After Daniel nodded to Will, he held his breath while waiting for a reaction from the one person who mattered the most. They had been sitting on the couch together and holding hands, but at the acknowledgement that he was a vampire, he felt Tom's hand at first loosen and then pull away. Daniel tried to look at Tom, but Tom held his gaze on the coffee table in front of him.

"So, do you, like, have fangs?" asked Will. Tom stood up abruptly and ran from the room. Daniel sat quietly and watched as Tom disappeared down the hall. "Sorry mate. I didn't mean to upset him," Will said softly. Daniel's eyes glistened with unshed tears.

"I had a hard time with it too." Will moved from his chair over to the couch, sat down beside Daniel and wrapped his arm around him.

"It'll be fine. Tom will come 'round. You'll see," Will said reassuring his friend. A big hot tear rolled down Daniel's face.

"And you're ok with this?" he sobbed to Will.

"I think it's bloody brilliant! I always thought vampires were a myth."

"No myth. I assure you."

"Look here mate, Tom will understand. Trust me." Daniel looked into Will's eyes. He wanted to believe him, he really did.

"He's the only one that really matters," Daniel said softly.

"Daniel." The soft voice came from the hall. The two boys immediately looked up to see Tom. His eyes were red and swollen. Daniel stood up quickly, but hesitated to run to Tom's arms.

"Tom," Daniel said quietly. Tom stood quietly for a moment.

"What does this change?" he finally asked.

"Nothing. It changes nothing. We can still get a sun tan together and you can still cook with lots of garlic." Tom took a few tentative steps toward Daniel and stopped.

"What about the drinking blood stuff?" Tom said so quietly Daniel barely heard him.

"That's only about once a month, so I'm told. I haven't had to do it yet," Daniel answered equally as softly.

"Do you go crazy? Do you get drunk with blood lust? Could you hurt me?" Tom snapped. "Do I have to worry about getting bitten every time I'm with you?!?" As the words left his lips Ceenta and Don appeared. Ceenta turned to Tom and smiled.

"No, you don't, however, if he ever does you will find it to be the most erotic moment of your life." Ceenta walked over to Tom and bowed. "Please allow me to introduce myself. I am Ceenta and this is my life partner Don." Don joined in the bow before Tom who was mesmerized by the young men's beauty. Yes, beauty. Their handsome faces and well toned bodies surpassed the definition of handsome. They were, simply, beautiful men. Daniel walked over and took Ceenta by the arm.

"Tom, this is the man that saved my life," he said carefully. The realization that Ceenta was the man who bit Daniel slammed into him like a freight train.

"You did this! You changed the man I love! This, this is all your fault!" Tom ripped out his wand and before anyone had time to react, he screamed out the curse.

"Adflictatio!" Ceenta stood and looked at Tom. There was no falling to the floor and groveling in pain. There was ... nothing. "Adflictatio!" Tom screamed out again. Still, there was absolutely no reaction from Ceenta.

"Tom, please try to understand that I had no choice. If I hadn't done what I did, Daniel wouldn't be here," he patiently explained. Tom fell to his knees in frustration. "Your spells and curses can not harm me, nor can they harm Daniel." Ceenta knelt down and looked Tom face to face. "It's not as bad as it seems. True, Daniel is different, but at the same time, he is the same person you fell in love with." Tears were freely running down Tom's face. He looked up at Daniel who also was awash in emotion.

"I love you, Tom," Daniel said sobbing. "I would never hurt you." Tom clutched his wand so tightly his knuckles were white.

"Itioare home!" Tom shouted and disappeared with a pop.

"NO!" screamed Daniel as he fell to his knees. "TOM! Don't leave me!"

The decrepit old man made his way down the corridor once again dreading having to deal with the men who call themselves warriors against religious persecution when in fact, they were simply terrorists. The suppressed anger at their failure in the attack on his nemesis's home grew stronger as he approached the door. When he turned the knob, the anger had renewed him, flowed through him and gave him unwavering strength. He swung the door open and entered the room. The hostile attitude he received earlier seemed to be gone. Before him sat five men humbled by their team's failure. However, as they sat down the hostility returned with a vengeance.

"Dead! All fifty of them!" one man screamed out as Malin sat down. Another stood and joined in the affray.

"We lost fifty of our very best men. Their bodies were mutilated! We couldn't even identify who was who! You sent us into a trap!"

"Sit," Malin said calmly. The man remained obstinate. Malin looked him directly in the eye. "Sit."

"I am not a dog for you to command!" Malin snapped his fingers. The crack of thunder shook the room. The man slowly sat down.

"I am who I am and I command who I wish. Those that defy me, perish a most painful death." The silence in the room was palpitating. "To make sure we understand each other ..." Malin looked at the man who stood against him. He raised a gnarled finger and pointed. "Avada Kedevra!" Malin shouted. A sharp green light streamed from Malin's pointed finger and struck the man squarely in the chest. He fell back in his chair and hit the floor hard. A man jumped up to check on his friend. He checked the pulse and gasped.

"H-he's dead."

"Sit, or you will be as he." The man slowly sat back down at the table. "Now, let me make this clear. There are certain things I expect and in return for those things are more riches than your meager minds can comprehend. Simply put, do as I say and you will have a fortune to fund whatever war you are waging." The men all but forgot the body on the floor beside the table and smiled happily at the prospect. "But!" The men suddenly paled under the harsh tone of Malin's voice. "Defy me and you will join your friend on the floor." The men agreed quickly ... mostly from fear, but also from the greed that comes with the prospect of large sums of cash.

"What would you have us do?"

"Ah, now we get down to the plan. It's really quite simple. We take what is most precious to men of wealth and demand a ransom from its return. It's called kidnapping. Only in this case, we are going to kidnap the children of oil ministers. To be precise, ministers that are members of OPEC. Once they are under our control, we will have them reduce oil production. The world will be at our knees and will pay handsomely for every barrel they so desperately need." The four men murmured amongst themselves and excitedly agreed that it was an excellent plan.

Tom threw himself on his bed. He was so confused. On one hand, he loved Daniel with every fiber of his being. On the other hand, the thought of Daniel biting him on the neck was just too much to even imagine. Giant gut wrenching sobs left the young actor sprawled on his bed, clutching the pillow with all his might. It zapped him of his energy and he slowly slipped into a deep sleep.

"Tom," the voice said quietly. "Tom, it's me. Please, Tom. It's Daniel." Tom's eyes snapped open and he looked up into the beautiful green eyes of the man he loved.

"Oh, Daniel!" Tom sobbed as he wrapped his arms around his lover. Tom held Daniel tight and was reassured by the warm tight hug. He finally relaxed and laid back on the bed.

"Tom, you've got to believe that I would never hurt you."

"I know you wouldn't, but it still scares me."

"Let me show you how much I love you," Daniel whispered huskily. Tom smiled and felt a stirring in his boxers. Their lips met in a loving kiss that quickly turned into a kiss of physical need. Without ever breaking the kiss, Daniel moved onto the bed and laid down on top of Tom. They ground into each other, feeling each other's hardness. The kiss ended with both boys breathing hard. Tom buried his face into Daniel's neck and breathed in his lover's scent. It was intoxicating. Daniel suddenly lifted himself up and sat back on Tom's crotch. He quickly unbuttoned Tom's shirt and pulled it open. Daniel slid down and raking his tongue over Tom's left nipple. Tom gasped at the erotic feeling. He barely noticed his pants being opened and the zipper purring as it lowered. Daniel moved his tongue bath lower. Tom was breathing in passionate gasps and he held his breath as he felt his hardness slip smoothly into Daniel's mouth. Captivated by his lust, Tom threw his hands back against the headboard. A shape pain stabbed into his right forefinger causing him to jerk. He pulled his hand down in front of his face and looked. Daniel looked up as well. A small cut on Tom's finger oozed a trickle of blood. Tom chuckled to himself.

"It's just a little cut." He looked down at Daniel who was watching the trickle of blood with rapt attention. As Tom continued to look at his lover he noticed a strange expression come over Daniel's face. Suddenly, Daniel's eyes turned red and he hissed sharply. Daniel opened his mouth wide and hissed again. That was when Tom saw the razor sharp fangs. He immediately tried to get away but Daniel held him tight. Faster than lightning, Daniel moved up and looked Tom in the face. The close up view of the fangs sent Tom into a panic. Before the scream left his lips, Tom felt the fangs sink deeply into his neck.

"NO!!" he screamed. Tom sat straight up in bed. He was drenched in sweat. He quickly looked around his bedroom. Much to his relief, he was alone. His hand move tentatively toward his neck. He rubbed the skin and found it to be smooth. No bite marks. Tom sighed a sigh of relief. The nightmare had been just that … a nightmare. He eased back on to the pillow and took a deep breath. Yes, it had been a nightmare, but it could have happened. That possibility scared Tom to death. That possibility kept him separated from the one person he loved. It was a separation that agonized Tom. He slowly fell back into a restless sleep.

Ceenta gently put his hand on Daniel's shoulder. The tears were rolling down Daniel's face. Will fought his instincts to run to Daniel. He watched as the tall handsome blond swooped Daniel into his arms. Don walked over to Will.

"I'm Don."

"Will, pleased me meet you."

"Your friend has been through a lot in the last couple of days. He's going to need a really good friend to be strong for him," Don said.

"There's not a whole lot I wouldn't do for Daniel or Tom." Don smiled and looked the teen up and down.

"You're cute. Gotta boyfriend?" Will blushed.

"Girlfriend actually. I'm straight." Don didn't miss a beat.

"Sure you're not just saying that. I'm not coming on to you. I'm devoted to Ceenta and he's devoted to me."

"I'm glad you have a loving relationship, but I really am straight."

"That's a shame. There's this handsome young man I know that's single." Will chuckled politely.

"No, thanks anyway. I'm quite happy with the ladies." Ceenta and Daniel walked toward Don and Will. Ceenta's arm was wrapped around Daniel in a reassuring manner.

"Don, we've got to get to Starr and I'd like Daniel to go with us," Ceenta said. Don nodded.

"Where are you going?" asked Will.

"We have to right a wrong," explained Ceenta. Daniel looked Will.

"Come with us, Will," Daniel asked.

"I don't know if that's a good idea," Ceenta said softly. Daniel turned and looked Ceenta in the eyes.

"He's a damn fine wizard. Best I know. He's even better than I am with spells and especially curses."

"Ok, but I'm point man on this trip. You guys follow my lead. It could get ugly."

"What's going on?" asked Will hesitantly.

"Our friend Starr has been forcibly taken by his father Malin," explained Ceenta.

"Malin!?!"

"You know of Malin?"

"My father told me that Malin had some connections to some KGB assassin."

"What?" asked Ceenta.

"That's what dad told us." Ceenta took a deep breath and looked at Don.

"That explains why that arse was so mean to Daniel." Ceenta looked at Will and then at Daniel. "You don't have to worry about the man ever again. Right now though, we need to get to Starr. I suspect he's at Malin's estate. We'll have to be careful. I've tried to contact Starr by telepathy but he doesn't answer. That means he's either unconscious or he's being held somewhere that's shielded."

"Sounds like we're wasting time," said Will. "Do you know where Malin's estate is?" Ceenta nodded.

"Don, you take Will. I'll travel with Daniel." Don nodded. Seconds later they were all standing in front of Malin's home.

My sincerest thanks to my editors who are just now starting to get over the flu. Now that's what I call dedication ... editing while you're sick. Thank you so much!



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