Melantha:
Melantha clung to the mer-otter in her grasp and eyed her bloodied neck with intense hunger. She growled softly to herself before letting out a frustrated whine and slinging Ariel onto her back. She quickly raced to her brothers home and sniffed around glad she had beaten him there. She pulled the mer from her back and frowned at how pale she was. Sighing she rubbed the dried blood away from her neck and slipped her into the water watching as she sank down until she was no longer visible. At least she could rest safely below the water. She quickly slipped back into the darkness not wanting her brother to catch her. Her stomach seemed to clench and snarl in furious denial that she had passed up such an easy meal. With a sigh she went off in search of Connor, she needed the male badly though she was loathe to admit it.

Connor:
Connor lay on a branch, curled up next to the trunk as he considered what he'd done. His preconceptions of vampires had almost led him to murder Melantha's brother, from what he had heard, an innocent. Of course, he couldn't hold himself completely to blame, as the male had been feeding from the mer female, but... He hadn't even considered that there were some that would allow the vampires to feed from them, that they gave their blood when their friend or mate needed it. She hadn't fought him, after all.

He buried his face in his paws. No doubt Melantha would want nothing to do with him after that. She would go back to his father and lose all the goodness inside of her.
"You've really screwed yourself this time," he growled under his breath.

Melantha:
Melantha was getting desperate as she slunk through the darkness, she was so hungry she hoped she would find Connor before she stumbled over something harmless and...delicious. She licked her lips for the hundredth time trying not to think about the sweet warm taste of blood. She wasn't as bad as her siblings, she certainly didn't need blood as often and most of the time the delicious meat from a clam was enough to sate her, but every once in a while it was as if her body remembered her lineage and demanded to be sated.

She glanced up and then stepped forward hopefully as she caught a sight of white. "Connor?" She asked in a hushed pained tone. God she was so hungry...she knew what Abel would say 'Pray' and she knew was Sarah would say too 'Eat' the trouble way she would feel awful doing both. She certainly couldn't just drain some innocent to feast and then pray for it's soul. Likewise prayers wouldn't fill her empty stomach.

Connor:
Connor's head rose at the sound of his name carried on Melantha's voice. He glanced down to the ground, catching sight of her, but he didn't come down this time. He was wary, afraid she might try to kill him for what he did to her brother and he knew if it start it would definitely end in one of their deaths.

"Yes?" he asked, just loud enough for her to hear his voice, trying very hard to be polite, if not neutral. If she wasn't going to change already, he sure as hell wasn't going to push her over the edge by being an a** to her.

Melantha:
Melantha's head jerked up and she rushed over quickly standing on her hind legs and clawing at the tree. "Oh Connor! Thank goodness! Come on, we...I have to hunt...now...I'm...I'm starving...and..." She looked down and dropped back to all fours with a sigh. "I need you...I'm afraid alone I'll..." She clenched her teeth her ears falling back ashamed of herself. She'd be nothing more then a murderer if someone wasn't there to keep a grip on her.

Connor:
Connor frowned at her response and slipped off the branch, spiraling down until he landed on one just out of her reach. She sounded almost hysterical and yet she looked guilty. There was the goodness he wanted to keep alive. She hated the thought of killing an innocent as much as he did.

"You won't try to off me... after what I did?" he asked, his face trying to stay neutral but showed just a hint of puzzlement. If it had been his sister... He probably would kill whoever it was. Maybe not Melantha, but... Artie was all he really had.

Melantha:
"Will is tough, you hurt him bad but he'll be okay, besides I can just imagine what it looked like...but it's not like that. William loves Ariel he's just to scared to admit it...and she loves him too but I think she's too scared to chance telling him incase he doesn't feel the same way and-UGH look I can't explain this right now I...I almost had Ariel for dinner myself...I'm so hungry Connor you, you just have to come with me...please?" She looked at him still desperate but trying to curb herself. She licked her lips again and swallowed at the air wishing it could sate her. Her nose twitched catching the scent of his blood and she exhaled deeply. Easy, easy she reminded herself and then stepped back a bit.

"Please come Connor..." She wanted to tell him he HAD to, that if he didn't she might kill some poor innocent. Already her mind was racing, she probably couldn't go for a mini she would drain it too quickly. She was going to have to go after an otter, some more random creature on the reserve and if she couldn't hold it together...well the ranger would have to fix the census.

Connor:
Connor listened to her attempt at an explanation, finding the situation rather pitiful for the pair. But who was he to talk? He was the son of doomed lovers and he had a feeling deep in his heart that he would not live to see love in a female's eyes for him.

With a sigh, he leapt down the last bit and paced towards Melantha.
"You're really bad off... Okay, then." The first part was quiet, murmured as he looked her over, the acceptance a little more normal-volume as he nodded his head once.

Melantha:
"Thank You..." She blurted out before turning and stalking into the darkness already she had caught the scent of an otters den. She stalked after the distant smell driven by hunger. She stopped and took a deep breath trying to collect herself trying to calm herself.

"Maybe you should lead..." She finally muttered worried she would find her prey and attack. If Connor picked a healthy looking otter and then directed her then maybe it wouldn't be soo bad. Her paws trembled and she knew her expression could look no less then predatory...murderous.

Connor:
Connor followed quickly, pausing when she did, a frown on his face. There was almost a bit of pity there as well, though he kept it in check. He had his own demon, but it never manifested without a trigger. Melantha had to bend to its moods.

He shook his head once.
"You're doing fine. Go on, I won't let it go bad," he replied, his wings fluffing up a bit before settling back down. She had seemed to know where she was going and he didn't want to impede that. The sooner this was over, the better.

Melantha:
She hesitated a moment longer before her hunger drove her forward and she spotted a distant otter near the river. It seemed to be trying to fetch some clams or fish. She watched quietly from the darkness for a moment before slowly slinking towards the unsuspecting male. Her nose twitched again the scent of blood was stronger now and she could feel her mouth water. She licked her lips and crouched over the water waiting for the male to surface. The moment he did she grabbed him, she was larger and stronger, her sharp claws pricked his skin. She held him for a moment his fear made her hesitate before she was overcome.

She held back a snarl as she attacked the males neck her fangs driving in deep as she began to lap away his precious life blood. She clung to the male fearful as she felt him go limp but unable to draw away just yet, only a little more...he would be alright.

Connor:
Connor stayed close as Melantha fed, getting ready to push her away from the poor male. He expected her to have her control, but he should have known it was too much. His eyes glowed darker and he growled at her. He placed a paw on her shoulder and lightly scraped her skin with his claws.

"Melantha. Let him go, now," he ordered, his voice low and dangerous. If he had to, he would push her away form the other otter, but that risked tearing the stranger's neck, and he didn't want that. And he knew, somewhere in her mind, Melantha didn't want that either.

Melantha:
Melantha shuddered and licked one more trying to close the wounds as she pulled away and pushed the male from her. She gasped and quickly turned aside panting, but she felt it inside as if she had been filled. She licked her lips and dug her claws into the ground, she was afraid to look back. She didn't want to see the face of her victim she just wanted to go back into the darkness and hide. Why couldn't she control herself the way her siblings managed, was she the real monster among them?

Connor:
Connor pulled back when she did, checking the otter over as she turned away. He was unconscious and pale, but still breathing. With a small nod to himself, he padded to Melantha's side, giving her a sidelong glance.
"For a moment I thought I'd have to push you away from him," he said and looked ahead, his eyes glowing brightly in the darkness. He hated his eyes, they were his father's eyes, yellow and aglow like a demonic's. And for all his angelic appearance, he was very much a demon in his own right. He was just able to hide it behind a pretty face.

"You didn't give it complete control. Good job."

Melantha:
"At least he's still alive.." She sighed and ran her claws through her hair still shaking a bit. "Thank you Connor...without you here I...well I don't know what might have happened." Oh yes she did, she knew exactly what would have happened, she'd have snapped that poor males neck trying to get every last drop out of him. She turned back and then sighed.

"Don't worry about Will...I'll make sure he's alright..." She repeated softly not wanting Connor to feel guilty. He expected all the vampires to be like his father luckily Will was strong enough to take the hit.

Connor:
"It didn't, don't think about it, it's done," Connor replied with a wave of his paw before turning back to the stranger. He looked around for somewhere safe to put the male and found the best place was a bush. He dragged the other otter over to it and stashed him beneath the leaves, listening to Melantha reassure him about her brother.

"I get it," he said a little shortly once he was done hiding the male from any predators that might happen by. He raked a paw through his hair, knocking at his halo as he sighed. "Just... let it go."

Melantha:
"Right...I'm sorry...I'll just...go." She took a deep breath and then frowned and turned away. She slipped into the darkness worried about upsetting Connor. She needed him and if she upset him he might withdraw his help and then...Angelus might find her again.

Connor:
Connor watched her go for a moment before growling in frustration and bounding after her.
"Melantha, wait," he called out when he could see her again, running to and around her so that he could stop in front of her.
"I'm... sorry. I didn't mean to be short," he confessed, not wanting her upset. He had the felling that she was more susceptible to her demon when she was upset.

"I just hate that I jumped to conclusions and got carried away. And that I almost killed your brother."

Melantha:
Melantha jerked to a stop and looked at Connor surprised before sighing and nodding. "I know...I'm sorry...sorry to have bothered you I just...needed you."

She looked at him and relaxed a bit at his words. "Will is fine, your fine, besides it's reasonable for you to have thought what you did. You've never met my siblings, they don't look anything like me." She laughed softly and sighed. "Ariel seems to...be okay with Will feeding from her...maybe she even likes it. I don't know...I can't imagine what it's like to have someone...offer like that." She sighed softly and then looked at him. "and you probably can't imagine it either, so don't worry about what you did, it's done and at least now you know."

Connor:
Connor frowned and shook his head.
"You didn't bother me. I told you I would help you and I will," he replied and looked away as she continued. She was right and he knew it, but that wasn't enough to really ease the regret in him. He'd made a mistake and let his demon take over. He had to work on keeping it even more in check.

She was still right. He couldn't imagine any creature willingly giving their life's-blood to another, beside his adoptive mother's mate. But Logan was different, he healed faster than any otter he'd known and he knew 'Di rarely took. Like her father, she also rather liked sweets. And she did her best, like Melantha, to control her hunger. A pang went through her as he missed the only mother he'd known as well as the mother he never had. Angelus had almost taken both of them from him, and now he couldn't see 'Di for fear Angelus would find her still alive.

He wouldn't let his father take Melantha, too.

Melantha:
"I Just wish there was someway I could help you..." She murmured with a sigh before nodding softly. She watched the way his eyes changed, expressive in their own strange way. She felt bad that Connor should be so self loathing, he was just a victim of a horrible circumstance. At least he went around trying to save the innocent instead of eating them.

"I better go make sure William got back home alright..." She murmured softly and looked at Connor a long moment before turning away. What was the world coming to Angels and Demons making alliances to protect or serve or help one another? She should leave Connor alone before something nasty happened to him, what if hurt him? The way Angelus had hurt Buffy...no not hurt...he had killed her, and they had been so in love...while he had still had a soul. She pushed a paw against her chest suddenly frightened. Did she have a soul? And if she did...and still hurt others what would she be like without one?

Connor:
"Tell him... I'm sorry," Connor said through grit teeth, hoping she would so that he wouldn't have to face the other male himself. He didn't like showing weakness, or that he had made a mistake... Though he was starting to do that around Melantha. He frowned just a little at that thought, reminding himself to check that in the future. No one should know his weaknesses. In the end, his enemies could still find them out if they tried hard enough.

He turned from her, her first statement echoing in his ears.
Just stop hating yourself and keep working to control it, he thought, knowing full well he couldn't actually say it aloud. But he could say something.
"Stay safe," he finally said and took off into the air.