Nicholas snarled loudly once more, when the other male squeezed the bag. He began coughing, hand pressed to his chest, burying his face into Victoria's neck once again so he got her scent instead of the scent of the herbs. Only when Victoria began sitting up, did he move, and his grip loosened immidiately, though his arms still formed a cage around her, glaring at the one Victoria claimed their son. He'd spoken the word, "Father," in perfect unision with Keith, looking away like a scolded teenager when the female told them to quit shouting. He didn't protest, though, and lowered his voice; growling. Even with her recognition of him, Nicholas still wasn't trusting him quite yet. He'd brandished the herbal mixture that could harm almost any vampire, and even now, he suffered the afteraffects of it; a migrane, stomach twisting and knotting painfully, his lungs practically closed.

Alexander slipped inside, hand gently touching his throat, glaring towards Keith. Seeing that no one inside was harmed, however, he made no comment, sitting down in one of the chairs. Nicholas stared at him. "You fucking attacked my brother?" he retorted. Alexander held up a hand, though... and it wasn't long before Nicholas understood: he couldn't speak. There was a wheezing noise coming from the blonde-haired male, and it was obvious he was having a hard time breathing. The darker haired twin of the two left Victoria's side, but not before placing several pillows behind her and pulling the shirt back over her chest. Afterwards, he moved over to his brother, placing a hand quietly against his chest. There was nothing they could do but wait it out, as far as Nicholas understood. But spots were forming over Alexander's vision; his eyes ever-so-slowly beginning to glaze... he wasn't managing to get enough air.

Lauralei grumbled, lifting her head from Tristan's shoulder, looking at the door tiredly. "Why is there so much yelling downstairs?" she muttered, aggravated, rolling over and stuffing a pillow over her head. "God they're loud." She still couldn't really tell who exactly was yelling... but she was too tired, for the moment, to even get up to check. However, if things stayed tense, and they did keep yelling, she would. She wasn't even sure if Tristan was sleeping yet. All the better, if he was; she could slip away without him protesting. For now... she stayed put.

Keith blinked a few times as he watched Nicholas closely, backing away a few steps from him and his mother. This vampire was his father? Fleeting memories of this man were there in the back of his mind, but never would he had recognized the man had his mother not said it aloud who it was that was holding her so closely. Keith had indeed stopped his shouting, and the small linen bag of herbs was far from sight now, it's scent disappearing rather quickly. For so many years Keith had wondered who this mysterious man of his dreams of the past was. For so long he wished he could remember the darkened ace of his memories. He had known his mother so well growing up, and very rarely had he seen his father. From what he could remember it had only been in the beginning that he had seen him, and they were rare and few times at that. Maybe a dozen times in his life? Maybe a few less. Either way it was hard to believe that this man that stood before him, the man that he had just threatened with these rancid vampiric herbs, was the man who fathered him... and the man that had caused his mother so much pain and heartache while he was growing up.

Keith finally shook himself from his dazed trance of disbelief. It wasn't until after Alexander came inside the house and Nicholas had left Victoria's side that Keith even moved from his spot once again. Keith's eyes followed Nicholas as he walked over to his brother who looked as if he was still in more pain than he had felt in a long time. Was it so surprising that he had overtaken his father's brother? Is it so surprising that he was so much stronger than anyone had ever imagined? Victoria sighed and rolled her eyes at Nicholas' retort about Alexander. "Calm down, Nicholas. Please?" She asked, her voice weak and tired once again. Her hands moved to her stomach as she coughed heavily, pain shooting across her face as she moved into a tight ball on the couch. "Mom..." Keith said softly, his icy blue eyes shooting to her pained sounds as he moved rather quickly to kneel beside the couch. "I never should have left mom. I never thought that this would happen though..." He said to her, worry on his face. "Mom... was this the council? Did they do this to you?" Keith bombarded her with questions, not even thinking to stop to look at the pain that was still written across her face. Victoria had started to sweat again and her temperature was raising once more. She knew that this was only her body fighting to find enough strength to heal herself, but it was just going so slowly. "Nicholas..." She mumbled, barely able to call out his name above a whisper.

Tristan wasn't sleeping, though his eyes were closed at the moment. He felt her move beside him, but only laid there. He was tired, but he was more worried about what was going on downstairs. He couldn't let Lauralei go down there. He couldn't let her see anything that was going on. Tristan didn't even know for sure what was going on. All he knew was that he smelled blood, and lots of it. Tristan listened to her angered words and instead of saying anything in response, he just hugged her closer to him, as if being protective.

Nicholas growled once more before leaving Alexander's side, the blonde's eyes having closed, in attempt to relax so he could breathe easier. It wasn't that he could still smell the herbs; because he couldn't. That was simply how intoxicating they were. And it didn't help, that he was already allergic to the rosemary, long before he'd even been bitten and turned into a vampire. Hence the reason Nicholas wasn't reacting so badly to it. As soon as Victoria called him, the dark-haired male was right back next to Victoria, on the couch, gently holding her upper half into his lap, pillows already nestled there for her comfort. "Shhh," he purred, smoothing the sweat and hair away from her face and neck. He reached over to the plate, and in moments, the large slab of meat that had been there was cut up into small chunks, small enough for her to swallow whole. "Try eating... please...? It'll help..."

Lauralei allowed herself to grumble a little bit at the knowledge that Tristan wasn't sleeping, not pulling away when she was hugged closer to him, into his chest. Finally, after a few minutes, she got up out of the bed, stumbling at first in the dark; finding where she needed to go. The closet. Pulling a small cord, she flinched at the sudden amount of light, slipping into a nightgown. She didn't move to the door that led out of the room, but just moved back to the bed, straddling Tristan momentarily; giving him a soft kiss on the lips, and settling beside him. Getting up and moving around, even for just a few moments, helped her restlessness, relaxing not too much longer later.

Victoria coughed a few more times, complete pain shooting through her body once again. Victoria opened her eyes to look up at Nicholas when she heard him speak softly once again. She smiled, though it was a little forced, it was still calming. She knew that he was only trying to help her. But the single thought of food made her feel sick to her stomach, or at least what little of a stomach it felt like she had left. But she simply sighed and forced herself to sit up a little bit so that she could take the plate from him and set it on her own lap. "I'll try..." She said, taking up a piece of the bloody meat in her fingers. Popping the small piece into her mouth, she chewed it for a moment before swallowing it. She was so spoiled when Nicholas was around. He never made her lift a finger. He was always right there for her no matter what she needed or wanted. And Victoria could honestly say that she truly loved Nicholas. She always had, since she had first met him, and still did to that day. As Victoria thought to herself, it took her mind away from the pain and made it just a bit easier for her to eat the food that Nicholas had been begging her to eat. As she ate, the sweat started to calm itself and her temperature started to return to normal once again. Before she even knew it, her plate of food was empty, and she was looking up at Nicholas, smiling a little bit more naturally now. "Happy now?" She asked, tilting her head into his chest.

Keith lifted his head, his nose up in the air. He sniffed a few times and his brow furrowed lightly. "What IS that smell? It's so... different." He said quietly as he stood up. Closing his eyes he took a deep breath. Something smelled so normal about the smell but still completely different. And it was coming from upstairs. There were more people in this house. Keith completely disappeared, only to appear in the hallway upstairs at the top of the main staircase of the house. Again he tilted his head up and sniffed. The smell was even closer. He took a few steps forward, silent steps that no one could hear. Slowly, he followed the scent that had caught his attention, moving ever so closer to Lauralei and Tristan's door. It wasn't until he was immediately infront of it that he turned and looked at the door. His ears twitched a bit as he listened closely to what was inside.

Tristan let Lauralei stand up and watched as she moved across the room. He didn't want her to go out of the room, and if she even tried he would have to rush to stop her. Sure she wouldn't like it and would probably be angry at him afterwards, but anything to protect her from whatever was going on downstairs. Tristan was relieved however when Lauralei returned to the bed and straddled his waist to give him a kiss. He wrapped his arms around her and held her to him for a moment before allowing her to slide off of him and lay beside him once again. He was relieved that she was so easilly satisfied by that simple walk across the room. Tristan brushed the hair from her face and slowly trailed his hand down to rest gently on her stomach. "Are you feeling...." But before he finished his sentence, he lifted his head and growled at the ark figure that had suddenly appeared in the room with them. Keith stood at the end of the bed, his icy blue eyes staring down at Lauralei. "It can't be..." He said, blinking a few times.

Nicholas was, in fact, happy with Victoria once she'd eaten the food, glad she was allowing herself to risk it, and taking the time to let it settle. It was such a relief when she simply looked... better, than the wounded limp body she'd been before, straining herself. It killed him to see her like that. In any pain. Which was why it was so hard for him to keep coming back to her and leaving once she'd had Keith. Their son... he was marvelous. Able to take on Alexander without so much as blinking. Speaking of which, the elder was snoozing silently in the room a few chairs away, breathing easier now. The herbs had taken the strength from him; sleeping was really the only way he could even hope to get it back. The quicker the better, with the mass amount of violence that'd been going on lately. And the threats... he couldn't pick which one to look out for, because looking out for all of them was too overwhelming.

When Keith stood, and questioned a smell, Nicholas blinked at him. What...? He didn't say it out loud; merely thought it to himself, but he wasn't sure what he was curious about. Until he went upstairs. For several moments he debated on whether or not warning the hybred about what was upstairs, and by the time he'd made up his mind, the boy had vanished. Another growl rose up from Nicholas's throat, aggitated. Fine. He'd find out himself. With how strong he was, and with a pregnant female upstairs... he highly doubted Keith would get violent. But he knew nothing about his son, so it could be the total opposite. He just wasn't sure. Whatever was going to happen, though, he knew no one could stop. Keith's strength overpowered too much.

Lauralei looked over at Tristan when his hand trailed down to her stomach; the lump hidden beneath the blankets. At the growl, though, and the stare, her eyes shot towards Keith at the foot of the bed; Lauralei's body almost immidiately sheltering behind Tristan. Her upper half was meekly hid behind the werewolf, not exactly feeling much from the male in front of them. But if he'd just appeared in the room... was he after them? Purple hues were unmistakably frightened, arms wrapping around her belly, even quivering slightly, unsure about the aura that even a human could feel, coming from the male in front of them. While it was terrifying to come in contact with, to her mind, it calmed her body, almost excited it. This confused her further, pulling the blanket slowly up to her shoulders, eyebrows narrowing a tad bit at the male that stared down at her.

Victoria felt better. Better than she thought she would have. Sure the thought and the smell of the meat had made her feel sicker than the wound had already made her feel, but once she had sucked it up and eaten the raw meat, the feelings that were overwhelming her had died down significantly. Now she felt calmer, her senses calming and returning to normal, though slowly. But the one sense that wasn't dying was the fact that Nicholas was there with her. She could feel everything. His presence, his breathing, the coolness of his skin. It calmed her, made all of this so much easier. Victoria couldn't remember the last time she had felt so much pain in one sitting, besides the night that she had given birth to Keith..... Keith. He was there... he had shown himself from hiding. He had come to her side. But how is it that he had known that she had become endangered? How had he sensed such things when she knew he had been so far away? She couldn't find the strength to voice her questions let alone open her eyes at the moment, but she made herself a mental note that as soon as she had her energy back she would talk to her son. For now though she could only lay there and concentrate on her breathing, trying to keep it as stable as possible so that Nicholas, who she could feel hoovering over her, wouldn't worry any more than he already was.

Tristan stared at Nicholas, but he didn't get the normal protective stance he would have over Lauralei. Sure, this complete stranger caught him off guard, but he could sense the safety that he brought with him. This male that was standing at the foot of their bed, staring so cautiously at Lauralei wasn't there to hurt either one of them... He was there to protect them. "I never thought..." Keith started to say slowly before shaking his head and taking a few steps backwards. Keith scratched his head and looked at Tristan. "So this is what everyone's been so feverishly trying to hide the past few weeks. Another cross breed." Tristan blinked a few times and sighed, looking down at Lauralei. "Yes, Keith. It's another one like you." Tristan sat up and pulled Lauralei up to him. "Lauralei... There's going to be a lot of questions... but you know of Nicholas, Alexander's twin brother, correct?" Tristan waited a few moments before looking at Keith. "Well this is Keith. Nicholas and Victoria's only son."

Nicholas relaxed when he didn't hear or sense any sudden commotion upstairs, knowing Keith had invaded their privacy. He knew Lauralei was still nervous; uneasy, but Tristan... he sensed nothing off the male that would indicate any sort of fight, or even a bicker. That was enough to let him relax next to Victoria, closing his eyes and stuffing half of his face into one of the throw pillows.

Lauralei was still nervous, leaning into Tristan's chest when he pulled her to him. With the information Tristan provided, long eyelashes gently brushed against her cheeks, shutting her eyes. She was still slightly tense, but for the most part, relaxed against Tristan's chest, making him lean back a bit so she was more comfortable. Anything was a danger to their child right now. Keith's coming there would only mean that Lucian and the others would probably come there again. The vampiress was tired; exausted, really. Tristan's beautiful abuse to her body earlier had worn her out, and even now, in the gentle silence of the room, the infant within her stretched out, thrashing softly, then settling again. Lauralei's hand moved to her stomach almost every time the child moved. This time, though, she knew it was because Keith was standing there. She didn't know how she knew... but she did. "If you'd be so kind..." Her eyes opened less than halfway, gentle purple hues shifting towards the other male in the room. "I'm very tired." It was hint, to leave the room; at least until the next night when they could all sit down and talk.

ooc: I kinda figured you popped by now. xD And I re-did my post, didn't like the last one. Hope you and the new little one are doing fantastic =]

Victoria heard the footsteps walking across the floor on the floor above her, but after she heard that there was no commotion coming from the sudden intrusion that Keith had given Lauralei and Tristan, she relaxed. Keith was uneasy, and he was quick to jump. It was as if he was wild, a monster raised in the woods for a lifetime of anger and revenge. The vampires had taken him away from her, they had taken the only two things that she loved in life away. For years she had wanted vengeance for her pain, but it wasn't long before that anger turned into a numbing pain. She lived the past years as a shell of who she had once been, someone that she had grown to dislike even more that the vampires. She hated who she had become, a pawn in Lucian's game. Someone that was just there to do the dirty work. Victoria sighed in content though now, feeling Nicholas move beside her, burying his face into a pillow. A half of a smile spread across her lips as she felt his coolness again her own body heat. It was something that had always been an instant calm for her. Victoria opened her own eyes and looked over at Nicholas, the half smile becoming more full. It was the smile that she had thought that she had lost many years ago when her loves were taken from her. The pain was finally gone from Victoria's body, and though she had only slept for a little while, she felt worlds better than she had previously. She shifted slightly, wrapping a single arm around Nicholas's shoulders, burying her own face into the small part of his neck that was showing. She breathed in his smell, closing her eyes to the comfort and happiness she found there, shutting her mind out to everything around him and her.

Tristan could sense how nervous Lauralei was and held her close to his chest. He watched her carefully and ran his fingers through her hair, studying her for just a moment longer before looking back up at Keith. Tristan's free hand met hers when she moved it to her own stomach, and he smiled gently as he watched her. Tristan nodded at Lauralei's words. "We will talk when night falls again Keith. Just please, stay out of trouble. We are trying to not draw more attention to ourselves than we already have." Keith nodded slightly and after watching Lauralei for a moment longer, taking in one more breath of the all to familiar scent in the air, he turned and left the room, leaving Tristan to move slightly so that Lauralei was laying even more comfortably, allowing her to rest in peace finally.

Keith walked from the bedroom. After making his way downstairs he stopped at the bottom step and looked around. He didn't know what it was he was supposed to do. His mother and... father... were laying in a lover's grasp on the couch. He saw that the other vampire, Alexander was it, was sleeping in a chair across the room. "Well... this looks fun." He said sarcastically with a sigh before finding a nice wall to lean on. How could everybody sleep at a time like this? There was some very pissed off werewolves obviously, and he was willing to bet that the Vampires weren't much happier. Keith sighed and put his weight on the wall behind him. He would stay awake for them, watching, protecting...

Nicholas stirred a little when Victoria had rested her face against the small part of his neck that was showing, unburying his face from the pillow to gently kiss her forehead. Keith and the others were still upstairs, though he could feel Lauralei's tension at first, then utter tiredness. He fell asleep once more, arms wrapped around Victoria in a way that she wasn't caged if she wanted to get up. In a sense, it was hard to sleep knowing what was out there, what the species wanted done to destroy the other. Raphael wasn't happy, but he wasn't going to go as far as killing Tristan or Lauralei. With Keith having showed up, that was a different story. It honestly frightened him slightly.

Raphael, back then, was cold and cruel to anything that stood in the way of him winning an argument. There was no mercy. There were screams heard daily. And Raphael's sapphire hues seemed to grow only colder, until he met Jaylen, the beautiful vampiress that currently stands her place as his wife. He fell into the delicate weavings of love and understanding; the very thing that had turned him cold to begin with, when his former lover was taken away from him. His punishment to the world was to make sure that they felt the pain he did, even if it was something small. As soon as Jaylen stepped, crippled, into his life, he changed completely. Never before had the mansion seen him act so tenderly towards anyone, and after so many years, she began to change him.

Nicholas remembered the hard times, even in his sleep. He remembered the screaming, the fearful glances everyone shot Raphael as he walked through the mansion halls. He remembered how nearly no one came to the mansion for help, because Raphael almost always turned it against them and ended up punishing them for it. If it was a woman, he'd strip them of their power as a vampire. It completely drained them, and they usually begged for death afterwards anyway. If it were male... that was a completely other story, one filled with much more suffernig than many could imagine.

Lauralei didn't relax right away when Keith left. It took a few minutes, and eventually, she nestled down and lay molded to Tristan's side, trailing her fingers along his chest. Her body was still buzzing slightly from earlier, and she was glad. It provided a relaxing sensation to finally float over her, until the mental exauhstion took over and she fell heavily into sleep. If Tristan moved, however, she'd most likely wake, such as if he left the bed for a little more than a few minutes. The heat radiating off of him warmed her already warmer-than-usual skin, but it still felt chilly in the room. Perhaps it was because of how nervous she'd been when Keith stepped inside.

Slowly, she began to warm to a much more comfortable temperature. When nightfall came, she'd probably sleep in longer than anyone else in the mansion. Even if the hybred downstairs made her nervous, in a way she felt safer. It was strange. But the emotions weren't coming from her.. but something inside of her. It was so strange how the growing, unborn child was affecting her so strongly.

Had there ever really been a time where Lucian wasn't... well... Lucian? Victoria tried so hard to think of one time, one momentary scrap of time where Lucian was kindhearted or acted nice towards anyone. Sure he had spared hers and Keith's life so many years ago, but she had paid the price. She had lost the only two people she ever loved in this wretches world. She had lost everything that she had ever been. And Lucian had replaced it with false hope of a new start. With Killian. And her place in the circle of elders. None of that was worth it to her though. There had never been anyone who made Lucian anything less or anything more than the cold-hearted bastard, the ignorant prick that he had always been. There had never been a single woman for Lucian. There had only ever been flings, women and werewolves that he would take advantage of and have his way with. Werewolf females would flock to him, just to be seen differently under his eyes. He would seek out human women, killing them instantly when he was finished with them. All except for Tristan's mother. Victoria remembered her well. She was beautiful, the most beautiful human she had ever seen. With vivid eyes and deep auburn hair, her skin was pale, like moonlight, but fit her oh so well. To this day Victoria still believed that Lucian had been in love with Lucy, the gypsy girl that he had met one day. Victoria remembered the day like it was yesterday. Lucian, herself, and a few other werewolves had been out hunting. They always tried to travel in packs, even back then. But something had happened and they were all separated. Lucian had run into some hunters, and had been wounded rather deeply by a knife. Even though it wasn't fatal, it had weakened him. Victoria had seen the woman approaching the large wolf that laid motionless on the ground. She was so brave, even as the beast gnarled at her. Victoria had watched from the trees as Lucian's werewolf form faded away, leaving the cold, naked man he truly was laying there in the mud in front of the woman. Victoria had watched as the woman found help, others who spoke her tongue, the deep Irish that Victoria had learned very little of over her many years. It was the last time that she had seen Lucian. The woman, Lucy, and the tow men had carried Lucian off into the night, leaving the clan of werewolves without their leader, and in an uproar of confusing moments.

It was months before they had seen Lucian again, about five as it was. And when he had returned, he was... different. He seemed happier, as if the man they once knew had been stripped away, replaced by someone they didn't know. The next three months were innocent, happy. There was no more random bloodshed. There was no more women running around freely from Lucian's quarters. Everything had changed. It wasn't until Lucian came to Victoria that she fully understood what was going on. It was then that she realized, as Lucian spoke of Lucy who was ripe with his child, that Victoria figured out just why he had been gone for so long. It was then, that Victoria fully hated Lucian. He had done the one thing that she had thought wasn't allowed. He had bred with someone not of their own species. She had been punished for loving the enemy vampires, but had the humans not been their enemy as well? Did they not hunt them for their fur? Just for the game. For the victory of having fallen the greatest beast of the woods? But he had sent her of all people to Lucy's side, as if he knew that she wouldn't make it. And it was then that Victoria became close to a human woman, and it was for the first time then that Victoria had cried over the death of a human. Someone she had called a friend.

Victoria gasped and sat straight up, clutching her stomach in slight pain. She gasped a few times, causing Keith to jump, looking at her with scared eyes. He wouldn't speak though. He could smell what was wrong, could sense it in that strange connection that he had with his mother. Victoria whimpered, placing her face in her hands. She sobbed almost silently into her hands, shaking lightly where she sat. Her hands fell to her lap, and she stared blankly into her hands. Her right hand finally moved, resting lightly on Nicholas's back. She didn't look at him, just closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She hadn't thought he was going to be there when she so suddenly woke up from her quick nap. Keith finally moved and knelt beside the couch that Nicholas and Victoria were on. "Mother... You should eat. It'll calm your nerves." Victoria blinked and looked at Keith, smiling a bit as she looked at him. She simply nodded. "I will. Later. Now is not the time. Lucian is boiling something new in his dark mind. None of us are safe." She said, looking over at Nicholas.