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Demyx hesitated on the windowsill. He remembered the countless times he had descended slowly, trying to get an escape from his work. Now was different. Now, as he leapt he could watch the ground rush up to meet him, and feel the wind rush past as his feet hit the ground running. They were at the forest’s edge in no time. Tangles of vines and branches tried to barricade them out, but they were no match for the two vampires as they tore through the area, lithe as the wind itself. In the end, though, as the trees became thicker, Demyx resorted to Cora’s advice, more confident in their bond then in his own eyes. But then a strange sent caught him, and suddenly he veered to the left, his eyes open and blazing. Behind him, Demyx could sense Cora following in his wake. Everything happened very quickly. He dove into a clearing, right at the source of the smell. The worst hunger he had ever felt had taken him here, and now it was pulling him for the object in his arms. Almost too late, he realized that he touched warm flesh, and that it was Rose in his arms. He was kneeling down, hunched over her quivering body. Her eyes were wide and filled with terror.
“Demyx, what has happened to you?” She asked, and her voice scared him. It was raspy, like she had been choking.
“There is no time to explain,” He said gently, but in his voice there was something feral. Inside, he was fighting the hunger. He glanced longingly at Rose’s neck, only to find two fresh puncture wounds already there. He gasped, running his hand across the wound.
“Did I do this to you?” He asked quickly, suddenly unsure of himself.
“No,” Rose whispered. “It was…” She coughed harshly, convulsing as her lungs struggled to right themselves. When she opened her eyes, there was a figure standing just behind Demyx, at his shoulder and peering down. She lifted up her hand, pointing shakily at the vampire.
“Her! Demyx, it was her! Kill her now!” When Demyx looked at her in confusion and did not move, she scrambled for her silver dagger in her boot and leapt from his grasp, barreling with all of her might at Cora. Demyx lashed out with his newfound speed, catching her by the waist and pulling her back. Rose struggled against him, giving up only a moment later to breath heavily in his arms.
“So you have betrayed us too?” She said in dully, her eyes distant. “Just as Jack did?” She tossed the silver dagger weakly at Cora’s feet, obviously giving up all hope.

Rose shied away from the vampire.
“Your lying!” She said in an accusing whisper, but Demyx shook his head.
“No Rose, trust her. Syvra did this to you. Who you see now is Cora,” He said, but there was little emotion in his voice. Rose blinked and focused on Cora’s face. The only thing that made Rose believe was the girl’s eyes; they seemed so much softer then the ones that had stared with bloodlust into her own not so long ago. She nodded very slowly, reached her hand out to pluck the dagger from Cora’s grasp and slip it back into her boot.
Demyx was only half paying attention to what was going on . His eyes were focused on the forest floor, and he was still shaking his head.
“No, it wasn’t Jack. You must be mistaken Rose,” He said, his eyes darting up to hers.
“Listen Demyx, I know this is hard, but….but Jack tried to kill me. He wanted to drown me to force Alice into helping him. Its his disease, Demyx. He wants healing. And…he wants to kill you, too.”
“NO!” Demyx roared, and fire snaked up his arms suddenly. “Jack would never! He is like a brother to me!” But Cora’s thoughts were pounding at his mind, forcing him to believe the truth. Rose was speaking, too, but he couldn’t hear her. The fire ebbed away, leaving no trace that it had ever been there.
“Maybe….maybe there is just something wrong with Jack. We can help him. We can…make him better….and…” He trailed off, turning his back on the group. There was a long moment of silence, and when he turned around, his face was hard and cold, like Demyx held no emotion. Cora could feel his strongest emotions and read his thoughts, though, and Rose could only imagine what he was feeling.
“It is my duty to make sure any threats to the clan are dealt with. All traitors…,” His strong voice almost failed him, but he went on. “Are to be exterminated.”
Demyx pushed past the two girls, heading toward the edge of the clearing. He turned to face them, but he could not meet their eyes.
“Rose, I suggest you stay here where it is safest. Hide, but do not follow us or go back to the school for a while.” He hesitated for a moment, debating something in his mind, before taking a few steps forward to embrace her. “Rose….,” He pulled back, holding her at arms length. “No matter what else happens, Jack is to die. If we fail to kill him, you must find someone else to do it. But don’t try to do it yourself. I really need you to stay safe. Because if I die tonight, "He looked hard into her eyes, "...then you are to take my place as the Liceryth clan’s leader. Ill trust only my best friend to the job.” He kissed Rose’s forehead as tears formed at the corners of her eyes. She was shaking her head.
“That’s a nice thing to say, Demyx, but your breath is wasted. Go save Alice, but come back later to say good morning! Ill have mango tea in the kettle and ramen in the microwave, just like you like it.”
Demyx laughed, giving her another kiss on the forehead and a drawn-out hug before retreating once again to the shadow’s edge, beckoning Cora to show him the way to Alice.

"Lair." Alice spat out.
"I will not fall for your tricks...." But Alice's words were interrupted by a familiar presence in the back of her mind. Alice remembered this feeling instantly.Cora....hurry.. Was all She was able to say, not wanting to waste anymore precious energy. "I will never trust you..."

Demyx did his best to keep his own mind silent while he listened to Cora’s. It amazed him that there had been a hiding place for vampires out here all along, and despite his frequent visits to the forest, he had never caught even a glimpse of anything resembling a home. He had been following directly behind her, careful not to misstep, when suddenly they halted. He perched himself next to her on the branch, silently marveling at his new balance and grace. During this slight pause, he couldn’t keep his mind from straying only for a moment to Alice and Rose, and even to Jack. It hurt him deeply that things had to turn out this way. There were enough tragedies without kin turning on each other. And that’s when he realized that Cora would have to hurt her own sister. Maybe even kill her. She was making the same sacrifices that he was. Somehow, that gave him strength. They were together, at least.
“There will be blood, so control yourself."
Cora’s words pulled him from his thoughts. He nodded slowly. She looked like she was about to bound off, but he reached out his hand quickly to take her own. She turned to face him, and he pulled her into his arms, putting as much passion as he could into a very short kiss. Demyx stared into her eyes, feeling that he must say something about how he felt, but he remembered that Cora could read his thoughts and knew just what he wanted to say. The right side of his mouth twitched up into a smile, showing a gleaming fang. He dropped one of her hands and tilted his head to the side, signaling her to lead the rest of the way.

At Alice's question, Syvra closed her eyes contacted Cora. Cora dear, hurry. If she gets much stronger, she'll try to escape, and I'll have to use force.
Opening her eyes again and smiling at Alice, she walked back over and resumed her laid back position. "You'd know them, Alice dear, but I don't think you'd really recognize them." Syvra's grin turned wicked, her eyes crinkling with mean laughter. "I suspect you'll be quite surprised, even scared."

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Cora felt Demyx's heart aching with pain and betrayal, and she tried her best to sooth it. What she didn't expect was the determined glint that came into Demyx's eyes and the passionate kiss that she received and returned. She read his mind, felt his feelings, and they were almost one. But unless he tasted blood while turned, they could not be complete. She saw him smile, saw the fang glint in the light. Cora was unexpectedly turned on by this, and she blushed, turning away as if continuing on so he couldn't see it.
Cora received Syvra's contact and sent a thought back. The pattern is almost complete, we will arrive soon. She glanced back and wondered if they bond that she and Demyx had also allowed him to hear the contact between the twins. She wondered if he could also see the faint golden, glowing line that started at Cora's heart and led to Syvra's heart, their connection. Sometimes a Valcori would catch a glimpse of it when their eyes slid out of focus, but for a transformed Valcori? She did not know. All she could do was wonder and question.
She kept leaping to the white glowing trees, and as she saw the last one come into view, she whispered into the wind, "The last comes up. On the last branch, you need to bend your legs and jump for all you're worth into the center of the clearing ahead. Use your senses and your partial Valcori blood to detect the center. The white lamb trees will open a sort of black portal into the hiding place, making us and it invisible to all looking. Don't panic when we enter the clearing and don't do anything you will regret when you encounter the smell inside."
With that, the last branch had arrived, and she bent her legs and propelled herself high into the air, letting the wind whistle and sing in her ears, the song of speed. Already, she could sense the portal widening, and opening it, it looked like a black hole opened up on the roof of the school.

It the back of his mind, Demyx heard a girl’s voice. He strained to hear it, but it escaped him, and he was left wondering whose it was. He finally settled on the fact that it was just some of Cora’s stray thoughts. He didn’t have much time to think on it further, because the yawning black portal was getting closer by the second. He braced himself for the leap, throwing all of his body at the tree and using the momentum to carry him toward its center. As he looked up at Cora, he thought he saw the shimmering of a line of gold, but before he could even form a question about it in his mind, he was plunged into the darkness of the portal, ready to face whatever was on the other side.