Title: Disturbing Behaviour

Author: Crystal

Email: susanharman70@hotmail.com / blacklightning.s@mailcity.com

Spoilers: DV and NW

Rating: 12/ PG-13

Disclaimer: All NW/DV characters and concepts belong to LJS. Anyone else belongs
to me. Please ask if you wish to use them.

Summary: The DV have graduated and moved on to college. Kaitlyn is still having
her prophetic visions. They are showing her strange things that frighten her.
She won_t tell anyone, because they haven_t come true yet. But they will
Author_s note: Feedback, suggestions? And I_d also like to point out I_m aware
that there_s a movie called Disturbing Behaviour but this story has NOTHING to
do with it.

Part 1

The first drawing came during history class. Kaitlyn didn_t know why she_d taken
the subject again; the lectures had always bored her to death. Maybe that was
just the teacher, though. This time, the subject seemed to fascinate her, and
she wasn_t sure why. Her major was American folklore. The whole group were
taking that course, even Gabriel, who still seemed to think most of it was a
load of rubbish.

Kaitlyn sat with her notepad on her knee, listening with interest and intent,
when she suddenly felt a familiar urge to draw. The urge surprised her, as she
had not felt something like this in quite a while. She still had her prophetic
sense, but lately, it had been quiet, keeping in the background, no warnings of
disaster given.

And yet, somehow, she knew that the peace she had felt for her first year of
college was going to be shattered.

She flipped quickly to a blank page in her notebook, and let her hand just go.
She couldn_t explain the process any more now than she could then. Her hand
sketched quickly, she had no idea what was coming. She just drew. And then, the
urge faded. Just like that, it was gone.

Kaitlyn frowned and looked down at her notebook to see what she_d drawn. She_d
drawn herself. But it wasn_t any ordinary self-portrait. Her smile was
different, cruel and mean. And her teethshe stared at them, biting her lip on a
scream of horror. They weren_t teeth at all, they were fangs.

Fangs, dripping with blood.

And in her arms, there was a body. A dead body, with what was obviously meant to
be holes in her neck.

She began to shake. Somebody next to her saw the drawing and muttered, _God,
you_re morbid aren_t you?_

Anna was sitting next to Kaitlyn. _Kait? Are you okay?_

Kaitlyn glanced at her, then at the drawing, and quickly covered it up. Anna
hadn_t seen. Good. She didn_t want to show it to anyone. She couldn_t bear the
thought of it coming true.

_I_m fine,_ she lied quickly. _I _ I have to go._ Before Anna could say anymore,
Kaitlyn gathered her things and fled the lecture theatre.

No. No. No way. That drawing could *not* come true. Real vampires did not exist.
She shook her head in confusion.

Her drawings had always come true before.

She had to find out what this one meant.

And stop it.

And the dead boy in the drawing

Who was he?

* * *
Part 2

Kaitlyn hurried back to her room, shutting the door behind her. She was
sweating, which was completely unnatural for her. Glancing around, she saw her
roommate was still in classes. Good. At least she wouldn_t have to explain
herself, or what was wrong.

What *was* wrong? She didn_t know. Her drawings always, always came true. No
matter what they were. Every single one had come true. ButbutShe shook her
head, looking again at the picture of herself as a vampire with a dead body in
her arms.

And what was even more disconcerting, something she hadn_t noticed before in the
sudden panic of the discovery, was that the boy in the drawing looked vaguely
familiar. She had seen him before somewhere, she was sure of it. But she
couldn_t place his name or his face right now.

She shoved the drawing under her mattress. No one would know about it. She
wouldn_t tell. Maybe if she kept it hidden or even tore it upanything to
prevent it from coming true.

I can_t come true anyway, she told herself with shaky reassurance. Vampires
aren_t real. They_re just a myth. That means it can_t come true.

But somehow, she felt unsatisfied.
* * *

Part 3
Anna sat through the lecture, a frown marring her delicate features. What was
wrong with Kaitlyn? She had never acted like this before. She_d never run out of
a lecture. She'd glimpsed something in Kait_s notebook. A drawing of something.

Something that had upset Kaitlyn a lot. But she hadn_t gotten a clear view of
what the picture was. Kaitlyn was having prophetic visions again? Maybe she_d
tell about it later. It was probably best not to push her about it.

But Anna couldn_t stop her worried feelings. She tapped her fingers impatiently,
waiting for the lecture to end. Rob and Lewis waiting outside the lecture hall,
the group had their American Folklore lecture now. _Where_s Kait?_ Rob asked.

_I don_t know,_ Anna said. _Something happened in the lecture just now.
Something made her run out._

_Run out? Someone said something or?_ Rob guessed, his gold eyes sparking.

Anna shook her head, moving out the way of a group of passing students. When the
hall was quite again, she answered, _No. I thinkit was like she drew something.
I saw her scribbling furiously in her notebook, and then, she looked at it, her
face went white, and she ran out._

_A visionary drawing?_ Lewis suggested. _Maybe we should try to find her and see
what_s wrong?_

Anna followed the boys to Kait_s dorm room. She knew they were only trying to
help, but she didn_t think Kait was going to tell them what was wrong. Maybe
Kait would tell Gabriel, the two of them had remained surprisingly close
throughout the last year of high school and college so far. But even if Kait did
tell Gabriel, she doubted that he would blab it to the rest of them, despite the
fact they were Kait_s best friends.

Kait of course, wasn_t in her room by the time they got there, and the door was
locked. Lewis put his hand on the door, waited a minute, then opened it.

_Lewis!_ Anna said, shocked. _You can_t use your powers to go breaking into
people_s rooms._

_We need to know what_s up with Kait, maybe she left clues or something,_ Lewis
suggested.

_He does have a point,_ Rob said. He seemed distant, Anna couldn_t tell if he
thought this was a good idea or not. Rob seemed to be keeping to himself a lot
these days. He didn_t say anything unless he felt it necessary.

_No,_ Anna snapped. _We are not going to disturb Kait_s privacy. If she wants to
talk to us, she_ll talk. Let_s go to the lecture._

_Why? We_ve already missed fifteen minutes of it,_ Lewis said, but grudgingly
followed Anna and Rob as they made their way to the lecture hall.

Ann found herself unable to concentrate on this either. She hoped Kait would
come and talk to her. Whatever was wrong with Kait was going to bug her until
she told. But she spotted Kait in the lecture theatre, sitting with Gabriel in a
secluded corner.

Kaitlyn didn_t seem to be paying attention to the lecture any more than he did.
As usual, Gabriel looked bored out of his mind. It made Anna wonder why he_d
even decided to bother with college at all, it was pretty much the same
expression he had in all his classes. She bet he_d only come to make Kait happy.

She hoped he did.
* * *

Part 4
Kaitlyn had decided to put the drawing out of her thoughts all together. She
would concentrate on her classes, and ignore it. But it was hard. The image of
herself with long, pointy white teeth kept returning to her over and over.

It was frightening, to draw something like that, without a reason. Even more
frightening when your scary drawings had an uncanny way of coming true no matter
what the situation. Even the goat picture had come true.

But vampires? That was just absurd.

She shuddered at the thought of vampires walking around amongst every day
people, living like them, looking like them, and striking when you least
expected it.

Gabriel noticed the shudder. _You okay?_ he murmured in her ear. _You_re
completely out of it._

Kaitlyn managed a weak smile. _I_m fine,_ she lied. She wasn_t fine. Far from
it. She knew full well she wouldn_t rest until she knew who that boy in the
drawing was. She found herself scanning the crowd of students looking to see if
she could see him among the crowd. Impossible, she knew. There were so many
people, and she couldn_t pick out a single boy whose name she didn_t even know.

Her fingers were tapping, the need to *do something* ebbing into her hand. She
was hardly even aware of reaching for her notebook again, hardly aware of what
went on around her as her fingers drew. When the need had faded away, she found
that the lecture had ended, the students had gone, the theatre was empty, all
but her.

She looked down at what she'd drawn. This drawing was in colour, she must have
reached for the art kit she always carried around without even knowing it. The
drawing was even more vivid and scary than the last one.

Herself and the mystery boy again. This time, he was the one with fangs, and she
was the one, dead, with holes in her neck.

* * *

Part 5
Two days later

Gabriel was annoyed. He wondered what was wrong with Kait. She_d been shutting
herself away from everyone lately, when she wasn_t scribbling in that little
notebook of hers. She_d run out of three lectures in the past two days. And no
one knew why. She wouldn_t tell him what was wrong.

And she was always scanning around, as if looking for someone. Maybe for the
person she was seeing behind his back. It was probably completely unreasonable
to assume that, but it seemed like she was seeing someone else from the way she
was reacting, and she was obviously looking around and making sure he wasn_t
there and wouldn_t come and talk to her.

So if Kait as seeing someone behind his back, well, it was perfectly okay then,
for Gabriel to see someone other than Kait, then. Who, he hadn_t decided. A girl
in his psychology class had been flirting with him a lot lately, and she was
pretty too. Very pretty. Even, he had to admit, prettier than Kait.

Her eyes were even more unusual. They were red. Bright red and they sparkled
like rubies. Her hair was black, so black it reflected like a crow_s wing. Her
name was Nyx Blackthorn. She always seemed to appear like a shadow. She never
wore anything with colours. Her clothes were always black, and nicely revealing
too. Her skin was pale, very pale, and looked so soft. Skin that cried out to be
caressed. Lips full and dark, that begged to be kissed

He had to admit, he_d found himself lost in a few fantasies lately that all
included, Nyx, him, and no clothes, one that included hot melted chocolate
tooHe_d never had fantasies like that about Kait.

He had had to odd one or two, and she had been more than willing to make the
dream come a reality. He loved Kait, but it she wanted to be distant with him,
fine. He_d use Nyx to keep the seat warm until Kait came to her senses.

It was late when he finally returned to his room. His roommate was still out.
The guy was dating Anna, and he_d probably, with some luck, stay with her.
Gabriel_s lip curved. There was obviously more to Anna than he_d thought.

To his surprise, the room was lit with a few candles. Candles? He shut the door
cautiously, and looked around, his eyes probing the darkness. As he started to
move, he felt slender, female arms slide around his waste, and cool lips on his
neck.

_I know you want me,_ Nyx_s soft, throaty voice whispered in his ear. _Relax, my
angel, and I_ll give you things you never even knew you wanted._

* * *

Part 6

Kaitlyn shook her head. This was justjust completely, totally insane. She had
been drawing none stop for almost a week now, each drawing more vivid and each
more frightening. And she didn_t understand them at all.

They all showed the same boy. He seemed like every average ordinary guy, dark
hair, nice blue eyes, well built, casual dresser, quite attractive. And yet,
when she drew him like that, he was in her arms, his face twisted in pain and
agony, she was smiling at him, her fangs dripping with what she presumed was his
blood.

She shuddered. They were all spread out on the desk around her, and she studied
them, trying to figure out what they meant. They had to mean something.

She picked one drawing up. It didn_t seem to fit in sequence with the others.
Not the boy, not herself, but another girl. She was drawn almost completely in
black and white, except her eyes, which were coloured in red. Bright, shining
red, that seemed to blaze from the picture, a face that radiated danger.

_They_re fantastic drawings,_ Kait_s roommate said, glancing over Kaitlyn_s
shoulders and peering at them. _Kind of morbid, but still really good._

Kaitlyn frowned. _Rowan do you recognise this girl?_ she asked.

Rowan moved closer, studying the picture. _I_ve seen her around campus. But I
don_t know her, no. I could ask Kestrel, maybe she knows. Why?_

Kaitlyn finally looked up, looking totally bewildered. _Because I have no idea
who this girl is. Sometimes, I kind of _ see things _ and I have to draw them
down on paper._

_Like a vision?_ Rowan asked. _I_ve heard of things like that before. But I_ve
never seen such vivid interpretations._

Before Kait could say anything there was a knock on the door. Rowan moved to
answer it. It was Anna, and Anna_s new boyfriend. They_d met in animal care a
few weeks ago and Anna had been talking about him non-stop. Which was completely
unlike her.

Rowan left then, to go meet her friends. And Anna and the guy came into the
room.

_Kait I_d like you meet Sebastian,_ Anna said happily. _Sebastian this is my
best friend Kaitlyn._

Kaitlyn covered the drawings with a few textbooks, and turned to smile politely
at the new guy. She turned to meet his eyes, and lost her breath from shock.

She was face to face with the boy from her drawings.
* * *

Part 7

Anna was confused at Kaitlyn_s reaction to Sebastian. Kait_s eyes had gone wide
with what looked like terror, and her face had gone white, as if she_d seen a
ghost. She was almost shaking.

She glanced over at Sebastian, who seemed somewhat amused by the reaction. It
didn_t seem to bother him. _Uh, are you okay? You look like you_ve seen a
ghost._

_I _ I_m fine,_ Kaitlyn managed finally. _ I just _ _ She trailed off and shook
her head. _Isorry. It_s nothing._ She turned back to her desk. Anna was upset.
It wasn_t like Kait to be rude like this.

_I guess we should go now,_ Sebastian muttered to her.

_Yeah, I guess so,_ Anna muttered. She turned to look at Kaitlyn again, who kept
her back to them, as if she wanted to look anywhere back at him.

They were about to leave when Rob and Lewis came in. There were quick
introductions, then Anna left, leaving them to figure out what was wrong with
Kaitlyn.

* * *
Kaitlyn had to admit she felt bad about upsetting Anna like she had. But she
hadn_t been able to help her reaction. It was without question the same boy. If
she said something to him he would think she was insane. She was so deep into
her thoughts about what to do when she heard Rob_s voice.

_Kaitlyn what *is* it?_ He sounded worried, and Kait could tell it wasn't the
first time he'd asked the question.

_Do we call a doctor?_ That was Lewis. He sounded worried and concerned too
Kaitlyn turned around to face them, forgetting to cover the drawings. Rob saw
the drawings instantly, and reached out to take them before Kaitlyn could stop
him. His face clearly showed surprise _ and horror _ as he studied the drawings.

_Kait what are these?_ he asked.

Kaitlyn shook her head, feeling tears rising. She hadn_t cried in such a long
time, but now she found herself unable to help it. The drawings were
frightening, and they all seemed to show, that someway or another, she might die
or become a vampire. She didn_t want either to happen to her.

_I don_t know,_ she managed in a shaky voice. _They_ve been happening all week.
I don_t understand them and I panicked and_

_Hey._ Rob out a comforting arm around her shoulder and held her while she
sobbed out her frustrations. She felt better afterwards, and showed them each
one, telling them when it came. Neither of them recognised the girl in the last
one.
_And you_re sure the guy_s the same one Anna just went out with?_ Lewis asked.
_And he_s a vampire?_

_It would appear so,_ Kait said. _So what do we do?_

_Tell Anna,_ Rob said instantly. _Her boyfriend_s undead, she deserves to know
about it._

_Who_s boyfriend_s undead?_ Gabriel asked as he walked in. Then he saw
everyone_s face. _What_s going on? Kait?_ He moved over to her side, seeing her
upset. Kaitlyn found herself grateful again for the comfort. She hadn_t seen
much of Gabriel lately. Whenever she tried to see him, he was always _busy._

Rob told him about the drawings, and held out the last picture of the girl to
him. His face remained black and impassive as he looked at it. _Who is she?_ he
asked. Something about his expression gave Kait an idea that he knew more than
he was telling.

_We don_t know,_ Kait said finally. _You sure you don_t recognise her? I won_t
be mad if you do._

He looked at her a moment, then shrugged. _All right, I do recognise her. She_s
in my psych group. Her name_s Nyx Blackthorn, that_s all I know. Who_s the other
guy?_

_Anna_s new boyfriend,_ Lewis said. _We_re debating on whether or not we should
tell her._

Gabriel shrugged. _It_s not our problem, it_s Anna_s._

Kait stared at him. _How can you be so insensitive?_ she snapped.

_I_m not insensitive,_ Gabriel said impassively. _I just don_t care about other
people. Well, I guess I can make one exception._ His eyes met Kaitlyn, and she
smiled slightly forgiving his dry, annoying sense of humour. She kissed him.

Lewis made gagging sounds. _Hey guys, cut it out. If I wanted to watch an
X-rated movie, I_d rent one._

_No one_s saying you have to stay and watch,_ Gabriel said without taking his
eyes from Kait_s. _Leave Anna and her boyfriend alone. Maybe it_s nothing.
She_ll think you_re all crazy if you tell her that her boyfriend_s a vampire,
she won_t believe you._ He stood up, trying to pull Kait to her feet. _Come on
Kait, let_s get out of here._

Kaitlyn pulled her hands free. _No, I think I_d rather find Anna. It doesn_t
matter if she thinks we_re nuts, Rob_s right, she should know._

Gabriel_s face darkened, and his eyes went cold. _Fine,_ he snapped, and stormed
out.

_What_s his problem?_ Lewis muttered.

Kaitlyn sighed. _I_ll make it up to him later. Let_s go find Anna. Do you guys
know where they went?_

_Hang on a minute,_ Lewis said. ~Hey Anna.~ he called through the mind web that
still linked them. ~Where_d you guys go?~

~The movies~ came Anna_s answer. ~Is something wrong~?

~No, we were just curious, is all,~ Lewis answered. ~See you later.~

Kaitlyn smiled. She_d forgotten about the web. They didn_t use it all that much
anymore, but it was still helpful when they did need it.

_Anna_s at the movies,_ Lewis said.

Rob stood up. _Let_s go,_ he said. He picked up Kait_s drawings and put them in
a manila folder he_d found. _We_d better take these and show her._

They left the room, and all Kait could think was they had to hurry. She didn_t
know what it was, and all she did know was that something was about to go very,
very wrong.

* * *
Part 8

The campus movie theatre only had two screens, and of course, it was packed.
Spotting Anna in here was going to be close to impossible. Kaitlyn realised she
should have asked Anna what movie she and her boyfriend were seeing. They had to
chose between *Scary Movie* and showing of the old *Rocky Horror Picture Show.*
As far as Kait knew, neither of those movies were to Anna_s taste.

And of course, Rob had pointed out they could have gone to the theatre in the
city centre. Kait was about to suggest they give up and go there, when Lewis
shouted ~I_ve seen her! ~ The crowd was so large, as people milled around,
waiting to go into the theatres, or waiting for the snacks line or whatever, and
noise was too loud to hear people speak, so they_d resorted back to the mind
web.

Kait spotted Lewis heading out the door, and Rob following. It took about five
minutes before she could catch up with them, and by that time Anna and her
boyfriend were already driving off.

Damn, Kait thought, we_ll never find them.

~Yes we will,~ Rob said.

Kaitlyn sighed. She would have to be careful. She'd forgotten every thought was
heard by everyone. In that case, then Anna should hear them too.

~Could you guys tell me what you_re doing?~ Anna asked politely. She sounded
rather annoyed.
~Where are you going?~ Ron demanded.

~I don_t see what business of yours it is,~ Anna replied.

~We_re probably just out our minds, but I_ve had a vision of Sebastian, and I
think he_s dangerous. That_s why I reacted weird.~ Kait said.

Anna didn_t reply for a while. By this time they had all piled into Rob_s car.
But driving aimlessly, not knowing where to go was not going to get them very
far. Then Anna said, ~We_ve just pulled up at the beach. Should I be worried?~

~Be cautions. We_re on our way,~ Rob said. And then out loud, _Hold on
everybody._

And the car took off at such a speed that skid marks were left on the roads.
They raced for the beach of the small sea side town the university was in. Don_t
let us be late, Kait thought. Let us get there. She has to be all right. She has
to.

They arrived to hear a scream. _That_s Anna!_ Lewis said sharply. They scrambled
over a small wall of rocks and pebbles, to a secluded little area where Anna was
struggling in Sebastian_s arms. There was something very wrong with his face.

It was twisted and monstrous, his eyes were shining silver like a wild animal_s
and even from where she stood Kaitlyn could see the length of his long, white
canine teeth, shining with a pearly shimmer in the moonlight, edging closer to
Anna_s throat.

_No!_ she shouted. _Get off her you bastard!_

Rob threw himself at the guy, shoving Anna out the way. Anna scrambled up, and
backed away, heading for Kaitlyn, her long dark hair a dishevelled mess around
her, tears streaking her face.

Before Rob could really do any damage, Sebastian grabbed the front of his shirt,
lifted him up effortlessly and threw him down the beach like throwing a
football. Both Anna and Kaitlyn cried out.

And then Sebastian looked at Kaitlyn. His shining animal eyes met hers, and in
that instant Kait knew that he_d seen her drawings.

_You_ll pay for this,_ he snarled. And disappeared into the night before anyone
could catch him.

* * *

Part 9

Gabriel sighed. He was beginning to lose his fascination with Nyx now. She lay
beside him, again, she_d set up the room, candles burning nicely, twisted
shadows playing on the walls. He hadn_t been able to take his mind off the
drawing. Kait would find out soon, and she would be pissed.

What would he do? If she left him, what would happen? Would he stay with Nyx?
And then what would happen to Kaitlyn? Everyone would know what had happened,
there was no way Kait would ever cheat on him. People would know. They would
talk.

Nyx seemed to know something was wrong. She didn_t like it when she didn_t get
her way. Her red eyes seemed to glow dangerously. They were lit softly now by
the candle light.

_I can tell you_re tiring of me,_ she said.

He shook his head. _You miss nothing, do you?_

She smiled. _Not much gets past me. But I think I have a way to keep you
interested._ She ran her long, talon-like black nails up his chest.

_And what_s that?_

She moved so she was lying on top of him, her warm breath caressing his face as
she spoke. _What if I told you there was another world out there? A world of
Power and darkness._

_And?_ Gabriel tried to hide his interested in this. It sounded intriguing. A
new world? He_d seen a lot in his life. What more could possibly be out there.

Nyx smiled, knowing she had his attention. _It_s called the Night World. It_s a
secret society of vampires, witches and shapeshifters, the creatures of legend,
and we_re all real, and all around you._

Gabriel_s eyebrows raised. _Vampires?_ His lip curled. His time as a _psychic
vampire_ feeding off life energy rather than blood, was over now. The legend of
vampires had apparently originated somewhere around this idea, they were just a
story.

Nyx laughed her deep, throaty laugh. She opened her mouth, and she seemed to
almost transform before his eyes. Her red eyes seemed to change colour to a
deeper, darker red, fire glowing within their depths, her beautiful face took on
a predatory look, her dark lips became fuller and redder, and her canine teeth
grew. They curved to delicate points, sharp as needles, and glimmered in the
strange lightning.

He remembered the first dark pleasures when Nyx had slipped into his bed the
first time. He remembered a sharp pain, at then blissful nothingness for a while
afterwards. But she was always gone before he woke, and before he could really
analyse what had happened. Normally, he hardly remembered it at all.

_You_ve been feeding on me, haven_t you?_

She smiled a little, _I know, I_m a bad girl._

_That_s okay. Sometimes I like bad girls. I_m assuming you_re telling me all
this for a reason._

_Oh yes. There are rules against talking about the Night World. Generally, I
tend to follow them, but for you, I_m willing to make an exception._

Gabriel frowned. She was up to something. She wouldn_t be telling him all this
for no reason at all, especially if there were rules about talking about it. And
if he refused whatever she wanted, would she kill him?

Nyx ran her long nails down his cheek. _I want you to join me._

_You want me to become a vampire?_ Well, that was a surprise. He should have
known there was something wrong with her. But, a vampire? Who would have
guessed. But there were the plus sides. He would be immortal. He would live
forever. He would be faster than humans, stronger.

She could get used to the blood thing. And who said he needed to stay with Nyx?
Once she changed him, then he could dispose of her, and then he could bring Kait
over.

Nyx was looking at him with an intense gaze, as if she hadn_t sensed what he was
thinking, which was good on his part. _Well?_ she asked.

He sighed. _You don_t just decide to become the waking undead on a whim. You_re
gonna have to give me time to think about this._

Nyx sighed and rolled away. _Fine, but my offer is only good for forty-eight
hours. After thatwell, it_s my decision._

_So I either join you or die._

_Pretty much._

Great. He had forty-eight hours to think about this. Think of a way to get out
of it.

* * *

Part 10

_Why didn_t you guys *tell* me?_ Anna looked at one drawing, then another. She
was still upset, and now, her pale face was flushed with anger. _You knew!_

_Kait didn_t show us the drawings until tonight,_ Rob said.

Kait flushed. _I didn_t show you, exactly, you just took them._

Anna turned her angry gaze on Kait. _But you still knew._

Kait turned away. _I didn_t tell anyone cause I didn_t recognise the guy in the
drawings. And,_ she added quietly, _I_m afraid they_ll come true._

There was a moment of silence. They all looked at the drawings again. Kait as a
vampire, and clearly Sebastian killing Kait, and then Kait killing Sebastian.
What did they all mean? Kait_s drawings had always come true before. No matter
how bizarre they seemed, it was inevitable that they would eventually happen.

_So there are vampires?_ Lewis said finally. _You_re boyfriend_s one, and Kait_s
going to become one._

_Kait is not going to become one,_ Kaitlyn said sharply. _At least, I hope not._

_What_s Sebastian_s surname?_ Rob asked.

_Redfern,_ Anna said. _Why?_

_Isn_t Redfern the surname of your roommate Kait?_ Rob asked.

Kait frowned. _Rowan? Yes. But I don_t think she_d attack me and turn me into a
blood sucking monster._

_She has a sister, doesn_t she?_ Lewis piped up.

_So where are we heading with this?_ Anna asked. _We_re saying the Redfern
family are vampires?_

_It makes sense if you think about it,_ Lewis said.

Kaitlyn shook her head. It was hard enough to believe that vampires existed, and
one had nearly killed a close friend, but it was even harder to believe there
was a whole family of them. But Lewis was right, it did kind of make sense that
the vampires should all be the same family. Maybe there were others out there.

She shuddered. It was a frightening thought, vampires walking among people,
looking and acting like them, and never knowing until the last minute they were
there. By then it would be too late. She took the drawings back from Anna.

_I_ve had enough for tonight,_ she said. _I_m going back to my room. I_ll see
everyone tomorrow._

Kait sighed and left the boys and Anna in Anna_s room. She headed back to her
own room, feeling as if she could sleep for a month. She wasn't sure why she
suddenly felt so tired. It was almost like a compulsion, drawing her back to her
room. As if someone was telling her to do it.

She opened her door. The lights were on. That was weird. She_d turned them off
before she left. Rowan wasn't home. She was still out. But someone else was in
the room.

Sebastian gave Kait a nasty smile. Kait just stared. She seemed unable to move,
unable to call out for help as he came closer. All he did was shut the door.

_I told you you_d pay,_ he said cheerfully. _Don_t bother screaming. No one_ll
come._

Kait remained frozen, unable to do anything as he tore her throat out.

* * *
Part 11

When Kaitlyn woke up she was lying on something very soft and satiny, in a
small, dark closed space. She found herself lying on her back, and when she sat
up, her head bumped against something. She muttered angrily, trying to figure
out a way to get out of this small closed space. Where the hell was she?

What was worse tha the feeling of being enclosed in this dull blackness, was
something gnawing deep inside her. She didn_t understand the feeling, it was
likethe only word she could think of to describe it was*hunger. *

She was starvingthere was something she clearly needed but wasn_t getting. She
managed to lift the lid a little, and slide a slender hand out. Her hand groped
along the side of the box-shaped object until she came to some kind of metal
clasp.

It took her a while to figure out how to get it undone. Eventually she did, and
the lid lifted a little more. And then she managed to find another clasp and
managed to get it undone.

She lifted the lid and sat up. How strange. She was in a coffin, in a dark room
filled with flowers and tributes and wooden benches and candles. A funeral home.
A funeral home? Why was she in a funeral home?

And then a scent struck her. She didn_t know what it was, she only knew she
needed it to stop the pain growing worse within her. She climbed out of the
coffin, confused as to why she could see so clearly, despite the dark and gloomy
atmosphere.

She glanced down at herself, to see she was wearing some sort of long, flowy
black dress and heels. Her red hair was shimmery and hanging round her
shoulders. She felt as if she were floating.
And then she spotted a person waking towards her, a shocked, horrified
expression on his face. She recognised him vaguely as one of the boys in one of
her classes. He stared at her, seeming riveted to the spot in fear. For some
reason, Kaitlyn seemed to find that rather funny. She wondered where her friends
were.

But something was telling her to go to this boy. There was something inside him
that she needed more than he did. She reached for him with cold, pale hands. Her
grip was stronger than she thought, he tried to run, but couldn_t pull away from
her grip. Her eyes fell on the major vein on his neck, and she darted forward,
feeling her canine teeth lengthening and sharpening. They pierced the skin and
the warm blood shot into her mouth, easing the pain within her.

The taste of the blood was wonderful, like nothing she'd ever experienced. It
was so exotic and different and *powerful*. Every mouthful gave her strength and
life. And she felt better than she ever had in her own life.

When someone pulled the boy away from her, she was annoyed, and reached back for
him. The someone grabbed her wrists.

_Sorry, babe, but once they_re dead they_re no good._

Kaitlyn looked up, and found herself meeting Sebastian_s smiling blue eyes. He
seemed quite amused by the whole situation.

_You made me a vampire,_ Kaitlyn said, the truth finally sinking in. Strangely,
she wasn't angry or surprised.

He smiled at her. _I had planned to kill you. I don_t like it when people
interrupt me when I kill. But then I remembered your pictures. You left one
uncovered when I came in your room, the one of you and me sharing a meal? So, I
hear your drawings always come true, so_ His smile turned suggestive.

_Drop dead,_ Kaitlyn said sweetly. So. She was a vampire. She was immortal. Her
drawings were coming true after all.

If she was going to live forever, she at least wanted some one to be her
companion. And one person sprang to mind immediately.

Gabriel was going to get one hell of a surprise.

* * *

Part 12

Gabriel was unhappy. Since Kait_s death, Nyx had pretty much been all over him.
He had two hours before she came to him about his decision. To join her, or die.
He didn_t know what to do. Part of him felt like giving up and dying. Kaitlyn
was gone. If he allowed Nyx to kill him, then he could be with her forever.

But there was still something of a mystery surrounding Kait_s death. It had been
officially noted as _suicide._ Kaitlyn_s roommate had found Kait in her room,
lying on her bed with her throat slit, her drawings spread out around her.

The whole group were convinced it was more than that. Kaitlyn would never kill
herself. Never. No matter how bad things got, she would never take that way out.

Unsure what to do, he found himself knocking on Lewis_s door. He needed to talk
to someone about this. He still hated Rob_s guts, there was no way he was
talking to him. Anna had shut herself away from everyone, and wouldn_t talk to
anyone. Lewis was at least sensible and knew basically what was going on.

Lewis was a little surprised to see him. _What_s up?_ he asked, gesturing for
Gabriel to come in.

Gabriel came inside, but stood leaning against the door. _If a girl offered to
make you immortal, what would you do?_

Lewis seemed even more surprised. _Well, I guess it would depend on the girl. If
she was really special and I liked her a lot, I guess I_d use that to base the
decision on. Why?_

_Well, Imet a girl about a month go_

_The black haired girl with the red eyes in Kait_s picture? She_s offered you
immortality? Is she a vampire like that guy Anna was dating?_

Lewis was a lot more perceptive than he appeared to be. Gabriel found he was
surprised. _Yeah. She wants me to be a vampire and join her. I have two hours to
decide to join her or die._

_She sounds charming. What are you gonna tell her?_

_I don_t know. Part of me is ready to die now,_ he admitted simply.

_What would Kaitlyn want you to do?_ Lewis said carefully.

Gabriel sighed. _I guess she_d want me to move on and live happily._ He sounded
a little disgusted. _But that doesn_t really appeal to me right now._

_So it_s either be a vampire or die._

_What would you chose?_
_I don_t know._

Gabriel sighed. _You_re not being very helpful here. Well, have a nice life, I
think I_m going to choose to die._

And then he left to find Nyx to sign his death warrant for him.

* * *

Part 13

When Kaitlyn opened the door to Gabriel_s room there was another girl on
Gabriel_s bed. She was sitting there, long legs stretched out, posing
seductively. Gabriel was standing by the bathroom door, as if he were trying to
find a way to tell her something she wouldn_t want to know.

The other girl on the bed looked at Kaitlyn in surprise. _You_re dead,_ she
said.

_Who the hell are you?_ Kaitlyn demanded. Her gaze turned to Gabriel as she
closed the door and stood there looking from one to the other.

He just stared at her, as if he_d seen a ghost. Well, she was a little more than
that.

_Kaitlyn? You_re dead,_ was all he could say.

_Undead actually,_ Kait said. She smiled at him, showing her new shiny white
fangs. _I_m going to make you undead too, and then we_ll be together forever._

At that the girl on the bed jumped to her feet, her movements predatory and
graceful. Another vampire. _No you_re not, I got there first, he's mine._

_Like hell!_ Kaitlyn snapped. _I_ve known him for the past three years._

_And I_ve been fucking him for the past three weeks. So what? I said I was going
to make him immortal first and I_m going to._ The other girl had moved closer to
Gabriel, her hands around his neck.

Kaitlyn stared at him. _What is she talking about?_

_Keeping secrets Gabriel?_ the dark girl said.

They both looked at him. He looked uneasily from one to the other. Then he
turned back to Kaitlyn. _You didn_t seem the slightest bit interested in me, so
I decided to have fun,_ he said finally.

_This isn_t fun!_ Kaitlyn snorted.

The other girl smiled. _Yes it is._

Kaitlyn looked hurt. _I am interested. I_ve always been interested. I was
frightened by the drawings, because I didn_t understand them, but I do now. They
told me I was going to become a vampire, and I have. They also were warning me
about *her.*_ She threw a glare at the other girl. _I should have known._

The other girl was looking annoyed that Gabriel was trying to get closer to
Kaitlyn. He seemed to have forgotten the other girl was there. She pulled him
back, and he managed to yank free. He started to go to Kait, when the other girl
grabbed him and pulled him back.

_You can_t just abandon me!_ she snapped. Her face had changed too now,
revealing the inhuman monster she was underneath. _She_s just as much of a
monster as I am._

Gabriel glanced over at Kaitlyn again. Kaitlyn just shrugged. She wasn't going
to deny it. She was looking forward to life as a vampire, she had to admit.

Kaitlyn smiled a little. _I guess there_s only one way to settle this._ She
looked at Gabriel. She picked up the desk chair and broke off one of the wooden
legs, one end sharp and splintered. She hoped that wood really did kill
vampires. She handed him the makeshift stake. _Choose. Pick one of us, and kill
the one you don_t want._

* * *
Gabriel turned between Kaitlyn and Nyx, both were glaring, looking ready to tear
each other_s eyes out. There was no way he could kill either one of them, and no
way he could choose between them. If he chose Kaitlyn over Nyx, Nyx would kill
them both before anyone could do anything about it.

Oh shit, I_m in trouble now, he thought, finally deciding there was only one
thing he could do. He called out to the mind web. ~Um, guys? Help! Now!~

* * *

Part 14

Nyx didn_t wait for Gabriel to make his decision. She shoved him aside and
lunged for Kaitlyn. Kaitlyn didn_t back away from the attack, but threw herself
at Nyx, grabbing hold of long hair and yanking back hard, Nyx shrieked in fury,
and lashed out with her long nails, raking them across Kaitlyn_s face. Kaitlyn
yelled in pain and smashed a surprisingly hard fist into Nyx_s face, shattering
her perfect nose. Nyx kicked out with her heels, catching Kaitlyn between the
legs, sending her staggering back, giving Nyx the upper hand. Nyx fell forward
onto of Kaitlyn, grabbing Kait_s hair, pulling her head back, ready to snap her
neck, when someone yanked her back, and something sharp pierced her heart. Wood.
She swivelled around, finding herself looking to eyes of blazing gold.

And then she saw nothing, and would never see anything again.

* * *

Kaitlyn blinked and saw Rob, Anna and Lewis, looking very surprised to see her.
She pulled herself to her feet, and moved over to Gabriel, also staggering up.

_Are you okay?_ she said softly. Her teeth had retracted, her face was back to
normal.

_I don_t know yet,_ Gabriel said with a weak smile. He looked rather shocked,
which wasn_t surprising.

Kait looked up at her friends. They looked back.

_Uh, Kait, you_ Lewis started, then stopped.

Kaitlyn smiled a little. _A vampire?_ she ventured. She looked over at Anna. _It
was that asshole of a boyfriend of yours, Sebastian. He saw the pictures and
decided to make them come true._

_Jerk,_ Rob muttered. Then he looked at Kait. _You_regoing to be okay as a
vampire?_

Kait shrugged. _I guess I have no choice. I_ll have to deal._

They followed her back to her room, where most of her belongings still were. No
one had come and packed them up yet. Rowan was in the room, very surprised to
see Kaitlyn alive.

_You_re_

_I know, dead,_ Kaitlyn finished. _It_s kind of a long story._

_You had a problem with a vampire?_ Rowan guessed.

_You know about vampires?_ Rob asked.

Rowan smiled a little. _I am one. But I_m a nice vampire._

Kaitlyn explained what had happened to her, and Rowan told the real details of
the Night World, and something called Circle Daybreak, an organisation for all
the species, and those who wanted to help everyone get along. It sounded like a
good idea, and Kaitlyn decided that it would be just the place for her. Rowan
had called some friends, and made arrangements for them to come and meet Kait
and her friends.

When they were alone, Kaitlyn said to Gabriel, _I can still bring you over if
you like._

Gabriel thought for a minute, then shook his head. _I never really wanted Nyx to
change me,_ he admitted. _The idea was enticing to begin with, then, after you
died, it sort of lost its appeal completely. I was just going to let her kill
me. But nowif you don_t mind, I_d rather just stay human._

Kaitlyn smiled and held him close for a while.
* * *
Epilogue

Kaitlyn_s things had been packed, and she was ready to go to meet the members of
Circle Daybreak, she had said goodbye to her friends, and they were welcome to
come and visit her anytime they liked. Rowan had told them they were all welcome
there, but Kait had decided she wanted to go alone first and settle down before
they came to visit her.

_There_s one last drawing,_ Anna said. _The one of you killing Sebastian. What
happened to that?_

Kaitlyn paused. _Will you guys excuse me for a second? There_s something else I
have to do.
* * *

Kaitlyn moved quickly through the halls. She had discovered the vampire
telepathy thing. Rowan had told her some things about what vampires could and
couldn_t do, and she was learning fast. She had called to him, whining that
Gabriel didn_t want her and she needed someone to take care of her.

Sebastian, being the idiot he was, had readily agreed to meet her. She had told
him she wanted to leave town, and he was to wait for her by the beach, and they
would go away and explore the world together.

And the fool had believed her. When she arrived at the beach, there he was, with
his car, all ready and waiting.

She smiled at him, the steak she had made concealed behind her back. He noticed
she was hiding something instantly.

_What have you got there?_ he said, eying her curiously.

Kaitlyn smiled teasingly. _You want to know? You sure?_

_What a tease you are._ He grinned that idiotic, annoying grin. _Yes, I want to
know., I_m sure._

Kaitlyn shrugged. _All right. You asked for it._

And with that. She drove the steak into the jerk_s heart and watched him turn
into leathery old bones before her eyes.

* * *

She made her way back to where the others were waiting for her.

_Where_d you go?_ Lewis asked.

Kaitlyn smiled. _I just had to make sure that last drawing became reality
because my drawings always, always come true._

The End.