(LIB:I) Chapter 20

Kristian opened the door to the mansion, allowing Gabrielle to step in before him. She looked to her right at the large living room with several filled bookshelves that were built into the wall. A brown bear rug laid on the wooden floor between a Victorian sofa and the lit fireplace. Lace curtains were drawn over the windows. Several other chairs that matched the sofa were placed around the room.

Gabrielle took a step into the room, and turned back to watch Kristian shut the door. Folding her hands together, he pointed to the sofa.

"Have a seat there, I'll see if Tzion will meet with you now."

Before Gabrielle could demand that she be seen, Kristian headed down the hall. She cleared her throat, and sat down on the couch. There was a small clock on the mantel of the fireplace, and her eyes wavered between it and outside the window for a time. She couldn't be waiting here for long, the lace curtains wouldn't block the sun well enough. Sun couldn't kill her, but it did cause intensive pain. Back to the clock, it was nine in the morning now. Outside the window, she made out several men caring for the bushes and flowers.

Ten thirty, Gabrielle sighed deeply. She couldn't sit in front of this window for much longer, and stood up to wait in the hall way. Leaning against the door, she took another deep breath. She couldn't believe this, she would think at least Kristian would come to tell her what the hold up was. The fire was starting to die down, as the noon sun began to shine.

By eleven she had enough of this waiting game, and looked down the hall. The mansion was huge, but she wasn't afraid to go door to door looking for the man. The squeak of the front door told her someone was coming in.

Mathias stepped in and looked down at her, as she stepped back some into the living room.

"Gabrielle, what are you doing here?" He asked, Lycorisa and Jareth came in from behind him.

"I need to speak with Tzion, I've been waiting here for two hours now." She told them.

Mathias looked down the hallway and then back at her, "Who was to notify of your arrival?"

"Kristian went to tell him."

He nodded, and turned to Lycorisa, "Go around back to the cathedral, and I will help Gabrielle find Tzion."

Lycorisa nodded and stepped outside with Jareth following her. Mathias headed down the hall, "He's probably in his study."

"Do you think that Kristian didn't inform him?" Gabrielle asked following him through the narrow hallways.

He snorted, "Knowing Tzion, he either ordered him to do something before Kristian could speak or ignored it. Hoping that you would get bored and leave."

All the wooden doors were shut as they walked up the stairs, and on the second floor no door was ajar. The narrow passages were beginning to make her feel Claustrophobic. There seemed to be no end, as soon as they turned a corner there was just another hallway filled with shut doors. Finally they reached the end of the hallway, and Mathias knocked once and then opened the door.

Tzion sat at his desk, reading a very old hand written tome. He closed it when Mathias walked into the room, and glared at Gabrielle when she came into sight. Kristian sat on the floor across the room with another tome in his lap, and was taking notes.
"Don't you take hints?" Tzion said with venom.
"I want to see Kailin." She told him, her voice a mere mumble of what it usually was.
Tzion stood up, and placed the tome back onto the built in shelf behind him.
"Kailin will not be able to comprehend thoughts or feeling, let alone see or talk to you for several years, Gabrielle. You saw the state that she was in."

Gabrielle folded her arms, "That's a lie, since she fed from Mathias she has been able to heal herself much quicker. Now, I want to see her."

"Who told you…" Tzion's eyes went to Kristian, "Ah, I see."

Kristian's head slouched down in shame, as he continued to read from the tome.
Tzion bit the corner of his lower lip, "Obviously, I have not taught the value of my privacy to you well enough." He said to Kristian, who still looked into the tome. "No use in hiding now, Kristian. Stand up, you are as much part of this as she is now."

Standing up, Kristian placed the tome on the floor. He looked up at Tzion, who was staring unhappily at the tome. He kneeled down and picked it up, placing it back on the book shelf. When he was finished he came to stand between Mathias and Gabrielle.

"Kailin is in the cathedral behind my home, and as we all know, one of your…." He curled his upper list in disgust, "breed, can not enter holy ground."

"I can enter, but must deal with great pain." Gabrielle corrected.

"Indeed." He walked in front of his desk, and leaned against it. "Well, in that case, you know where she is. Go and visit the pile of flesh that was once your friend."

"Still is my friend." Gabrielle snapped, and headed out the door.

Mathias watched her leave, and turned his eyes back to Tzion. "What is going on?"

"I should ask you the same thing. How dare you bring that creature into my private study." Tzion snapped, "She is now witness to my collection of tomes, pray that she does not speak Latin and was unable to read the tome titles."

"Why didn't you want her to see Kailin?" Mathias asked, as Tzion sat at his desk again.

"She is Kailin's weakness, I am trying to make her strong. By having her in the picture, we are only hindering Kailin's progress." He folded his hands on the desk, and looked at Mathias.

"You have other elders to exchange blood with her, don't you?"

He grinned, "You sometimes surprise me with your insight, Mathias. Yes, I have others who are awaiting her completion."

"Who?"

"The triplets." Tzion's grin widened when he saw the anger in Mathias' eyes.

The triplets were the oldest living hallowed vampires beside Eva. They had been created by the Ancient long ago, and were the only humans ever turned by her. Tzion's own master was one of their peons, but it had never been said who had actually turned them. For them to be willing to exchange blood with Kailin, something hideous had to be going on behind closed doors.

"The triplets would never do that!" Mathias snapped.

"They know my cause is just, and see the signs just as I do. Whether Eva agrees is not something they have concerned themselves with. They saw the light when I explained it to them."

He didn't know what to say, they were too powerful. Kailin was able to consume the previously elders blood and survive well, but they would just be too much. In smaller doses over a longer period of time, perhaps she could grow strong enough. This just couldn't be, what was Tzion doing.

"I'll be in the cathedral." Mathias walked out of the room, there was nothing he could say that would matter in the least to his master.

Tzion looked at Kristian, "Shut the door and get back to work. Tonight, you learn once more about how important my privacy is to me."

Kristian swallowed and did as he was told.

---***---

Walking to the Cathedral, Mathias stopped when he noticed Gabrielle standing alone in front of the small church. She knew where the holy land began and kept her feet right at it's edge. She stepped on her toes trying to see through the stain glass windows. Falling back onto her heels, she sighed. She wanted to go in and make sure Kailin would be alright, but the mere thought of the pain she would have to endure kept her away.

Mathias walked up beside her and placed his hand on her shoulder. Turning her eyes to him she looked so sad.

"Gabrielle, I promise you that I will come and get you the moment Kailin awakes."
She gave a half hearted grin, "I know, but…" Looking back to the Cathedral she sighed, "Damon knows where we live now. Lucas came and told me. It's not safe there anymore, and from the way Tzion has been acting I doubt he will let me stay with him."

He grinned, "He can be stubborn." Reaching into his jacket pocket he pulled out a small notepad that he used to write notes on Kailin with. There was a pen
clipped to the top. Quickly he wrote something down and offered it to her, then pulled his keys from his pocket. "Go there. This is my home, I am sure that Jareth and Lycorisa won't mind if you stay with us until Kailin is back on her feet."

She didn't want to, but there was really not many other options that she wanted to indulge. Taking the keys from his hand, she gave a nod, then turned to leave.

Mathias watched her walk around the mansion, and then disappear behind it. His attention went to the Cathedral. Walking up the five stairs, he opened the large double doors. There was an alter at the end of the room, which Kailin had been laid upon. There were no benches inside as this wasn't really a place of worship, but a sanctuary against attacks. Mathias had often wondered why they didn't hold the convention inside the many Cathedrals that Tzion built at his homes.

Two fresh Hallowed, Lycorisa, and Jareth surrounded Kailin's body. Trying to put together the pieces where they belonged. One fresh held a knife to cut Kailin open if she healed an area before they had finished placing her innards inside.

Tzion's fascination with fountains showed through, as Mathias walked past the indoor fountain towards the alter. He stood and looked down at Kailin, her skull was the last of their concerns. They didn't want her to be able to feel what they were doing to her. Besides her unrecognizable face, her body was already looking much better.

On the floor was a pile of Kailin's clothing that had been pulled from her wounds. He looked down at the blood soaked slices of the once beautiful dress that she had worn. This was beyond ridiculous, why was Tzion putting so much effort forth in speeding the healing process? He knew that his master wanted to have the triplets feed from her, but why did it have to be now? The end of the Mephis wasn't meant to be until Kailin was an elder, there was no point in strengthening her. Forcing her soul to become to strong to quickly wouldn't allow her aura to compensate.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the fingers on Kailin's left hand twitch. Lifting his hand up, he gently stroked her fingers.

"She's been doing that all morning." One of the fresh told him.

Mathias didn't know this peon of Tzion, and only nodded.

"Think it's her way of saying she is still here." He said.

Looking up at him, he noticed that the fresh had been going slightly bald before he had been turned. Mathias could tell that it had only been a few years since he had been turned, and was probably still leading his original life. The other fresh wasn't much older but looked to have left his human life behind long ago. Only those who had lost their true selves could tell. It was the look in their eyes, that told them they were only pretending. Who they had forced themselves to become wasn't who they really were. Even in Tzion's eyes the truth could be seen.
Everyone wanted to be who they were born to be, and not who they had been created as.

"You are Mathias?" The fresh asked, and watched Mathias nod his head. "I'm Brent." He smiled, "This is Darius."

Mathias grinned, one could always tell when a Hallowed had left behind their true identity, as they would change their name. Brent still carried his human name, where most Hallowed would choose an older, more dignified name, sometimes even create one of their own. This was not Kailin's route though, she had picked the name simply because it was similar to her original. It had been Gabrielle who convinced her to move on, even though it wasn't a common practice among other breeds of vampire.

"How long do you think this will take?" Mathias asked Brent, who seemed to be rather knowledgeable about the placement of parts.

He shrugged, "Putting her together, could take two or three days if we work non-stop. How long it takes her to heal is a mystery to me. Though she does seem to be healing rather quickly, some parts bond before we have time to finish the area. I've had to reopen her chest and stomach twice already."

"Do you think she'll be at least talking in a week?"

Brent nodded, "It wouldn't surprise me."

Mathias looked down at Kailin again, and frowned. "Anything I can do to help?"

Brent shook his head, "Your friends here are about all the hands that can fit." He was trying to make a joke, but Mathias didn't find it amusing.

"Alright, then I will go home." He turned his attention to Lycorisa. "I have invited Gabrielle to stay with us until Kailin is better."

Lycorisa nodded. "See you later. I think Jareth and I will stay here for a while, I don't know when we will be back."

"Well, it's not as if we have anything to do with Kailin out of commission." Mathias walked out of the Cathedral.

He hadn't fought to help because he really didn't want to. It bothered him to see Kailin in that state, and he didn't know how long he could bare it. He had sensed Khaldun in the Cathedral, but had decided not to address it. There was no energy left to argue with the man.

Khaldun stepped out of the side room and came to stand next to Lycorisa. "Think he knew I was here?"

Lycorisa smiled, "Probably."

He picked up a piece of Kailin, trying to find where it belonged. It would bond quickly to the place it had come from. "Was afraid I would be stuck back there all day. He must really be bothered by this, normally he would fight to help Kailin."

She nodded, and Jareth did as well. But it was Lycorisa who spoke, "You know, I think he's as heart broken right now as Gabrielle. It'll be better for the two of them to be together, there really isn't much he can do here in his condition."

Everyone agreed, and fell silent as they concentrate on Kailin.

---***---

Four days had past, and Kailin was whole once again. Lycorisa and Jareth still spent their time coming to visit as spies for Mathias. He always caused Tzion's wrath, and it was thought best for him to entertain Gabrielle.

Kailin still hadn't awaken, and she wasn't gaining much strength. Her body was beginning to slow from lack of blood, and Lycorisa had called Tzion to the cathedral to speak with him. They sat next to the alter on the cold stone ground, as he walked down the long hall.

"What is it?" He snapped at Jareth.

He disliked Lycorisa, and preferred to speak with men when given the choice. Lycorisa stood up, while Jareth remained sitting.

"She's becoming weak." Lycorisa looked over Kailin. "She needs to feed, but we can't just take someone and milk their blood out of them."

Tzion rose an eyebrow, Halloweds didn't believe in such torture. "Then I would suggest you allow her to feed from you." It was the perfect opportunity, he hadn't begun to figure out how he would get Jareth and Lycorisa to feed from Kailin.

"What?" Lycorisa turned around, but Tzion turned her back to look at Kailin. He placed his hands on her shoulders, and looked over at Kailin.

"She needs blood to feed, it's not as if we can simply shake her awake. By placing your bleeding wrist on her lips, she will begin to suck. Of course, you should feed from her first to see how much she truly needs."

Lycorisa rolled her eyes, "I know that you tricked Mathias and Khaldun into feeding from her. You ruined their friendship."

"We are vampires, Lycorisa." He said into her ear. "We don't need friends, only allies."

Lycorisa looked at Jareth, who stood up and put his hands on the alter. Tzion turned his attention to him.

"Jareth knows that. He also knows that Kailin needs you two to share your blood with her, and hers with you."

She shook her head, "No, you are trying to trick us. This is just another way for you to get elders to feed from her. You aren't helping her, she will be unable to control her demon."

Tzion grinned and let go of her shoulders. Walking around to the other side of the alter, he looked at her. "Do you have another solution?"

"We get a fresh to allow her to feed from them." Lycorisa said.

He frowned, "How will their blood impact her at all?"

"A little more then human blood would, and there is no chance of a power transfer. Her soul will remain at it's current strength."

Tzion laughed, "You have always done what Mathias has ordered from you. So deeply, childishly in love with a man who only wants to use you. You know that he has no desire for you, I remember clearly when he told you." He grinned, "How sad you were. Do you remember it well, Lycorisa? Like it was yesterday I bet."

She had her mouth closed tightly, her teeth were beginning to hurt.

"And Jareth, always here for you. So much in love with you, and yet you ignore him. Hate him."

Lycorisa looked at Jareth, whose eyes were fixed on Tzion. "I do not hate him."

"Yet, he's the reason, isn't he? The reason you were forced to run away from your life and the man you loved. All because he was a spoiled rich boy who wanted you all to himself. He's the reason that you stumbled into the abandon mansion and ended up giving up your mortal life." Tzion had been staring into Jareth's eyes, and then looked back at Lycorisa. "You blame him for everything."

"Don't say such things."

"You met Mathias though, a man who ignores you. A man who, if I remember correctly, was annoyed just by your presence when you first met. And yet you long for him, while Jareth waits and watches so loyal until his end, I see."

"Where are you going with this, Tzion?" Lycorisa snapped.

"Just making your friend see for the first time. It's interesting how a man who never talks can be so blind, when his sight is all he really has." He looked back to Jareth. "You want to defy him, don't you? Just once. To make Mathias' heart sink, the way it does whenever you see Lycorisa look at him in the way she will never look at you."

Jareth's eyebrows pulled together.

"And here she is." He opened his palms up to point at Kailin. "A similar situation that Mathias lives through. For a long time, he watched her and loved her, but Kailin never saw him, never wanted him. Now she knows, Jareth. She knows that he's alive, does Lycorisa know you are?"

Jareth glimpsed at Lycorisa and then turned his eyes back to Tzion. He shook his head.

"No, you are just her toy. One that she would throw away at Mathias' whim."

"Shut up!" Lycorisa yelled, "That's enough! How dare you say…" She gagged, and fell to her knees.

Akela stood at the front entrance, "Do not speak to Lord Tzion in that tone."

Tzion continued, "Defy him, Jareth. Break his heart for a moment, like he has been doing to you for hundreds of years." He walked towards the front entrance, and Akela wrapped her arm around his lower arm. "I will allow you to think on it."

Lycorisa ran to the door as it was shutting, she wanted the last word. When they closed, she slammed her head against the wood. "That conceded, arrogant fool!" She kicked the door, "How dare he say those things."

Turning around, she looked at Jareth holding Kailin's body in his arms. He began to drink from her neck.

"Jareth, stop!" Lycorisa screamed running to the alter.

Outside the cathedral, Tzion grinned at Akela after hearing Lycorisa's plea.

---***---

Brent wasn't far off in guessing how long it would take Kailin to speak again, after eight days, she was fairly back together. Her body had grown tired, and it was impossible for her to hunt. Her healing slowed to that of a Mephis, but until she was strong enough to feed it would have to do. She was able to walk by the eleventh day, and met outside the Cathedral with Gabrielle. Mathias carried her most of the way, but she demanded to walk out and in the doors on her own. She didn't want Gabrielle to see how weak she was.

Most of the time, Kailin had found herself with Mathias or Tzion inside the cathedral with her. Tzion continually spoke about how he thought Mathias shouldn't visit her. Kailin would listen to him argue with himself about Mathias.

Sitting on the alter, she looked down at the brown robe she had been giving to wear. The sound of the door opened caused her to look up, and a smile played across her face as Mathias entered into the cathedral. "I was beginning to think you weren't coming today." She said to him when he sat down on the alter beside her.

"Gabrielle causes quite a stir. Lycorisa and her don't seem to be getting along very well, and Gabrielle just doesn't know when enough is enough." He watched her smile, "Neither does Lycorisa, so there arguments go on for hours."

She nodded her head, "That's Gabby alright. Strange that she isn't getting along with Lycorisa. Gabby is such a people person, and Lycorisa seems to aim to please everyone."

Mathias agreed and looked down at the ground.

"Something the matter?"

"I feel bad about this happening to you. I should have been following you, and been there when it happened. I was so caught up in the aftermath of the fight…" He sighed, "I just feel bad."

Kailin didn't know what to say, she didn't think it was his fault. "You aren't my babysitter, you know?"

"Yeah, I, kind of, am."

She grinned, "Well, in a way it was lucky that we exchanged blood then. I could have been laying here for years." She patted the hard stone alter beside her.

"I suppose it is, although it was still wrong of him to force it upon us. I doubt this was the reason he wanted us to exchange blood."

"Probably not, but it's a perk."

Mathias had been waiting to tell her about Tzion's plan since the moment she could comprehend what he was saying. Something kept holding him back, his own inner turmoil. He had been wrong before when it came to things Tzion did. He knew it was wrong, it was against the law set forth by the ancients for elders and fresh to exchange blood. Yet, he knew that breaking that law was the only reason Kailin was talking to him at that very moment.

"I feel so weak." Kailin mumbled, "I haven't gone this long without feeding since I had to hid in the sewers in Los Angeles."

Mathias smiled, "Yeah, I didn't appreciate having to follow you around down there."

"Well, I appreciate that you did anyway." She chuckled.

"Kailin?" He had decided.

"Hmm?" She turned her eyes to him.

Mathias changed his mind several times while she responded back, but finally settled on his initial decision. "Tzion has more elders coming to feed from you."

Her eyes dropped, "I had a feeling that's why he was keeping me here, and not allowing me to feed. I asked him to take me or let you take me a hundred times."

"I can take you to my home, at least you will be away from him. Your aura just can't tolerate your soul to strengthen anymore, especially with the amount of power these other elders have." He had stood up while he was talking, and came to stand in front of Kailin.

"If we do that, then I won't have the help of the cathedral to hasten my healing." She said it more to herself then to Mathias.

"I don't know when he has this planned, but we should move soon, before they arrive."

She looked up at him with a frown. Standing up, she took hold of his arm to steady herself. "Alright, lets go. I need to get some items from my apartment, this robe is a little too thirteenth century monk."

---***---

After four days, everyone at the house was surprised that Tzion nor any of his peons had shown up at the door. Gabrielle had been so excited when she saw Kailin walked through the door, that she had leapt into her arms. Mathias and her brought four suitcases full of clothing for both her and Gabrielle. Which was another thing that excited Gabrielle. She hadn't felt comfortable going back to her apartment since Lucas had told her that Damon knew where they were.

Kailin wasn't completely healed, and spent most of her time in her room sleeping. By the evening of the fourth day, she wandered down the stairs to look around. The house looked more like an older woman lived in it, then vampires from centuries that Kailin could only dream of. Walking around, she couldn't find anyone. Until she opened the library door, and saw Lycorisa sitting at the desk with a book in her hand.

"Hey, what are you reading?" Kailin asked as she stepped inside.

Lycorisa looked up and grinned, "One of the tomes that Tzion released. I would let you read it, but it's forbidden." She told her, as she closed it.

"Fresh can't read the tomes."

"Fresh or Kailin, no matter how old you are."

She sat down in the wooden chair across from the desk. "Well, we will see how long I decide to follow that law, won't we?"

Lycorisa grinned.

"Where's your shadow?"

She looked confused.

"I mean Jareth, I've never seen you without him right next to you." Kailin crossed her jean covered legs.

"He's mad at me right now."

There was a moment of silence, as Kailin thought she would explain further. "Why is he mad?"

Lycorisa's smile faded, and the look she gave Kailin told her that she didn't want to talk about it.

"Alright." Kailin said, and sucked her inner cheek. "Where is everyone?"

"Mathias and Jareth went to feed, and Gabrielle… she never tells me where she goes."

Kailin chuckled, "To feed and play."

Lycorisa nodded, and looked down at her fingers that were resting on the desk. She felt uncomfortable talking to Kailin, it wasn't that she didn't like her, but that she didn't like that Mathias did. "Can I ask you something?" Lycorisa looked up.

"Depends on what it is."

She looked out the window, and then back at Kailin. "I wasn't around back in the day when you were still human. Well, I was, but not with Mathias. He did most of that alone. I was wondering…" She thought for a moment, "Did you love Nathaniel even though you ignored him?"

Kailin leaned back in her chair, "Nathaniel." She smiled, "Haven't thought about him in a long time."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't of brought up human memories to begin with." Lycorisa picked up the tome.

"Yeah, I did. I just felt trapped."

Lycorisa put the tome back down, and looked up Kailin again. "Trapped?"

"I can't explain it or why. My heart felt so right, but my mind was just so full of sorrow and hate. I couldn't get past it."

"You weren't meant to be vampire, and being human didn't feel real for you." Lycorisa told her, "Do you still feel that way?"

She nodded, "Sometimes, but to a lesser degree. Why do you ask?"

"I don't know. I guess…"

"Cause Mathias ignores you, and you know I fed from him and want to know if I know how he feels towards you."

Lycorisa stared in horror for a moment, "I… I… yeah, I guess I was going to try and lead it there." She looked down.

"I won't answer that, Lycorisa. What occurred he was tricked into doing, so his thoughts and feelings will remain his and his alone. Just like I will do for you." Kailin stood up, and walked towards the door.

"For me?" Lycorisa swallowed.

She nodded, as she opened the door. "Why did you feed from me? You could of just let Jareth do it, and then left him to all the blame."

A tear ran down her cheek, she didn't think that Kailin knew. She was foolish to think that Kailin wouldn't notice Lycorisa's memories traveling about her mind. "I didn't want him to take the burden alone, it was my fault that Tzion was able to enrage him."

"After all these years, you still try to protect him from himself."

Lycorisa nodded, "I hate him so much, but I can't just leave him. If Mathias finds out that he did it, then he would of thrown him out like he did to Khaldun. But now, if Jareth leaves then I am at fault too."

"It gives you a reason to leave Mathias behind."

She nodded, and wiped the tears from her face. "You won't tell him, will you?"

Kailin shook her head, "No, but I expect you to confess. He needs to know these things, after all he is trying to protect me like you do for Jareth."

Lycorisa agreed, "When he gets back, I will speak with him."

Kailin grinned and stepped out into the hallway, "After that, we will go hunting together."

"I doubt I will be around after that."

"I think you will be surprised. Mathias values your friendship and your opinions, and if you value a person then you are willing to forgive their short comings." With that Kailin stepped outside the hall and shut the door.