Mark stood in the Middle of what used to be the dining area of Neverwhere. He was using a shop broom to clean up the floor of debris. He had already set up his room in Basement. It was a lot like the one back at the union only mark had made it bigger. There was a Mop Sink that he pulled out and used the plumbing from to set up a shower and such. Only took him three tries and a change of cloths. Mark hated plumbing. NeverWhere was pretty secluded and Mark saw the lights of a vehicle pulling in the dirt lot. He set the broom down and stepped outside to see Jayne driving the SUV with Dirge and Cerberus inside.

Dirge wasn't sure exactly what was going on, but mark's ghoul was apparently set to fetch her. She waited for the vehicle to come to a stop at their destination and hopped out. She went to the rear door, cane in hand, and opened it so Cerberus could jump out. She grabbed his harness and waited for either Jayne to show her were to go or see if Mark would arrive.

Mark walked over to Dirge, "Hey Lady." Mark leaned in and kissed Dirge Softly "Sorry about all this. I just needed to talk to you. Its Pretty Important."

Hey, she said in response. Dirge returned Mark's kiss and then wondered why he was being so melodramatic about all this. "Um...ok, got somewhere we can talk?"

Mark took Dirge by the Arm and walked her through two sets of doors, into NeverWhere. Mark led her over to a booth "How are you doing?" Mark asked

She clutched her cane while she let him lead her into the building. When they at down in the booth she spoke, "I'm doing good. I had had a revelation during ritual. I just need to meditate further on its message." She paused for a moment and then continued, "Is there something wrong Mark? Where are we exactly?"

Mark takes a deep, albeit unnecessary, breath, "We are in my New Haven, Our new Haven if you want. I... Lost the Union." Mark explained. "This place is a old Restaurant called NeverWhere. They had a fire in the 90s and never reopened so I gave Jayne the money to buy it and here we are."

"I'm sorry Mark. I know how much you wanted the bar. What happened? How did you lose it? Are you planning to open up this place now?"

"I sent a letter to the Prince Requesting to Open a Bowling Alley like Twist told me I could. I did that and got a letter back basically telling me not if it had a bar in it. A Bowling Alley without a bar is basically screwed. So I let the bank take the property back and moved out. I have it until the end of the week in order to get the rest of my stuff out of there." Mark paused for a moment and reached across taking Dirge's Hand. "But on a good note I am working on setting up this place."

Dirge grasped Mark's hand with both of hers and replied, "You must have really upset him. So are you opening up a restaurant and wouldn't you need a liquor license for one or will the Prince let you have one if it is not a bar?"

"No Love, I am not opening a Restaurant. This is my Home. I am not planning on opening a business anytime soon. I am just gonna focus on me, you, the girls and building a place here. I overstepped myself when I tried to open The Union." Mark took her hands and kissed the top of them and said "So what are you gonna do Dirge?"

So he is just going to give up? That is all it takes?

Dirge was surprised how fast Mark changed topics. "What do you mean what am I going to do? Are you going to be ok?"

"Yeah hon, Don't worry. I always have a plan." Mark said with a smile in his voice. "Dirge, I am really not happy about leaving the Union. I loved that bar but there was no way The Prince was ever gonna let me do what I wanted. No way at all. So instead of fighting a loosing battle I am changing strategy."

Dirge sat there expecting Mark to continue and then finally spoke when it looked like he was finished. "So are ya going to go into it at all or just expect me to guess?" She said with a small smile.

"Into What babe?" Mark said with a sly grin, he then gave her another kiss on the hand and a nibble on her fingers.

Are of you fucking retarded?! What do you think I mean? Dirge sighed wearily, "Mark honey, this is getting tiring. Was there something you wanted to talk about, because you seem a little closed off tonight, or were you just wanting to fuck? I'm fine either way."

Lets see how he responds to that, she thought smugly.

"Well... I would love to fuck but that can wait a bit." Mark says with a Laugh. "I am not trying to be closed off I just don't want to pressure you into anything. But yeah fuck it right, You wanna Move in here with me?"

Move in?! Already? She smiled and gripped his hand tightly, "Mark honey, I don't know what to say. It would be nice to be together, but don't you think it is a little too soon for it to to be a full cohabitation? I still need room for myself and I'm with the Circle of the Crone. There are some things I just can't share without if you are not fully initiated. It might make things a little awkward."

Besides some of the things I do and keep around I don't want a deputy seeing...

"Yeah your right," Mark shakes his head

Thank God She doesn't want to move in yet. Now what was she digging for? What else does she think i want to talk about. Isn't loosing my home and my business enough, mark thinks to himself

"You still want a room set up like at the Union?" Mark asked

Dirge moved her chair up to sit next to Mark and placed her hand reassuringly on his leg. "Mark. How many times do I need to tell you that I'm not looking for stuff. You give too much, even when you've lost your bar and everything you did for me there. If we can be together that is good enough for me. But are you sure you're ok? Is there anything I can do?"

"Yeah I can think of one thing..." Mark says with a sly lilt in his voice. "Come with me," Mark says as he stands and takes Dirge by the hand. He walks her over to a flight of steps going down. "10 steps down," Mark says as he leads her down the steps. Dirge will hear someone rustling around downstairs "Mia come here please, Sit down," Mark says to Mia as he leads dirge to the bed. Mark whispers into Dirge's ear, "Feed from her, I want to watch."

"Ok," she said as she let him lead her and Cerberus downstairs. His blood doll on his bed? What exactly is he up to?

"Um...Sure." She said while approaching Mia on the edge of the bed. Dirge reached out and touched the woman on the shoulder, gripping it gently. Leaning in Dirge gave Mia a kiss on her bare neck before sinking her fangs into the woman's flesh. The red liquid shot into her mouth and dirge nearly swooned.

Damn she tastes good. Dirge thought to herself enjoying the taste of something better than her usual meals. When she was finished she licked the wound closed before Mia got too light headed.

As Dirge finishes feeding Mark comes behind her and places a kiss on her neck wrapping his arms around her waste. Mia stands and moves over to the recliner from Mark's first apartment where she sleeps. Mark continues to kiss Dirge and turns her around, He shifts his weight and falls onto the bed with he and dirge landing next to each other.

She smiled as Mark kissed her neck and wrapped his arms around her waist. The sound of Mia heading over to the recliner confused her a little. Does he want her to watch us?

When Mark and Dirge landed on the bed together she reached out and wrapped her arms around him. Grinning playfully she spoke, "So Mia's just going to watch then?"

"Shhh, listen" Mark said, Dirge will hear Mia snoring a soft snore "She sleeps like a rock after the kiss, California could fall into the ocean and she wouldn't wake up. But If you want I will have Jayne come get her, Unless you had something else in mind? There are two of them you know..." Mark said in a semi-jocular semi-questioning way.

Dirge laughed when she heard his explanation. "I don't mind if she is here, in fact it makes things kind of interesting." She thought for a moment and added, "Well, if you think you can handle both Jayne and me..."

Mark smiles and gives her a kiss, "You are just full of surprises," Mark rolls off the bed and runs up the steps. A few moments later two sets of feet come down the steps and Dirge feels soft hands on her as a weight settles down next to Dirge on the bed.

"Hello Miss Dirge." Jayne says as she kisses Dirge.

He didn't need much encouragement, she thought as she heard the two of them descend the stairs. As Jayne sat down on the bed, Dirge wasn't quite sure where to start. She hadn't really expected him to go for it and she wasn't really into women. However, as the other woman kissed her she figured she would play along for Mark's sake, and besides he was sure to enjoy it. While she thought things over Jayne began their kiss and Dirge returned it while reaching for the other woman to caress her.

Mark looked down on the two women and saw the hesitance and how dirge seemed uncomfortable. "Is she doing this just me? As some kind of way to repay me?" Mark thought to himself. "It is really hot though..." A little imp on marks shoulder said. "Yeah but she isn't wanting to do this...." Mark thought..

"Wait... Stop. Jayne Stop."

"Is there a Problem Mark?" Jayne said with tousled hair

"Take your sister and go up stairs. Head back to the union and finish packing up."

With a confused look on her face Jayne says "Yes Mark" and takes her leave, a half sleeping Mia on her arm.


Dirge sighed heavily, Damn it this man is infuriating! What the fuck is wrong this time? Jeez he has more issues than some women I know.

She laid down on the bed clearly frustrated as she sighed and rested an arm over her face. "What is it now Mark?" Dirge asked wearily.

I swear if I wasn't getting regular sex out of this guy I'd drop him in a heartbeat.

"You didn't look like that's what you wanted Dirge. I don't want you doing something you don't want to do. I wasn't thinking when I had Jayne come down here." Mark said as he came over and sat on the bed next to her. "Sorry Love, I can see your frustrated."

No shit you can see I'm frustrated I'm making it obvious enough. What kind of man stops two women from making out and sharing his bed?

"Just because I'm not generally attracted to women doesn't mean I can't try and experiment. I'd never tried it before so how do I know its not for me? I thought it would be something new for both of us. Fuck it." Dirge exhaled before she continued, "Mark. It is just frustrating for me cause I can't understand what you're thinking. You change your mind frequently and you're constantly surprising me with new things. I can't gauge how you feel by sight so I have to try and listen to your voice or predict you and you are not making it easy for me."

"You know sweetheart Your not the only one who is getting confused here. Your sending mixed signals as well. Your constantly telling me you don't want me to do stuff for you but your happy to accept what I give you." Mark Said as he stood up and began to pace. "Funny part is I can't gauge how you feel about things by sight either. I can read your body language but I can't read your eyes. So I can't tell what you actually want." Mark paused for a moment to collect himself. "I am not trying to be a pain in the Ass here but I am trying to make you happy. Thats all I want, but you seem to have other Ideas here. What is it you Want Dirge?"

What the hell do you expect me to do when you're giving out free shit? Of course I'm going to take it.

"A lot of what you've given me so far has been big. Hell you remolded the bar to give me a place to stay and made a stage. After you've spent all that money on me what do you expect me to do Mark? Tell you no I hate it so spend some more money to make it go away? I'm not a total bitch. I see you put a lot of time and effort into planning it for me and spent a significant amount of money into it to try and make me happy. I just don't want you to feel like you need to overextend yourself trying to afford big presents for me as the only way to please me, but of course I'm going to enjoy getting them you just make me feel guilty cause I have nothing to give you. I thought that Jayne and Me might be a fun little thing that all of us could enjoy so it was something I wanted to do for you." She paused for a moment thinking.

"What do I want? I want a friend and a lover that is fun to be around and makes me feel good about myself. I won't wanna rush things here, we have only been together for just over a month or so, and lets be honest we are both Kindred Mark. That complictes things. Kindred don't love the way mortals do. We need a long time to build up complete trust."

"Wow that woman can Rant..." Mark thought to himself...

"You know what, Your right..." Mark said in a quiet voice. "Your Right about all of it. I guess I was just excited and over did everything. I get a bit OCD when it comes to things like us. And we are kindred, Not that I know what that really means, so lets slow things down and back up a bit." Mark said. "I guess I am too mortal for my own good. Sad part is that I don't really care about mortals. Jayne and Mia yeah sure but all the others... Not so much."

"I am sorry I stopped you and Jayne. Like I said I don't want you doing stuff just for me. I want you to do what you wanna do. So What do you wanna do?" Mark asked

Dirge reached over and placed a hand on Mark's knee. "Mark dear...how old are you? Now I don't mean your birth date, how long as kindred?"

Mark thinks for a minute... "27?" he says with a question in his voice. "No no 29, I am 29. Sorry hang on... I have been a kindred for 6 years. Sorry I got a lot rolling through my thick head right now. I was turned 6 years or so years ago. Most of that I was kept on a short leash though." Mark Explains

"What?!" Dirge said as she removed her other arm from her face and rapidly shot up to a sitting position.

"Oh, that explains a little. I'm only about six as well Mark. Maybe it is because I've been initiated into and learned to be a kindred through the Circle of the Crone. We don't have the same hang ups as other kindred or if we do they get taught out of us. I don't care nearly as much about people as I let on to believe Mark, but I've found that it can help me appear more human to people if I at least act like I do. We do a lot of difficult shit, and realize that humans are nothing more than animals. There is nothing wrong with it, that is their place and kindred occupy a place above them. However, I just don't see the need to treat them cruelly all the time."

"Sorry, this may be a drastic change in the conversation but... Tell me about the Circle?" Mark asked...

"Well, I'm not sure what to say. I am a full Acolyte and so I have a growing knowledge of Cruac, which is our blood magic and I can't teach you any of that, but I can go over out beliefs. We believe that because Kindred exist it it proof that vampires are a part of the natural order. This is nothing unnatural or sinful concerning our nature or creation as the Sanctified would have you believe. We are mostly a collection of various pagan factions that band together for support as the larger our numbers the less likely our enemies are to mess with us. Many of us believe that some power such as the Crone or other god figure created us. The central beliefs for us are creation and tribulation as both are paths to enlightenment."

"Wow, so a central female figure created us? That's What you guys believe?" Mark asked for clarifications

Dirge nodded, "For most of us yes. Think of her as a supernatural mother figure. This is why we venerate her."

She paused for a moment to let him catch all that and continued, "There is power in creation in everything from art or assembling a machine or device to child birth the ultimate act of creation. There is a lot we can learn from these things. However, Tribulation is just as key. People learn nothing when it comes freely and anything easily obtained loses value or is taken for granted. We learn much through the act of overcoming a trial or difficulty. Myth is filled with stories like that. The hero goes on a quest for a artifact or weapon his tribe or people need and is tested and tried. He often must even face death itself and decend into the underworld to assend with the object of his quest. Only to find that he learned as much more in the quest about who he was and the nature of the world."


"Hang on a second," Mark gets up and goes over to the other side of the room. Dirge hears some rummaging and digging around and a wooden box open up. "I don't know if you will be able to tell what this is but feel this..." He said as he handed Dirge a painting of a Dark haired woman with an obscured face.

Confused at where Mark was going with this she took it and felt it. "Is it a portrait painting of some sort?"

"Its a painting of a woman, She has dark hair but I have never been able to paint or draw her face. I have painted her or drawn her countless times. I see her in my dreams. She bares some sort of power I don't know what." Mark says, "This probably sounds stupid..."

"Hm...it could be significant or it could be nothing. Does she speak or do anything that you can recall? Do you get a feeling of foreboding or a good feeling? Could it be someone you know or maybe someone you feel you have yet to meet?" Dirge pauses "what does she wear and does she carrying anything?"

"I don't know. In my dreams she just extends her arms to me and her eyes glow red. She doesn't say anything. I have met plenty of dark haired women," Mark says running his hand through her hair. "Mostly robes, black or red, sometimes she has a hood up sometimes not. No she doesn't carry anything. But she is powerful, I know she is. I can feel it."

"Hm...there are many things that could represent. It is possible she could be some manifestation of a deity or agent of one. There are many dream related abilities others could use or it could be a vision sent for some purpose to inspire you to search for answers. It is difficult to tell. The Hierophant may know more about such dreams."

Mark thinks to himself, "Wow this has been a crazy night hasn't it..."

Dirge nodded in agreement. "That it has been. I didn't expect things to turn out this way. I especially didn't expect you to ask about the Circle. You have always been so resistant to it and to other covenants."

"Yeah, still am resistant. But then again I didn't know much about it. Always thought that Covenants were just another form of control. And I am not interested in being controlled. Part of the problem I have been having with the Whole Prince issue. But maybe the Circle can help me with the Mysterious Lady." Mark said as he came and sat down on the bed. "Dirge I am sorry. I am probably not the guy you thought I was. All this drama and shit."

"Normally I am a pretty fun loving guy but with all this going on I guess I have gotten all turned around..."

"You know us Circle types. If you were easy to figure out and things went smoothly, then what would I learn? I wouldn't have the chance to grow to a greater understanding." She reached up and placed her hands on Mark's shoulders and smiled. "Besides I'd miss out on all the good that has come of this. You've reminded me of a part of myself I thought lost. You've shown that there are more pleasures than blood and magic to us...and speaking of pleasures."

Dirge closed the distance between them and gave Mark a long passionate kiss.

Mark enjoys the kiss very much, he also enjoys that Dirge didn't ditch him and walk away from him when shit got tough. "Thanks D. You have really helped me out a lot here." Mark gave her another kiss and guides her too the bed. Mark continues to kiss her, moving to her neck and grazing his fangs along her skin, nibbling just a little but never breaking the skin, while his hands explore her body.

<<Fade to Black>>