CHAPTER 2 - LOVE POINT MATCH
"I love upstate, but it feels great to be back in the city," Tabor squeezed Shy's neck as he carried her up the stairs of his apartment.
Her two legs hung over his forearm, a single small leg bounced with each step up on the stairs, the other outstretched in stiff plaster. She nuzzled her nose into his neck smelling his personal cologne of ambrosia; she could bottle it up and make a fortune even though she was still upset with him.
Not much had changed in his quaint apartment building; it was still surprisingly quiet for the four floor walk-up building in the middle of bustling Brooklyn. His neighbors' doors were decorated with various welcome wreaths or had small table sitting outside their apartment with dried flower bouquets on top of paper doilies.
He placed her upright on her single good foot and she lend against the wall while he jumbled his keys out of his pocket.
"I am glad to have you home, wherever our home is." Shy opened his door and then reached his arms out to carry her, but she was already hopping towards the door.
"Oh-no," he scooped her up before she could protest. "It's a threshold-"
"I've been to your apartment before Shy."
"Yes, but I am also taking no chances on you getting injured again."
"Shy, I am not that far off from you. I am not made of glass, I'm part vampire." Shy smirked proudly at her acceptance of her nature. "I should be able to walk through a door on my own without any problems."
"Fine, fine," he put her down and allowed her to hop down his long haul to the living room where she flopped exhausted on the couch.
Shy only glanced at her with amusement.
Shy:Tabor :: 15-Love
He pulled a crystal tumbler from the cupboards and filled it with water for her.
"So do you still feel like being part vampire while you catch your breath?" Shy tenderly kissed her forehead ignoring her eyes darting at him. Although, stubborn to the core, he loved this woman with his whole existence.
"Har- har, Shy."
"Har- har indeed, little Aura," A voice commented in the dark.
The room quickly moved into action around her. The lights snapped on and Shy's fangs were already unsheathed, his stance ready to attack whomever their intruder were. Ilsino stood in the center of the room beaming with a wicked grin.
"Oh come now Shy, are you going to let your Power Aura get all out of breath?" Ilsino's white smile gleamed with congeniality.
"She insisted," Shy responded through gritted teeth. "What are you doing here?"
"Ah, my friend, I am only here to make sure you keep your end of the deal." Ilsino slithered onto the couch next to Tabor who immediately stiffened. "Oh, come now, Tabor, we are beyond all that. You need not fear me. It was me who came to your rescue you know. I even stopped your Master from killing you faster." Tabor's eyes snapped to Shy with concern.
Shy crossed his arms and snorted, "Hardly the case, Ilsino. I almost fed you my blood Tabor, in efforts to save you. I did not know that it would kill you."
"Neither did I," She whispered.
"Well, now you do," Ilsino snapped his gums and pat Tabor's leg. "There is a lot that you don't know about yourself, dear Salome." Ilsino brushed a tuft of hair away from her face. "You looked troubled, my child, heavy in thought."
"It's nothing. I just think a lot." She looked away sheepishly.
There was something about Ilsino's magnetism that was drawing her to him. It was not like the feral animal that she experienced with Shy that aroused her. This was something else -- something dangerous, perhaps it was the fact that she was sitting so close to it. But deep within she wanted the danger, something deep within her was waiting for it to challenge her. But Ilsino was not a man logic wanted to tempt. She knew that he had a temper and a humor that were unmatched; equally, both were always dangerous.
"What troubles you my dear?" Ilsino cooed in a way that made her blush, a curly lock fell over her face and he brushed it away..
Such a simple gesture, but it was his touch that unnerved her. She wanted to tell someone how she felt, how she was like a trapped rabbit with Shy always watching over her with a determined watchful eye.
"Enough, Ilsino!" Shy snarled he had caught a bit of Tabor's mind struggling.
Ilsino grinned insouciantly, raising his hands in surrender allowing Tabor's mind to clear when he scooted away a bit.
"I may be cursed with Eros' namesake, but you are always a fiend." Shy shifted his protective gaze off of Tabor and trained like a predator on Ilsino.
With a shrug of his shoulders, Ilsino rolled his eyes at Shy's warning, he had already moved onto his next pawn to exploit and wagged his fine Italian black tapered shoe. His poise looked more like a minstrel than the fine dignitary he tried to emulate in the human world.
"I know more about Power Aura's than you do, Shy. I remember when there were many creatures in the world, such as yourself, Salome."
"Why do you care? I am the only one left, as far as both of you are concerned, but I have my loyalties."
"Your submission-" Ilsino added with a pull of his lips playfully and Tabor shuddered.
"My- loyalties-" she emphasized, not willing to say that someone was a master over her. "They are with Shy and I kindly ask you to not play head games with me. I may be an Aura and at that a less informed Aura, but I do know how you wish to plant ideas into my mind to pit my heart against Shy."
Shy only crossed his arms and smirked proudly. He knew to allow her to stand her ground on her own. His eyes twinkled- he loved her even more.
"Albeit, you have chosen... Phio, but I can show you things that you never knew you were possible, let alone learn them from that cur."
Shy hated when anyone used his birth name which meant bringer of love, especially when it passed flippantly off of Ilsino's lips.
"That was enough. She will not learn anything from you!" Shy roared.
"Perhaps she would want to learn how she could save herself, perhaps in the event that she were kidnapped. You know, Darling, there are other creatures in the world. What if she had to fend for herself if you were gone, Phio?" He drew out the imagery like long spider webs floating endlessly in the air. "Or when you plan to travel, she may want to be able to protect herself from any mad scientists, that go bump in the night and want to do experiments. Let alone the
nightmares
-"
A stifled wail escaped Tabor's trembling lips, she strained to stall any humiliating tears from making matters worse, thankfully, Shy was already in protection mode throwing Ilsino from the couch onto the floor.
"You've gone too far. Leave." Shy snarled towering over Ilsino.
"No!" The vampires turned to Tabor. "No he's right, Shy. If he knows more about Power Auras, I want to know what I can do if I need to protect myself."
