Hillary's tags jangled from the lower bunk. It caught their attention immediately and she knew in an instant they were thinking the same thing -- that someone may be coming. AngelFyre then heard her gentle giant yawn and stretch out on the bunk below and she relaxed. Hillary had only been repositioning herself. No one was coming, but sadly, she knew it had to be close to their 1 a.m. deadline.

As Simon put the vial back in his bag, he attempted to reassure her while never directly addressing those concerns regarding his appetite. He was not rude or dismissive of her concerns in any way, but there was a definite granite edge in his tone and a matter-of-factness to his whole demeanor that screamed his mind was set on that topic and he would not be swayed. Fair enough. He at least knew it was a concern of hers for him, but she vowed to herself not to bring it up to him again. No point in distressing him unnecessarily.

She watched him as he busied himself and a small, sad smile crossed her face. She could see he was deep in thought and the subject brought him no joy. She wanted so badly to be able to push past his stubborness and help in some way...in any way she could... but she recognized this was something he had to work through on his own. At least for now. All she could do at this point was love him through it.

Still, it brought up for her again the thought of future children. AngelFyre was so clear that she loved this boy more than her life itself, so it was distressing to know that there was so much of himself which he did not like, let alone love. How would those feelings manifest or change when he had the family he so longed to have? Would they change? Surely he knew he would be passing on his dhampir traits to his own children? Would he see them as monsters? Yes, the traits would be diluted, but they would be there. AngelFyre simply could not imagine Simon seeing his own children as he saw himself, or denying them anything they may need, so it truly did break something in her to know he would do it to himself.

She watched him read the quote, and her heart just overflowed with everything she felt for him in those moments. How he managed to put up with her she really did not know, but she thanked God every day that he did. She smiled at him when he placed his hand on the side of her face, and she reached up to briefly cover his hand with her own. In a low whisper she told him, "I am really glad you are here, Simon," and she then brought his hand to her lips and kissed his palm.

Laughing softly as he stated he did not want her parents upset with him, she happily found herself still thrilling to his every touch as he so easily pulled her into his arms from the upper bunk. One of the very best things about her debonair dhampir was his dhampir strength. There was just something so primally attractive about it.

"Fair enough. Neither do I," she sighed. Then wrapping her arms around him tightly, she snuggled into his neck for the last time that evening, wishing for the millionth time not to have to part from him. Love could feel so wonderful and hurt so badly at the same time.

Peeling herself away but reaching for his hand, she looked over her shoulder and called to Hillary, "Come on, girl. Home!" Hillary barked loudly once, tail happily wagging as she jumped off the bunk. She hurried to the door, looking back at the both of them curiously, making certain they were following. AngelFyre had to laugh. "We are coming. We are coming. Go!"

**************
They entered the house through Simon's veranda doors. AngelFyre half expected her father to be waiting for them, but was relieved to find he was not there. Lifting Simon's hand so she could look at his watch, she smiled in a most satisfied manner as she declared, "Good on us. A whole minute to spare." Looking around the room, desperately trying to think of anything that would prolong the inevitable, she shrugged her shoulders and looked up at him.

"I guess this is good night, then. You would think as often as we have to say good night it would get easier, but it just does not. I hate it every time." She placed one hand on his shoulder and the other just behind his ear, in his luxuriously soft hair, pulling his head down to meet hers while she lifted up to press her lips to his, first in a short, soft kiss and then in a much longer, sweeter one. When they pulled away from each other, their eyes locked to the other's and their fixed gaze remained unbroken as AngelFyre slowly backed herself to the door.

"Good night, my love. See you in a few hours. And if you did bring your guitar, feel free to play it. It will disturb no one."

Sitting in the middle of her bed, in the dark, with just the hint of slender moonbeams spotlighting the area just inside her windows, AngelFyre looked out at her treehouse. She had done this more times than she could count, but on this early, early morning, the affection for one of her favorite places grew tenfold because it had now been shared with her very favorite person. Sitting cross-legged, holding a pillow to her chest, and petting the giant lying next to her, she still could not believe that Simon was really in the guest suite and that she would get to see him again in just a few hours.

She was just about to stretch out when a flash of movement caught her eye. Leaping up and moving to the window, she looked out to see Simon making his way back to the treehouse, and it looked as if he was carrying his guitar. Her immediate thought was that he really had been serious about going out there so that they could talk all night long, and as usually happened because of him, she could feel her smile was going to be the kind of smile that would ultimately make her cheeks hurt. Worth it every day of the week and twice on Sundays!

He did not turn on the lights and she knew he did not need them anyway. She watched carefully for any sign of him or movement within, but she did not have his Dhampir eyes. Sadly, she saw nothing but she could hear him. She grabbed the can off the ledge and turned her back to the window and sank down to the floor. "Hello? Hello? I'm attempting to reach a Miss AngelFyre McCubbin. Wishing you the best of goodnights," he said, and then he started playing a beautifully soothing piece for her on his guitar. She sat there with the can to her ear, silently smile-crying through the whole thing. Then he ended with a Romeo and Juliet balcony scene quote, and she was honestly dealing once again with a lump in her throat. He knew her well enough by now that she suspected... hoped... he knew this would be exactly the kind of thing that would make her happy cry, so all she could think to do was to tap out in Morse code on the top of the can...'Beautiful. Thank you. I love you.''.

-... . .- ..- - .. ..-. ..- .-.. .-.-.- / - .... .- -. -.- / -.-- --- ..- .-.-.- / .. / .-.. --- ...- . / -.-- --- ..- .-.-.-

Morse code was no longer in fashion, she knew, but she hoped that her inquisitive, oft wide-awake dhampir boyfriend might have either studied it on his own or maybe even learned it in Boy Scouts. Either way, it was all she could manage without sobbing in the poor boy's ears.

As she watched him make his way back to his guest suite, she prayed her heartfelt thanks for the miraculous gift of Simon Kincaid.

************

Hillary raced downstairs and straight into the kitchen where she would do two laps around the kitchen island before running to the French doors that opened out to the patio off of the large family room. Her nails were always kept trimmed, but they nonetheless clicked and clacked loudly on the tile floor. She was a big beast. Nothing she did was ever really quiet, but she had a surprising self-awareness of the space she took up. Mornings were a happy time for her because she knew Grandma Ruth would be out on the patio and would bestow upon her a ton of affection.... and treats of bacon. Then she would wander the property until AngelFyre called her back in for her breakfast. This morning was a bit of an exception, however.

Hillary beat AngelFyre down the stairs as she always did, and AngelFyre could hear the clicking and the clacking of her nails, but instead of lapping the island, she headed straight down the hallway to Simon's guest suite. AngelFyre was shocked, but happily so. She knew Simon would likely be awake, but she did not expect that he would have left his door open because she saw Hillary nose it open unceremoniously and invite herself in at great speed. She was just about at his double doors when she heard a few excitable "Whoa, girl! Whoa! Wh-" and then the unmistakable sound of the gentle giant jumping up in bed with him. Ugggggh. AngelFyre arrived just in time to see Hillary in the middle of his bed, butt up in the air, tail wagging like crazy while her head and torso were bowing low. She was inviting him to play. AngelFyre knew this was very bad canine manners, but she did have to purse her lips together hard to suppress a smile.

"Hillary! Down!" Casting an embarrassed and an apologetic look to Simon, she pointed her index finger to the floor, and Hillary complied by leaping effortlessly over Simon and off of the bed. She did get the last word, however, by turning back around to him and barking once, loudly but playfully. "I am so sorry. She has never acted like this with a guest before. She really likes you," and AngelFyre could not help but smile now. Still, she knew while Simon did not necessarily dislike animals, he probably did not appreciate having them just leap onto his bed space either. "You rate pretty high in her estimation, let me tell you. Her routine is to go out to the patio to get bacon treats from Grandma Ruth, so point to Simon Ezra Kincaid for winning over my soul twin." Walking over and commanding Hillary to sit, she leaned down and kissed his lips while looking playfully into his eyes. "Come on. Now we get to see if you can so easily win over my Grandma Ruth. I believe the odds are quite heavily in your favor."

******
Passing through the kitchen, AngelFyre grabbed some orange juice and a glass of water for Simon. She knew there were be foodstuffs outside, so she did not offer him anything at that point. Opening the French doors, Hillary calmly made her way out and directly over to Grandma Ruth, who was sitting and reading her paper. AngelFyre took Simon's hand and stepped out with him onto the patio, her heart racing in gleeful anticipation. Grandma Ruth took a couple of bacon strips and gave them to a well mannered Hillary. With her morning business transaction with Hillary now completed, she turned her gaze to AngelFyre and the boy she had heard so much about. "Well, you told me he was a handsome fellow, but this handsome I could never have imagined, my sweet girl," and she kind of cackled a bit as her head and her hands shook with tiny little tremors as she set her paper down.

Looking to him immediately and smiling proudly while probably fixing her doe-eyed gaze upon him, AngelFyre replied, "Well, honestly Grandma Ruth, who could do justice to this," and AngelFyre motioned with her free hand, moving it up and down in front of Simon, "with mere words?" and then she laughed happily because she knew if their exchange embarrassed Simon, it would be very minor. He was not vain, but he knew he was an Adonis and did not shy away from that fact.

Then squeezing his hand, she made the introductions. "Grandma Ruth, this is Simon Ezra Kincaid. He may not know know this about himself, but he is even prettier on the inside than he is on the outside, and as you have already noted, that is really saying something." Now that she expected might embarrass him a little, but she could not help bragging on him. He really was wonderful and she wanted everyone to know it. AngelFyre laughed when she saw Grandma Ruth's merry blue eyes sparkle and she mouthed a silent 'Oh, indeed!' Then she turned to Simon and said, "Simon, love, this is Ruth Mae Godshall, properly known as my most beloved Grandma Ruth. She is a force of nature, but you will soon learn that about her for yourself, I am sure."

"Oh Heavens to Murgatroyd! We shall have none of that Mrs. Godshall business,” she said most dramatically, raising her right arm to the heavens with a fist while shaking her head rapidly. Then, sitting back in her comfortably cushioned chair, she smiled most delightedly at Simon and informed him that, “Mrs. Godshall was my Ezra’s mother and my mother-in-law from Hel,” and almost instantaneously AngelFyre quickly and loudly interjected “Grandma Ruth!", semi-glaring at her elder with a big smile breaking out across her face.

“Oh poop! The boy is 13 years," and then she cocked her head and leaned closer to the edge of the table where Simon was standing and confirmed, “You are 13, correct?” Simon nodded, and was grinning, and looked as if he was about to say something but he would learn that you had to be quick around AngelFyre’s spitfire of a grandmother. AngelFyre just stood by, smiling deeply at the whole exchange.

Grandma Ruth leaned back in her chair again and went on, “As I was saying, the boy is 13 years old and was, by all accounts, not raised in a monastery, so it’s a fair bet that he has heard the word H-E-L-L before, my darling girl, or does he have virgin ears? And just so we are clear, even if he had been raised in a monastery, he most assuredly would have heard the word H-E-L-L there as those fellows are consumed with the idea of spending their lives trying to avoid the place.”

Pausing just long enough to let a little smile curl her lips, she winked at AngelFyre and continued, directing her attention to Simon. “So, back to my Ezra’s mother. Not a nice woman as I’m sure you’ve gathered by now, so please, I would like it if you would also call me Grandma Ruth. If that is too friendly for you as we just met, I will settle for Ruth, but if it makes any kind of difference to you, our darling girl’s friends, Ainsley and Kendric, both call me Grandma Ruth, but I leave the choice to you.” Then she motioned for them both to sit down.

As Simon pulled her chair out for her, AngelFyre looked up and beamed at him and he winked at her as he ran one hand quickly down the length of her hair. She knew right then he liked Grandma Ruth.

As he was taking his place between them at the table, AngelFyre looked to her Grandma Ruth and stated, “Well, someone is full of P&V this morning, I see,” and she laughed as she reached for a plate and a couple of bacon strips as well as a buttery croissant. She turned to ask Simon if he wanted anything, and she did not want to pressure him in any way whatsoever about food, but had she not asked him, that would have drawn even more attention to his eating habits. He had a slightly confused look on his face and at first AngelFyre thought it was due to her offer of food, and then it hit her.

“Ahhh. Yes. Sorry. You will catch on to the lingo around here soon enough, but for now, what you need to know is that my beloved Grandma Ruth is full of salty language so P&V is the sanitized version I am allowed to say for,” and she made a small flourish of her hand towards her Grandma Ruth who finished the sentence with a very self-satisfied, “Piss and vinegar, my dear Simon. Piss and vinegar! Elixir of the Gods!” And then Grandma Ruth winked at Simon and slammed down her pineapple juice.

"So, dear boy, our darling girl there has talked of nothing but you for days and days, and every letter we receive from her is Simon this and Simon that. So what I want to hear from you is something completely brand new; something that even our girl here doesn’t know. Anything at all, big or small.”

AngelFyre gave a very hungry Hillary another strip of bacon and quietly told her, "Soon, girl.” Ohhhhh, good question, Grandma Ruth. AngelFyre knew she needed to feed her gentle giant, but nothing was going to drag her away until Simon answered, even if it meant the dog got every strip of bacon on that table.

Wow. Her fellow never ceased to amaze her, and AngelFyre loved that. Learning new things about him was really one of her favorite things to do. He had told her quite often that he was pretty much an open book to her already; that the pages had been well read and covered. Almost, but not quite apparently. She was simply delighted. She thought they might get a single offering, and it would be something like what side he sleeps on...when he does sleep...but he had given three pretty fantastic, mind-blowing answers.

Smiling from ear to ear, AngelFyre got up and moved behind his chair and locked her hands together on his chest while resting her chin on his head after planting a kiss on the top of his head. "Like you, I sure would have hated for this luscious head of hair to have been sacrificed for a sport, but boy oh boy would I have loved to see you compete." And then moving to the space between Simon and her Grandma Ruth, she knelt down and took Grandma Ruth's hand in her own. "That was a great question! Now, let us keep it to ourselves that I am head over heels for a "bad boy" dressed in choir robes. Mom and Dad may feel compelled to turn him over to the authorities, and then I should be forced to bake him a cake with a file in it, and well, I think we can all agree that there is just no good ending for anyone once we start down that path," and she laughed while turning her gaze back to Simon. "I am surprised, but I actually love, that there is a rebel spirit in you, Mr. Kincaid. We are well matched, Sir." And teasing him though she was, they both knew the truth of that statement already.

"So, I need to go feed Hillary, which will take me just about 5 minutes or so." AngelFyre looked up at the sky. It was a nice day, but a slightly overcast one, which was great. Their little party was still comfortably seated in the shade at this point, so she knew Simon would be fine. "How about you stay here with Grandma Ruth and get to know one another for a few more minutes and then when I am done, I can give you the house tour and the grounds tour. Who knows? There might be something you will see that will appeal to your architect spirit." and she smiled while shaking her head. "An architect. Wow."

Turning back to Grandma Ruth she finished with, "Okay. I leave him in your capable care. Regale him with stories of how you got your private pilot's license and used to terrorize your neighbor's cattle. Ha! Then you can ask him about how he currently thinks he may want to be a DRAGON tamer." Grandma Ruth's eyes flashed a shadow of momentary concern upon hearing that news, but then it became obvious that the prospect was quite interesting to her. " A dragon tamer, eh? Tell me, Simon, why would one even want to tame a dragon?"

*****
As AngelFyre went back into the kitchen to feed Hillary, she greeted her parents who were deep in conversation. It was the kind of conversation that came to an abrupt halt when she entered. She normally would have chewed on why they had stopped so abruptly, but she was too happy at that moment. Her Fab Four were all with her and life could not be more perfect. Until.

Gathering everything together to feed Hillary, her mother and father stood at the opposite side of the island, looking at her quite soberly. Her father was about to speak, but her mother rushed to speak first and asked if she and Simon had had their breakfasts yet? "I will be happy to fix you both anything you like, sweetheart," and while she smiled at AngelFyre, she kept shooting furtive glances at her father. AngelFyre thanked her mother and answered that they had eaten out on the patio with Grandma Ruth, when she also happened to notice that her father was twiddling his thumbs. Sigh. That always meant there was something he felt he had to say but did not want to say. AngelFyre grabbed Hillary's bowl and walked it over to the French doors and called to Hillary, who wasted no time in running over to get her late breakfast. As she was getting Hillary settled, she smiled as she heard a snippet of Simon talking with Grandma Ruth about dragons. The boy was simply crazy about dragons.

Closing the door and leaving the two to continue talking and Hillary to eat, she turned around and walked back towards her parents. "Okay. You two are acting very strangely. Did something happen? Are the horses okay? Did I forget one of my chores? No, I know that is not it." And she silenced herself as she walked over to one of the kitchen chairs and sat down, waiting to hear what her father needed to say. The thought just never occurred to her that the subject he would want to address would be the nature of her relationship with Simon, but she was about to find out. They both were.

Her father took a deep breath and let it out slowly before walking over to the table and seating himself across from her. Her mother followed him, but AngelFyre could plainly see this was one of the rare times when the two were not in 100% agreement with whatever it was that was about to take place. It was then that AngelFyre started to feel her heart migrating towards her stomach, and she just knew her happiness balloon was about to be popped. "Sweetheart, if Simon is finished with his breakfast, we," and he looked over to his wife and then corrected himself, "I would like to speak to the both of you before we lose track of the morning. Would you like to go get him, please?"

"I will get him, Daddy, but did I... did we... do something wrong? We got back into the house at 12:59 this morning, as I promised we would. I know you were not there to see us come - " but her father interjected before she could finish, "No. No, AngelFyre. I am aware that you both lived up to your bargain. I have no complaints there. Please, sweetheart, just get Simon and then everyone will know what is happening here. If he is still eating, that is fine. Do not rush him. Just bring him in when he is done."

*****
When AngelFyre approached Simon, his back was to her, but Grandma Ruth could see her confusion and worry written all over her face. She and Simon had been laughing and having quite a good time it would seem, but Grandma Ruth's face was now changed; no longer relaxed and joyful. Now there was just a very sobering look of resignation and she punctuated that with a deep sigh. What is going on here? Why is everyone acting so strangely?

Before she could even say his name, Simon was already turning to look at her. He had to have noticed the change in Grandma Ruth's demeanor, too, and was now looking to an equally confused AngelFyre for some answers himself. "Simon, if you are at a point where you can break away, my father would like to speak to us, please."

Looking a bit confused, Simon said,"Yeah. Sure." As he was pushing his chair back to stand up, Grandma Ruth reached over to take his hand and she motioned for AngelFyre to come over as well. "Simon Ezra Kincaid, it has been a great pleasure to meet you. All that my darling granddaughter has said of you is true, and I cannot imagine she could have found a finer young gentleman to bring home. I look forward to getting to know you better these next few days," and with that she smiled broadly, squeezed both of their hands, and then kissed AngelFyre's.

"Now scoot, the both of you. Don't keep Iain waiting."

AngelFyre quickly leaned over and gave her Grandma Ruth a long hug, blinking back tears. Whispering in her ear after kissing her cheek, she felt reassured when stating, "I told you he was wonderful. I knew you would like him, and one day I know you will love him, not because I do, though you know I do, but based on his own merits, of which there are millions."

Then releasing the embrace, AngelFyre quickly turned back to Simon, smiling reassuringly while reaching for his hand. It was a given. It was their default position. Hand in hand. Walking with him to face who knew what together, she stopped a few steps before entering. Looking directly into her favorite pair of eyes, she told him simply but firmly. "I have an inkling of what we might be facing in there. It will not change how I feel about you or my desire to be with you. I love you. Promise me you will remember that?" and then she tip-toed up to kiss his cheek before they turned to enter the lion's den.