Welcome to Gaia! ::

{{I loved your post, Victoria! It was so sweet and amazing! heart }}

Lin smiled brightly as she saw the humor lines appear on Dymetri's face. The humor was not odd to see since when they had been together in the past, she and Dymetri usually laughed and had fun with each other. The contented look in his eyes and the relaxed muscles on his face, though, were new. That's what caused her to smile so brightly. Even though his death had ripped out her heart and made her feel like she was dead on the inside, she really did think now that it had been for the best because now Dymetri could be happy, content, and be happy with himself. And he could be here with her like this now.

When he turned his head to look at her and he used her full name, she rested her chin on his shoulder and her eyes sparkled brilliantly with mirth and utter happiness. She laughed softly and cupped the side of his face, the side that was furthest from her. She didn't really pay attention to the fact that she was doing this in front of her parents. She was just so caught up in the moment.

When she spoke, she spoke softly and airily. "It is easier to show than to explain, my love. I could never explain my family or my home well enough to do them justice, just as I could never explain you to them and do you justice. This way, you all get to meet each other in person and see for yourselves the beauty that I see in all of you."

When she heard him say that he would prefer one of Lin's favorite dishes, she laughed softly and simply shook her head very lightly. It wasn't a nod of disagreement. It was a nod to express the awe that she felt. Dymetri's incredible, sweet heart was the same as it was before he died. The selflessness and kindness that she loved about him was still as strong as ever.

She closed her eyes and whispered up to him, "You, my dear, are almost too much. You shall spoil me rotten."

She slowly dropped her hand from Dymetri's cheek and placed it back on his upper arm with her other one. Her smile widened again when he placed his free hand over her hands. She maneuvered one of her hands enough so that she could intertwine her fingers with Dymetri's. She then opened her eyes and looked up at him again, her eyes filled with absolute love and awe.



Rose went to stand beside her husband and wrapped one of her arms around his waist. At the same time, he wrapped one of his arms around Rose's shoulders. The sight before them was so precious and wonderful to see. They dreamed that each of their children would find this kind of love. They were so happy to see that Lin had, and this Marcos boy seemed to be completely head-over-heels with her as well. He looked as if he would jump off of a building if Lin asked him to. The two seemed perfect for each other.

Rose responded to Marcos first, before her husband did. "Thank you for your very-kind words and compliments, Marcos. I am quite pleased to see that Lin has found a man that has a great appreciation of the arts. You will fit in perfectly here. Never apologize for truly expressing yourself. Elves are very passionate as well."

She was already beginning to think of a present for Marcos before he left. She would have to finish it quickly, which she was certain she'd be able to do if Marcos and Lin stayed until Sunday.

Samiel now spoke. "Well, Marcos, Lindolyn's favorite dish is Alfredo and asparagus flavored with fresh mushrooms, chopped. She also loves lemon cake."

Lin blushed at all of the talk about her and her favorite dishes. She leaned her cheek on Dymetri's shoulder and rubbed her cheek along it slightly. "Father..." She laughed softly.

Samiel laughed softly as well and then looked back at Marcos. "Does this dish sound good to you as well, Marcos? If not, we can fix something entirely different."

He wondered what had become of Ambrose, the last guest Lin had brought home. He had seen the look of adoration in Ambrose's eyes, the adoration he had for Lin. It had been clear, though, that Lin had not felt the same way. He hoped that the sweet boy was doing alright.

As he looked closely at Marcos, he noticed an odd look in his eyes. It was hard for him to get a good steady look at them since he kept looking at his daughter. Of course, young people were doing some odd things to themselves nowadays in order to express themselves. Marcos could have contacts in his eyes to make them appear different.

{{Oh! They could go to Bai Ching, which is closest, and get some coffee from Bo! XD and I LOVE that cafeteria scene. lol!}}

Lin was starting to become concerned as she watched Dymetri continue to stare at her hands. What was going on in his mind right now? Where had he gone off to? Hopefully she could speak with him privately soon. She actually hoped they could go somewhere private relatively soon simply because she wanted to be with him again where they could talk and caress each other without having to be concerned about others' gazes.

When he looked back up at her father and she heard his question, her hands instantly tensed and her breathing quickened. She managed to keep the rest of her body and face neutral, though. She didn't want to startle her father or mother, but her father must have noticed Dymetri's eyes. He always looked at a person's eyes as soon as he had the opportunity to look at them without seeming suspicious. It was an Elder trick. They could see into a person's soul if they stared long enough.

Dymetri had told her what his unique eye color meant. Her father would know what it would mean, too, if he looked at Dymetri long enough. They elves had studied vampires extensively, learning all that they could for their bloody, cruel war centuries ago. Elves tried to learn all they could about all of their enemies and dark creatures, but they had spent extra effort and time in learning about vampires.

Rose excused herself and walked to the kitchen to begin supper. It would only take her about half an hour while using some of her magic. She had set her sewing on the table by the recliner as she went into the kitchen.

Samiel spoke with a soft smile on his face. "Oh, forgive me for staring. I gaze into a person's eyes to gauge their soul and their intentions. I hope you understand, but as a father, I would like to know a person's intention with my daughter, especially a young man who is becoming involved with her. It is also a responsibility I have as an Elder, but intention this time is as a father first."

"I noticed the unique coloration of your eyes. Are they contacts? I know that young people like to experiment with their looks. I find that quite fascinating, actually."

Lin looked up at Dymetri and tried to get him to meet her gaze. She pleaded with him through her eyes. She knew that he probably did not want to lie to her parents, but she was pleading that he would this once, that he would say that he was wearing contacts. Her father would believe him and with Dymetri's talent as a former ancient vampire, he could make sure that Marcos' past is what her father saw instead of Dymetri's. It would be fine. She pleaded with him to do this.

Even if Dymetri's eyes looked like the ones humans had with a higher vampire's soul inside of them, her father would believe him if Dymetri said they were contacts. He would never believe that his daughter would find anything redeeming, let alone loving, about a higher vampire. That would be the furthest thing from his mind.

Dymetri nodded with understanding when Lin's father spoke of his intentions. He'd suspected this.
As he mentioned his eyes, though, Dymetri realized where he'd gone wrong. In the only way he couldn't have even masked. Back then, at least. Why would he begin to shield his eye color now when in all the years of being a vampire, brown or blue contacts merely disintegrated in his acidic aqueous humor.
He quickly juggled in his mind the possibilities, the decisions, the consequences, the what if's.

"I know what you mean," he began, smiling. "I love how simple it is for those who cannot express themselves through the arts or whatnot to identify themselves using body modification. Although I draw the line at certain piercing locations," he chucked. "But no, this isn't my natural eye color."

His conscious was clear. His natural eye color was brown, before he'd changed. His conscious was clear, he kept repeating in his mind.

He finally looked down at an exasperated Lin, trying to mentally comfort her. She knows what's going on, he realized. She'd been so calm about the visit. Why hadn't either of them thought about the biggest windows to his soul?

During his attempt to reassure the love of his life, Dymetri's mental defenses were temporarily down.

The kiss almost made him out of balance. His hands instinctively slid around her waist, tightening, shrinking any space between them.
He was already accustomed to the curves and contours of her body. Feeling it so naturally pressed against his own body, in which his nerve endings were quick to feel and sharper than ever, felt right.
As she loosened herself, so did he. Enough so that he was able to appear behind her within the blink of an eye and lift her up in a marriage position.

"That was a creative way to help me get settled in."

He smiled at her, his eyes partially covered by his hair. He blew upward to remove the strands.

"Why would you be thanking me, hm?" His smile grew fuller. "I should be thanking you, for bringing me here. I love Alfredo, by the way. Thank god your favorite dish is something pleasant because then I'd have to take back everything and ask for something from McDonalds."

He snuggled his nose against her cheek between his laughs and began to walk while carrying her.

"Let's take a quick tour of the place you'll probably be sneaking out to come to every night."

((I should really do some posting here... *pokes James' muse with a stick* Moooooovvvvveeeeee....))

{{Oh wow! That's actually perfect, Victoria! biggrin It's fancier for a guestroom, but it's also toned down enough to belong in the elven forest city! biggrin }}

{{lol! Thanks. I'm saving the fish I do have until I have some more fish to make a full aquarium. I guess I could take it out of my sig, though. lol! And electricity isn't that common in the elven city, but the few electrical devices that they do have are powered by the magical spring they have. They do have fridges to keep some food fresh.}}

Lin wanted to answer Dymetri's question and address everything else he said, but she had to know something, understand it better, before she could go any further.

She looked down at him in the chair with a worried, apprehensive look on her face.

"So, your blood will remain human, but are you telling me that the rest of you will slowly turn back into a vampire? Is that what will happen? Will you not be able to be around my pendant again? Will you not be able to live here with me in the future because you'll turn into a vampire again? I do not understand. Since you have a human body, I thought it would remain mostly human."

She prayed with everything inside of her that Dymetri would tell her that his physical body would mostly remain human so that her pendant would not hurt him and he could live in the village with her.