees with his eyes, begining to breathe a little to scent the air. "Rule number one: Never fight fair, not even with me. Rule number two," His tone remained calm, but hushed and low. "Never be the hero, over- acheive; This isn't a movie."

Leo was quiet then. He would wait forever if he had to. He was a vampire, he would out last any other race or hybrid fate through at him. If it was an animal, well Leo might just have a seccond diner. A CureSeeker group, well, he'd have a good, old- fasioned fight in his hands. He grinned at the prospect. A little bloodshed might be fun with all this avoidance he'd been doing lately.

Don't be stupid. Some familiar voice echoed in his skull. Rule number two! Don't start a stupid fight just because you're bored or to show off to your lady- friend. Leo almost chuckled. The voice was right, what could he say? The rules, simple as they were, had never failed him before.

"Rule number three," Leo said in a slightly harsher tone. "Know when you have to run."

Rosalie listened to Leo's rules, nodding at each one. They all made perfect sense, especially if they were up against Cure-Seekers. "And I seriously hope we're not."

"Leo", Rosalie said in a whisper, "What is it that's aproachign us, do you know? That branch that broke sounded pretty large. It was no animal that snapped it, Leo, unless it was a bear. We must be careful." She slowly stood up, looking around into the woods surrounding them. She saw nothing, but that did not mean that there wasn't something there.

Her breathing became slow and shaky, betraying the fact that she was frightened. She ignored her werewolf instinct to run into the woods and attack whatever was there, it could just be an innocent, but lost, human. The odds were against that, however. It was more likely another Vampire or Werewolf. Or even another group of Cure Seekers the first gang had sent on their trail after they'd escaped the first time.

Leo was still a moment before letting out a quiet, rattling sight. "N-no... I didn't even hear it." He finally admitted. He wasn't affraid of nay bear or cougar, but another Cureseeker band? He wouldn't last about ten minutes if they were practiced, five if they had hybrids. They had been lucky the first time, but hey, better to be lucky than good. Leo shifted again.

Figures... He thought bitterly. If it is a band they'd like to stay quiet, attack about midday when I'll be the most rash.

The blonde stood slowly now, careful to try ans stay out of the sun. He could hear Rosalie breathe, hear her heart course blood faster through her veins. He could tell she was frightened, but there was nothing he could do for her. He felt awful, like he just wanted to curl up and die again. A little part of his thought it was from too much sun exposure, but it was unlikely that would happen so quickly. The sun had almost never bothered him this much. No, he was sick because he knew he couldn't do anything. They could run, but in this heat they would catch him, and Rosalie would either be caught too or have to change alone. They could fight, but against a stong band, Leo could do nothing.

The male wished they were further north. A wolf pack resided up near the montians, the only family Leo had known after his change. Nearly every NightHunter he knew, including every Cureseeker he'd ever meet, had this sort of fear aginst native animals. Maybe Leo was almost raised by them, but he didn't understand this at all. It was like a wild seal mother and orca using totaly different tactics to stay alive, and each hated the other. As stupid as Leo thought this natural fear was, it just was.

Leo swore under his breath, his stomach clenching. He wasn't quite helpless. If it was just him, he would have climbed the tree and hels him own just strong enough to not be caputed until he found an opening for an escape. But there was Rosalie, who was so much more impostant. He breifly tried to convince himself that he felt the way he did about Rosalie because she was a young, uninfluenced female NightHunter, but somewhre in the pit of his stomach he knew that he cared about her for a differant reason, one he couldn't quite fathom nor place.

He who fights then runs away will fight again another day.

((Sorry, I'm still really tired.))

((It's okay, your posts are still FAR longer than mine. XD; ))

Rosalie remained silent for several minutes, contemplating what Leo hat told her. He hadn't heard it? That was bad, very bad. The sunlight must have been getting to him, messing with his senses. "That's not good, Leo", she said softly, "It must be the sunlight messing with you... We have to get out of here, Leo."

She shakily stood up as well, her muscles tense, her hands trembling. Rosalie looked around again, this time spotting at least two pairs of yellow eyes atattched to furry heads. Werewolves? No, it was daytime, that was impossible. "Leo", she whispered, her voice shaky, "Either there's two bears out there that can stand, or two werewolves."

((Just because my posts are long doesn't make them good, lol.))

Leo turned a little too quickly, and he couldn't help but to stager for a fourth of a seccond. He looked the same direction Rosalie was, his eyes taking a minute ti adjust. He rushed over when he saw the two pairs of eyes. He stood before Molly and bent over, his whole body tensing. He took a step tward the creatures and hissed like a giant, feirce cat. He opened his mouth wide as he could, which was similar to a snake detatching its jaw to fit its prey in its mouth. His canine teeth were glinting in the sun, seeming to enlongate in an offencive pose. When the sort of hiss faded into the air, Leo's fangs shrank again just enough so he could close his mouth comfortable, a crack being audiable as his jaw snapped unconsiously into place again.

The young vampire took in a sharp breath, forcing the exhale against his throat so it produced a low, stern growl that was too low for human ears to detect. Leo himself could barely detect it.

If these were bears, they would have either already attacked or fleed from this strange and unusual animal, but these where werewolves, probably on some form or another of the cure to act as steroids to what skills had already given them. To call them "hybrids" would be generous.

Leo felt his blood begin to boil, as he had totally forgot to stay hidden in the shade. His vision blurred out for a second, and he balled his hands into firsts before releasing them again, getting tenser. To say edreniline was running through him would both be false and an understatement. He spoke in a low tone, his breif sentance directed at Rosalie. "Rule number four: Never cross paths with a vampire in the morning sun."

The wind stopped, as if it didn't dare move against Leo's words. The trees' branches feel still, the birds stopped chirping. All was quiet, too still for a human to fathom. This was going to be an all out brawl between Leo and a pair of werewolves. The stakes were high, the blood shed would be great and the penalty for loosing was death. Leo didn't move, didn't breath. When at last the wind dared p*censored* him again, not even his hair moved with it. Leo was as hard and cold as a statue, inviting the werewolves to make the first move.

((I found this test to see if your character's a Mary-Sue. The lower your score, the better, 70+ is conserdered a "perfect character." Leo scored a 68, I tihnk it's silly. =3 ))

Rosalie laid her hand on Leo's shoulder as he came and stood before her. She felt her heart pause for a beat than continue on. She was shaking like a leaf, knowing that in her human forme she was strong and fast, but not nearly enough to where she could take on a pair of werewolf hybrids. Even with Leo, if she chose to fight with him, her death would be imminent. Leo obviously didn't want her in a brawl anyway. She heard him speak the fourth rule while closing and opening his fists. The sun was beating down upon him from a gap in the trees, a bad thing for any vampire. It would not kill him, but the sun could drive him mad.

"Leo, be careful.", she whispered, feeling him tense up. She stepped away from him, her hand sliding from his shoulder. She scrambled up the tree she'd been leaning on and perched on a low branch where she could remain unharmed.

---

The werewolves snarled at Leo, accepting his challenge, as if they wouldn't have attacked anyway. They let loose several feral growls, taking several steps forward. The hybrid on the right seemed to stay slightly behind the one on the left, who was slightly larger and had darker fur, although they both had bulging sinewy muscles and rough, bristly fur like every specimen of their species. "Prepare to loose, vampire traitor", the larger werewolf roared, lunging at Leo, slashing ad he fell towards the vampire.

Leo's thoughts hadn't quite processed the werewolf's movement, as he was still processing the threat. As the darker wolf slashed through the air, Leo kicked off the ground with his demon speed to that he flung himself backwards. His move was a little too late, however, as he felt fun and claws of stone rake his belly. He took a few more leaps backward, tring to be cautious of their movements. He looked down, pressing a hand to where the claws and his skin had touched. He could feel the blood trickling down four narrow, but long scratches. Leo pulled his hand away, a few drops of blood on it. He stared at it, as if shooked.

The vampire began to laugh. He felt the sun boil down on him, the ulra violet rays seemed to get hotter with every seccond that went by. Tick, tick, tick.... Leo shrugged his shoulders back, slipping off the long, black leather jacket and tossing it onto a low tree branch. This revealed a battered dress shirt, torn and frayed at all the edges, its color no longer the brilliant white it was in its prime. A few drops of blood from his stomach wound had begun to seep through to make blurry red circles over them.

Again Leo snarled, this time ducking up into the tree breifly before leaping to the next tree, then the next. He stedilly gained height, hissing like a panther might every now and again. He paused, about half way up a tree close to the large, dark werewolf. Leo stood on the branch, his balance carefull and practiced. He spat on the ground before the hybrid, insulting hi without words.

He paused a seccond before he said, "I'm sorry, your highness." Leo hissed with odvious sarcasim. "But you'll have to emplain the word 'traitor' for me."