"Is it almost he-healed yet? Those stitches are it-itchy." I groan in vaguely truthful annoyance, wincing lightly as Sebastian fixes my sweater back to its rightful place.

"It's almost healed sweetness." Remington reassures, smiling fondly from his place sitting next to me on one of the two couches in the living room.

"Just a couple more days and the stitches can be taken out. You've recovered much faster than any of us thought you would. This is nearly supernatural healing." Sebastian remarks, ignoring Emerson as he tosses a piece of popcorn at him (my popcorn), the kernel harmlessly bouncing off his head.

"Ph-physical injuries always hee-healed fast." I shrug, leaning my head against Remington's arm, fixing the shoulder of my (Remington's) t-shirt.

"Hey, can you do the thing again?" Emerson asks excitedly, easily steering the conversation away at the dark look Remington and Sebasriwn share, sitting up from his place on the other couch, where he'd been leisurely kicking his feet off the back of the chair as his head hung off the cushions.

"Again- again Em? It's the t-third time y-you've asked this week." I laugh, already allowing the shadows in the room to creep up my legs where my boots just barely scrape the floor.

Small little tricks with my powers don't drain me too much and Emerson has taken a liking to watching me mess around with the shadows. It's rather amusing really, and a good way to keep in touch with my magic. A powerful vampire-witch hybrid wanting a mere human to do her little shadow tricks.

'He is still the youngest, sweetness, even though he never acts like it.'

'Even I've never heard of a person with the powers you have, and I've lived for quite a few millennium. Little drummer boy has a right to be in awe of your gifts, darling.'

I don't bother replying even though I'm overjoyed Andy has spoken up again, and instead let the shadows that resemble vines curl around my hands. He's been a bit quiet since the night he helped me to sleep. I concentrate, forming the picture I want in my mind and letting the shadows mimic it.

A small pirate ship forms, identical to those Emerson draws because those are the only ships I can remember, and a little more concentration is all I need for it to detach from the mother shadows to begin floating around the room. The ship twirls around Emerson's head, and brushes against Sebastian's hair before disappearing.

Hm... I wonder if I can still...

I close my mismatched eyes, sitting up and no longer leaning on Remington, letting my arms rest on the couch with the palms of my hands facing downward and hanging over the edge of the cushion. It couldn't hurt to try, I suppose.

'Darling?' Andy's confused voice rings through my consciousness, the smoothness of it breaking my concentration for only a moment.

'Shh.' I respond to which he falls silent, curiosity thrumming across the bond the three of us share.

I can feel eyes on my still form, though I try to ignore them, picturing how my magic should work. First, a circular cluster of shadows will appear at my feet, the inky blackness festering like an infected wound as dark tendrils of smoke curl out of the darkness. Then, bones will claw their way out of the void, skeletal paws scratching at the ground in attempts to escape their tenebrous confines. Little by little, the creature will crawl it's way up from the dark depths, ending with the tip of a tail made of a dog's backbone.

The skeletal dog let's out a small yip as its boney tail wags happily, the sound hollow and haunting. Smiling, overjoyed at the sight of the somewhat resurrected animal, I note that it took more concentration than my previous trick. I can already feel exhaustion creeping up behind my eyelids and thrumming through my veins, but I haven't summoned since I was a child so it's to be expected. I'd kept this part of my magic well hidden for the most part, scared of what it could do, but it seems I'm mainly drained of energy, body aching all over. That's a far better outcome than I was expecting, and it was worth it to see the look of elation on Emerson's face, his gaze never straying from the skeletal creature.

Glancing over at Remington to make sure he didn't hear me think that, I find him grinning at me as Emerson tosses popcorn at the dog as a form of fetch. Darn it, he heard me.

"What?" I wonder quietly, tilting my head up to look at him better and letting the vines on my hands grow to slither up my arms as well.

"I'm so in love with you." Remington states wholeheartedly, the corners of his eyes crinkling as he smiles.

I cease all movement, frozen as I gape at him in surprise. I vaguely hear Emerson snickering as Sebastian leads him out of the living room, the little dog continuing to prance after him, its tail creaking and popping as it swishes through the air.

Remi continues to grin, reaching his hand forward to brush against my cheek. "Y-you love me?" I stutter in utter disbelief.

No one's ever loved me before.

I watch as the grin turns into a slight frown, "Sweetness, I love you. My brothers, they love you too. You're loved. I know you don't know if you love me yet, and that's fine, even if you never do. I'll be here for you, no matter what. I'll remind you of how much I love you, so you'll never forget, never doubt my affections, whether you ever return them or not. Because you're my soulmate, my other half, and you deserve to be loved, whether romantically or platonically."

"I'm not, not ready to sssay it, but I b-believe you when you say you love, love me."

I don't wait a single second after speaking, leaning forward to kiss him with all I have. He kisses me back for only a moment before I pull away. I try not to jostle my wound too much as I wrap my arms around his shoulders and lean my head in the crook of his neck.

"I love you so much." Andy's voice shines through beside Remingtons, a murmur in my ear, to which I respond by tightening my hold on my vampire, wishing I could hold both of them.

::
(

Currently adding in this scene)

While in the kitchen making herself a plain sandwich, Eliza is approached by Sebastian with a kind, tempting offer. He didn't have to make any more of an effort to include her -his continued kindness after his initial wariness was enough for her- and yet here he was, willingly putting aside his valuable time to do something like this for her.

"Elizabeth, I was wondering if you'd like to be the taste tester for any dishes I make? I was thinking we could learn to cook, together." Sebastian offers, approaching her with an air of steel-like resolve.

"I've not been as kind to you as I should have been when you've proven repeatedly that you're trustworthy. I would like to do this not only as a peace offering, but as an attempt to form a bond between us. You're family."

Thinking over his words, Elizabeth takes a moment to put some real thought into his offer. Out of the three brothers, Sebastian is the one she knows the least about. He's kept his heart well away from her own, guarding it in case she turned traitor. "You would do something like this, for me?" She asks, eyes wide, sandwich forgotten.

"Of course I would. If you want for anything, be it a hobby or some frivolous item, you need only ask. We certainly have the money. As long as my brothers safety is not brought to question, there is very little that I will likely decline."

At Sebastian's words, Elizabeth's head lowers. Sebastian has been emotionally distant at best, and simply hostile at worst. He has been kinder, a slow thing, like a flower blooming. But this is a huge leap in his treatment of her. He is willingly offering to spend civil time with her, to teach her and learn something new himself. Dare she say, a bonding activity.

"I wouldn't kn-know what to make- make." She says, finally, after a moment or two of silence.

Sebastian had waited patiently, letting her mull over his words for as long as she wished.

"We can make anything you'd like. The library will have recipe books, I'm sure, and we don't have to limit ourselves to one cultures dish, or one type. I'm happy to start with simple things anyway. I've not cooked since I was still human, many years ago now and in that age, and with our social status, the food wasn't exactly tasteful."

"Does- does human food e-even work like blood for you guys?" Elizabeth asks, head tilted just slightly to the side in question.

"No, but we can still taste it. We've just had no reason to learn to cook for ourselves until you, ah, arrived. There was never any appreciation for food to be had, since the only thing we'd ever eaten before vampirism was bland."

"Okay, if- if you're sure you're fine with it." Her voice is small, quieter than usual as she hunches over into herself a little further, but there's a smile on her face nonetheless.

::

Its about a week later when their blood supply completely runs out. Its noticeable in the way their skin has been growing paler and this hungry look has been permanently etched into the brothers' irises. Their movements are sluggish, as though with every breath they don't need to take, more and more of their energy drips out of them. Emerson and Sebastian have taken to avoiding me, though apologetically, and I understand. I understand even when I can tell its killing Remington, and Andy, to not be able to touch me when Remington fears that the slightest slip up will have his teeth buried in my neck without my consent.

"We're nearly out of blood and we can't take you with us to The Underground while we restock our supply. We don't trust anyone down there enough to guarantee your safety. We can't find another alternative currently and no contacts that we trust have been responding." Sebastian remarks begrudgingly, he too avoiding my increasingly perturbed stare.

"Your blood is also more enticing than a normal human so you'd be put in more danger than usual with us." Emerson comments quietly, the only one of the brothers that has managed to meet my eyes with a somewhat level gaze.

I nod, frowning, tracing the scars on my hands nervously, "I... don't like being locked up."

Rem brushes a strand of hair behind my ear, "I know sweetness, but your safety is my -𝐨𝐮𝐫- priority. We'll only be gone for a night, two at most if we can't find a supplier. I don't want you out on the streets, no matter what. Its not safe for you out there, but it won't be safe where we're going either. Here, in our home, in your room, is the safest place for you."

"You're one of us now Elizabeth. Remember that. We take care of our own." Sebastian chimes in, a grin on his face, though he holds an air of hesitancy like the other brothers.

'Well, I suppose I could- I don't want to lock Elizabeth up... not by herself.'

'What? What is it?'

I remain quiet, trying not to let my mind rack up a million questions as Rem and Andy have a conversation. I can't get the thought of being trapped out of my mind. I don't want to think they'd do it to me, but what if they don't let me out? What if they've been so kind to me all this time, only to betray me like my old home did? I don't think I could handle the pain if that were the case.

"You want to what?! You can do that?" In his surprise, Remington blurted out his thought instead of conveying them to the other man in his mind, chocolate eyes blown wide in bewilderment.

"What's wrong?" I startle, shooting up from my laying position, legs falling off of Emerson's lap.

"He wants... he wants to physically manifest outside of my body. He says he'll only be able to hold physical form on this plane for about a week at the very most if he pushes it, so two days shouldn't be too bad. Something about being able to protect Eliza while we're gone..." Remington pauses, rolling his eyes despite the trepidation radiating over our connection. "He also mentioned that our plan was stupid and we shouldn't have even brought up locking her in the house while we left."

"Well, he's not wrong but it's the only thing we thought of." Sebastian remarks, rather offended.

I tilt my head to the side. "Do it." I state, entirely invested in the idea, wanting to physically meet the demon in Remingtons body.

"Sweetness, I've never... let him do this before. I've never seen him, and he was an asshole before you got here. I will admit... he's grown on me since then.."

'Do you trust me?'

A simple question, really. I should have said no. This was a demon I was speaking to, something to be feared. But, on the other hand, he is also my soulmate, another piece of my being. He's been nothing but kind to me, and protective, and highly passive-aggressive to Rem's brothers... and Remington himself, funnily enough. I trust him. That night he told me his name, I'll never forget what he did for me... He makes me feel the same way Remington does.

'Always.'

An image flashes through my mind of a man. He's smiling so widely that's it's nearly blinding. He's beautiful, nearly moreso than Remington himself, but in a different way. Remington has a vampiric elegance to him, but this man, he is angelic, ethereal in all sense of the word. Is this the way all demons look? I understand now why people say that demons can so easily tempt one into sinning, if they all look like that.

"L-let him do this Rem. I trust him." I smile, running a hand through his hair only once.

"Alright. Fine. But tomorrow." He mutters, not entirely enthusiastic about the idea of letting the demon out, the demon who had been attempting to take over his soul a mere month and a half ago.

There's still a small amount of trepidation warring within him. We all stand up then, Remington wrapping an arm around my shoulder, leading us up to his room. Emerson goes to his room, probably to continue drawing, the little skeleton doggy following him. Offhandedly, I note that my little creature is spending more time with Emerson than it is with its ressurector. Sebastian wanders up to his room as well, passing by Remington and I with a small smile.

"I th-think I just lost my pet." I murmur, staring after Emerson and the dog.

Remington chuckles, his adorable laugh causing me to blush profusely. I love his laugh. And his nose, and lips, and cheekbones, and eyes. Even his eyebrows are adorable, the slight curve in them when he raises one to look at me playfully always causes me to get flustered.

"You're gonna make a deadman blush, sweetness."

"I- uh- uhm-" I stutter, embarrassed that he'd heard me.

This whole hearing-each-others'-thoughts thing is gonna kill me. I just know it. One day I'm going to catch fire from the severity of my blush.

Remington casts a privacy charm on the room, as he always does, and I watch in renewed awe as his eyes burn gold, my wonderment amaranthine. Thr door remains cracked open, a doorstopper placed to keep it open. I go to the bathroom to change and brush my teeth, coming out in one of his shirts.

A brush is in his hand, and he waves it with a smile. Sitting at the foot of the bed, I let him take my hair out of the simple updo he'd done for me earlier in the day. He brushes my hair and braids it back away from my face, letting the long braid rest at my lower back. Pieces poke out from the braid and atop my head, loose and haphazard from where the unhealthy bits had broken off.  I should probably cut it.

With a hug from behind, Remington gets up and goes to the bathroom to do his own nightly routine. 'You look very pretty, darling.' Andy says, fondness lacing his deep voice.

I thank him, always happy to hear his input on anything and everything.

When Remington comes back, he smiles with a soft gaze, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear for me. As we lay down on his bed, Rem begins to sing softly in my ear, starting off with a hum before his morose voice leaves pink lips in melodic whispers.

"Ma cherie, time won't be enough to make you even fall in love with me, prefer the needle to me... want to hold you in my arms but you want nothing to do with me..."

"You have such a beautiful voice. You should sing more Rem." I murmur quietly, not entirely meaning to cut him off, resting my hand in his spiked hair, the other gripping his hand that lays in front of us.

"Thank you sweetness. I can play the piano too. I'll play for you sometime," He trails off, humming quietly before singing again, "I can't seem to make you love me today, oh today, I just want to see that frown go away, go away..."

I scoot closer to him, releasing his hand so I can wrap my arm under him and around his back, my right hand still tangled in his hair.

"What's this one about?" I inquire softly.

"You, us. When I wasn't sure if you would even want to be near me once you knew of the demon. I wasn't just scared you'd be afraid of him... but of me. The needle is what I used to represent the darkest part of me, and... well, it's hard to ignore your nightmares when our bond drags me into them."

'I was swept up as well. I wish I could take your nightmares from you, but I'm not the sort of demon who can, I'm sorry.' Andy speaks up.

'You saw them too? I suppose that makes sense since we share a body.' Remington concludes thoughtfully, no amount of hostility to be heard.

He didn't even have to clarify for me to get what he meant. That place was terrible. I wish I could just forget sometimes. Remington continues, voice a pitch higher in hesitance, "I wondered if you'd prefer the needle or me. Stupid, I know. It's just... I couldn't help but to wonder if your fear of me would be stronger than the fear of wherever you were before you escaped. It's... also about a time a few centuries ago..."

Remington pauses, a strangled gasp escaping his lips as he struggles to speak. "God, there's so many meanings in this song, some so obscure that they barely connect to the lyrics. My mind was all over the place..."

I switch positions, wrapping both arms around him and burying my face in his chest, tangling my leg with his in some attempt to comfort him as he continues. "I had fallen into my dark side, trapped within the deepest, most tenebrous part of my mind. I was terrified, disgusted as I was forced to watch the massacre that ensued. I'd ended up in a hospital, blood painted the white walls crimson because of what I did, but it was where I finally gained back control. I fought and fought for my body back, and there was a syringe full of morphine on a nearby table. I grabbed it, and without any further thought, jabbed the needle into my neck and emptied the contents into my body. If I were human, I'd have died, but I woke up the next day back home, Sebastian at my side and guilt gnawing at my heart."

I look up at him after he finishes speaking, "I'm- I'm sorry. I sh-shouldn't have asked."

"You have every right to be curious, besides, it was a long time ago. I was sad and afraid when I wrote this song, but now I know my fear was unfounded, irrational." Remington smiles weakly, "It's alright lovely, really. You should rest though, we're meeting Andy tomorrow."

I reluctantly comply, tightening my hold on him a little bit more. I feel him lean his chin on top of my head, wrapping his arms around me as well.

'Goodnight, I am excited to be able to meet you both properly, in person.' Andy murmurs, and there's the barest whisper of a touch against my head and from Remingtons surprised gasp, he had felt it too.

"He can touch us with his shadow sometimes." I whisper after the flood of confusion from Remingtons side of the bond.

The tingles of our touch and Remington hesitantly continuing to sing lulls me to sleep. I desperately want this idea of Andy's to work. I want to see him, feel his skin on mine. I've been able to hold Remington and I want nothing more than to hold him as well.

::

"Make sure you keep these on you at all times. I've seen what using your powers too much can do to you so I'm not taking any chances. If anything happens, knock us the fuck out." Rem states, handing over my dagger.

I happily, though reluctantly, strap on my holster and place the weapon inside, feeling like I'll be a bit safer with actual weapons at my disposal.

"This is Emerson's." I state, trying to hand back the knife that wasn't mine.

"I'm giving it to you." Emerson reassures, "I have plenty, and many similar to that one. I want you to have it."

"Protect that dagger with your life. Any knife in Emerson's collection is a prized possession. He might just stab you with the remains of it." Sebastian jokes and Emerson lets loose a scandalized gasp, shoving him harshly.

"I would never!"

"You would, actually." Remington agrees, "Just not Elizabeth. You're actually giving her a dagger from your collection. Not just one you bought because it was pretty and sharp."

Emerson merely smirks, nodding in agreement. He hands over a knife holster and I strap it to my other thigh. The dagger slides in easily, the ruby on the hilt gleaming beautifully. "When do you think you'll be able to find a supplier?" I frown, not wanting to hurt my favorite people.

"Sebastian said it could take up to two days. He's been contacting vampires in the area trying to find a place in the Underground that'll supply us. If anything, we'll look into the local morgues. They've always got a good supply of blood, but it can be contaminated with disgusting bodily fluids on occasion and we'd really rather not risk it."

I scrunch up my nose in distaste. "That is disgusting."

"Yes, that's why we're trying to avoid it. It's a last resort that we most definitely want to avoid." Seb says, ruffling my hair.

"Are you sure Emerson is okay with me using this?" I ask, tentatively grabbing the jacket.

"Its fine, go ahead, keep it even. I've got plenty, trust me. Here's to hoping you smell enough like a vampire that we won't want to eat you immediately if we return empty handed." Emerson smiles, taking the jacket from my loose grip on the fabric and then helping me put it on.

It's a light red, with golden buttons and straps on the front. A very beautiful article of clothing, even though it's much too big on me, the hem brushing my lower thigh. "Its like you're sending me off instead of prepping me for a rough few days." I state, turning my head to follow Sebastian as he moves to lounge on the couch again.

"We're not. Promise. Just let us dote on you for now, sweetness." Remy's grin remains ever present, his glasses slightly tilted on his face.

I adjust them, making sure they're evenly placed before taking his hand.

"Alright, let's do this." Remington murmurs.

He closes his eyes, and for a moment, nothing happens. There's a tug on our bond, a pull in my chest, my soul. A blinding red light overtakes the room along with a blast of heat.