[27/28 July, midnight ] summoning the hunter

Mary turned to Aisha, smiling.

"I will be summoning a hunter. A shadow copy of myself. And sending it to bring David to me. It will not stop until it completes its mission, though it can be killed. This is a power known only to the oldest of us. I have never used it before."

Which means I may fail, she thinks to herself. But I won't. We need this edge, however small.

"My Will, my Vitae, and something of David's." She nods to the pile of his journals on the mantle, the ones that Darren sent. "In absence of anything more recent, they will need to do."

She walks to the mantle, touching the books and papers. They contained so much of his life, and recent death. They had to be enough.

"There is nothing you can do to help. But I wanted you to see that not all of my power is only for pain and punishment."

Mary smiles broadly at the sight of Exo, and extends her hand to him, inviting him to join her.

"My love, you look wonderful."

She wraps her arms around him and kisses him firmly.

"Time to up the ante." She grins.

Exo feels his bandanna pulled off as he kisses Mary before turning all three eyes to Aisha and quirking a brow. "I was going to make my rounds but someone is impatient it seems." He steps forward and pulls her into his arm, leaning to whisper into her ear. "And teasing gets me to pay attention...sometimes with my fangs..." he whispers, lips just barely caressing her ear.

Aisha laughed lightly as Exo pulled her into him and whispered in her ear. She couldn't help the natural reaction she had to the thought of his fangs biting her, of the fact that she had his blood in her. She shivered slightly.

"Sitting, yes." She laughed again as she left Exo's arm with her glass of wine and headed over to the couch.

Mary smiles, spreads her arms, and closes her eyes. Slowly, the shadow in front of her begins darken and solidify, gaining 3D form. As it does, it becomes upright, standing opposite Mary, looking exactly like her, but a shadowy dark version. She smiles, it smiles.

She reaches out and touches it lightly, then offers it her wrist. The shadow takes her hand, and bites, drinking. As it does, it's form fills out, becomes truly substantial and real. It drinks for a long time, until Mary, the real original Mary, pulls back her hand. The shadow now looks real, and Mary weak. She walks slowly to the fireplace, picking up one of David's journals, handing it to the shadow. It takes the book and sniffs it, rubs against it, rubs it all over itself, inhales it any way short of eating it. Then hands it back.

"Find him," says real Mary. "Find him, and return him to me."

The shadow bows, turns to Exo and Aisha and looks at them carefully, then turns and leaves via the front door. Once it is gone, Mary collapses to her knees.

Exo moved but didn't say a word. With Aisha so close, but offering herself to Mary made what he was about to do better. Coming up behind Aisha, fingers slid into her hair to gently bare her neck and before she could protest, he leaned in and bit deep, applying the kiss. As he did so, one arm came around to bind hers to her body, while his other arm came around and he offered his wrist to Mary.

Blood was needed, but with Exo's power, the blood was a bit better for her right now.

Aisha had her wrist out, didn't hear Exo come over, she felt the hair move for a brief moment, but didn't put thought to it, figured he was there to help support Mary, suddenly she felt his fangs into her neck, startled into quite a moan, her hand dropped and she leaned back into his hold.

Her eyes closed with the surge of pleasure from the bite. The slow tantalizing drinking of her blood caused her skin to rise with bumps. Suddenly aware that Mary moved her, her eyes seemed glazed over and she smiled at the woman her arms wrapping around Exo's arm around her body.

Erskine was late to the party it would seem, he had just seen the shadowy figure summoned. Then Exo had taken Aisha, it was always a pleasure watcing Exo hunt, his form moved like water, fluid and with no noise.

'Greeting Brother and Sister, Aisha. You asked me to be here, what can I do to help?'

Aisha was in a lull, voices muffled in the background, a wrist in front of her, her eyes still glazed, the smell of the blood from Exo's wrist in her face, she didn't think clearly enough to say no, she just went for the addiction of the blood.

Her mouth closed on his wrist and she moaned softly drinking of his blood.

Exo licks his own lips but his eyes do not open as Aisha begins to feed from his wrist. "Greetings brother. Is your...consort with you this evening?" He wasn't entirely sure what they were, but she seemed to be his partner. Either way, his forehead was bare and his eye revealed...and the last thing he wanted to do was confuse the poor girl...let alone let out his secret.

Knowing his pack well, he caressed her cheek, willing something from his blood into her.

(Stage 2 blood bond)
(Valeren 2: Numbs Aisha from the pain of Erskine's bite.)

He lifts his head as Maria spoke and smiled again. His maw opened and latched onto Aisha's neck. She would be saved the pain as Erskine was sure Exo would numb it Ithaca his gift, as he feeds briefly, it was a good thing that Exo had her in his arms. Then he retracted his maw and licked his lips.

'I can see why David is so fond of this one!'

Exo felt her go limp in his arms and he kissed the spot where he bit lightly. "I got you..." He nods to Mary and easily lifts Aisha into his arms as he stands. "I'll take her to her room..." he says and nods to Erskine. "Brother. Been meaning to ask Miss Thulile if she would do a tattoo for me. Would you mind relaying the message?" he asks. Afterward, he moves, heading for the stairs to take Aisha to her room.

'Of course Exo.'

Erskine slightly flinches as he feels the light kiss on the corner of his mouth. Then turns to face Maria.

'Cardinal! How are you finding your new posistion?' he listens to Maria as she tells him what has happened to David. 'Has someone been.........' A look that might be horror flickers across his face, '... altering him?'