Momma? Why?

[Zodiac]

Amanda dismissed her responsibility for Angela into the care of her mother. Both her parents seem to think the sun rode and set on the girl, so let them deal with her. Later, when she rationally managed to reconsider things, it did not mean they no longer cared for her but Amanda was so wrapped up in self pity at the time she could not think straight.

She regretted that decision. One of many that hung in her mind like ghosts refusing to be exorcized no matter how many lovers or bottles she consumed.

She became an entertainer then. Many had told her in the past she had the look for such a profession. Money was money, simple and charity only went so far among their own. In a system where even the smallest among them did something to contribute to the whole, her options were limited. Like the older children who helped care for Angela and the others her age and how Amanda had seen once they had grown older they too helped care for the youngsters. The original 'older' children had moved on to dividing their time between the camp and working. Some learned their trades from others and either worked on things to sell when the camps set up for business or went into the nearby towns to work (honestly or otherwise). It was a cycle that had worked since their origins back in Europe. Skilled labor always commanded money. And so did entertainment.

Locals loved the entertainers. No worrying about running into a gypsy whore on the streets when you were out and about with your actual partner. The local 'entertainers' had a fit when news told them the gypsies were around because profits would be down for a week or two until they moved on.

Many times her mother and others begged her to reconsider her decisions. She dismissed them all but her reasons were never spoken of. Some said she simply no longer cared about herself and life, but the real reason was if she took work away from camp Amanda feared Dimitri might return while she was away and vanish again. He found them once and he would find them again. Her mother had told her that much with the cards and she would be here-waiting for answers why.

So as time crawled along, she watched her daughter grow up. So close, yet so far away by her own decisions. Angela's friends grew as well and Amanda could see a unity among them growing as well. The future of the tribe itself might be in those children, she thought once. They were healthy, strong, educated. Education is something most figure would be lacking in such children, but far from it. The older adults among them acted as teachers and the children learned how to read, write, math's, history, some science, and other topics of considered value. Granted some 'classes' might not be part of modern education such as how to pick locks, move silently, basic con games or summoning spirits or brewing love potions, but on the occasion when a copy of the equivalency exam (GED) could be acquired and given to the children to complete, the majority would pass with ease. Most were skilled in other languages beyond English. If one counted Sign as a language, Angela also knew Romanian and some Spanish along with English giving her four. Someone told Amanda once that people enjoyed using the word **** like an adjective in their sentences. With Angela, it was Romany. Even if you could not understand Sign, the girl's entire posture and body language changed when she made a point in Romany with her hands. Amanda should have been happy her child, despite her limitation, was accepted, loved, and growing smart and strong, but she dismissed it as nothing.

If Amanda had not shattered any hope of the pair of them growing close again, the night of her daughter's assault was the clincher. The entire camp was in a major uproar that night and it pulled all of them to the source of it all. Someone had sense of mind enough to call the police, but that was only causing the issue to grow more out of control. The others made a path for Amanda so she could get to Angela as the local Sheriff argued with Amanda's father and others. Angela's three assailants were being held at gunpoint by some while others were carrying away Randal back into camp. One look told Amanda the boy had suffered at the hands of the men. She knew that boy loved Angela long before this. One only had to see them together to know that much. His injuries were cruel and calculated as if his attackers sought to teach him some lesson.

When her eyes turned to her daughter, Amanda felt as if something had torn her to pieces. The girl sat in the remains of her outfit she wore when doing the cards with her mother in their show. Mary was holding her wrapped in a blanket as Shira forced her way in to join them. Everyone shouting in outrage and tempers flaring higher still. The Sheriff radioing for backup once he saw the tribe was not going to let this go so easily.

"Angela," she barely managed to say her name.

"Hey! You her mother?"

"Yes." Amanda turned to face the lawman. Now she recognized him. He had been in camp several nights back. Not with her, but one of the others.

"Well, according to my boys over there, looks like the fruit doesn't fall far from the tree," the big bellied man smiled a bit. "According to them, she started this. Little girl bit off more than she could handle then screamed rape."

What madness was this fool implying? Angela, of all people, suddenly decides to seduce three men? She had seen the eye contact the three had tried to maintain with the Sheriff. Good buddies all of them. Amanda had seen this too many times before, especially against her own kind. She stepped forward and grabbed the lawman's shirt.

"If my daughter was truly what you are implying, your good friends there would have missing wallets, crushed nuts, and been the ones calling you to come arrest us all." her voice a venomous hiss.

"Hey, if you can't control your child, that's not my problem." he announced loudly. "You tell your friends to let them go now!"

"Amanda!"

She turned and saw her mother glaring at her. "Are you agreeing with this fool?"

"What?!?" Now the two women began to shout at each other in Romany, despite the Sheriff demanding they keep things in English. The approaching sirens now adding to the mix, causing the women to shout to be heard.

"This fool says Angela wanted this!" her mother shouted.

"I do not think she would do that. If she did she should have been paid first!" Amanda yelled.

A startled gasp came from behind the women. They both turned to see Angela standing between her friends with a look on her face of total shock. Amanda reached out to try and comfort the girl, but she pulled away. Her mother taught her you can see a bit of a person's spirit within their eyes, and Amanda saw that normal, tranquil landscape in those crystal blue orbs suddenly erupt in blight. Anger, pain, betrayal, the desire for vengeance. Things no parent ever wants to see in their child's eyes. "Take her out of here now, please." the woman asked her friends.

"Why did you say that about her?" Shira demanded. Mary hushed her as she tried to get her moving. Amanda repeated her request, but again the girl demanded an answer. Amanda swung her hand at the girl, but Shira pulled back quickly-allowing the blow to strike Angela instead.

"Come ON!" Mary dragged the shocked girl now. Amanda turned to her mother.

"It was an accident!" she cried.

"I know! But we will fix that later. Right now this needs our attention more!" Her mother pointed at the deputies now arguing with the men who keeping the trio in place. They all argued but to no avail. The Sheriff insisted the men were telling the truth and a mob of outraged gypsies watched as they left. Before the night was over, they had packed up and was working their way out of Georgia- never to return.

Years later, the raped gypsy returned (with help) to settle that score, but Amanda had no way of knowing that.


TBC

[Zodiac]

She reached for the bottle and this time ignored the glass. Amanda was still unnerved by the appearance of the graffiti and that pentacle. The suspect list was short to point fingers at among her own. It had been a struggle ever since Nana had died.

"Thank the goddess for that town in Canada," she thought silently.

Another insane night. By this point in time there was no true leader in power. They were a loose confederacy at best now. Amanda's views were consider along with several others and the end results were not always perfect. They had planned to rest near Harper Rock for a week and then begin the push back south to warmer climes before winter sat in. It had been a very productive summer, despite the misfires, and most were ready to simply relax. The first day and night was uneventful. The curious ones came and played the games of chance as well as enjoying more dubious pleasures. The following day went quite normal as well with those among them returning from town with good news of employment and the like, but that night...

It was like the morning Nana had died. The entire camp was in a panic. Multiple stories of shadows not acting like shadows. Both visitors and Syzgany returning to camp dazed, confused. Unaware of how they suddenly found themselves elsewhere. Feeling weak with fading marks upon them. They were being attacked but by who and why?

Amanda found herself confronted by Nora Aanandin and several others of the coven and a quick conversation began. Notes were compared and a look of dread passed among them all. This was about survival now. The women concluded there was only one possible answer. Amanda could not argue. She knew the histories well enough. Had learned them from the lips of her mother. Nana would know what to do and they did not have the time to try and discover such things. Whatever secrets there were to survive this had vanished with the rest of Katrina's tomes and grimores when Angela had left.

Amanda ran to the central clearing and grabbed the hammer tied to the meeting bell and began to ring it to get everyone's attentions.

"NOSFERATU!" she screamed at the top of her lungs while banging the bell hard enough to threaten to break the thing. "WE ARE LEAVING TONIGHT! NOSFERATU IS AMONG US!"

The words unified the group as they moved now with a purpose. They were all quite skilled at breaking down and leaving an area quickly. Amanda found herself directing people to specific tasks along with the rest of the coven. Within hours the first of the vehicles rolled back for the main highway and turned southbound back for the border. They traveled in shifts of drivers, only stopping for fuel and repairs if needed. Once they had slipped across the border into North Dakota did they seek a place of rest.

And then the entire affair turned truly ugly.

Amanda suddenly found herself a leader. Many thanking her for her quick decisions and how she had handled the situation during the escape. She had never given it a second thought. Amanda had hoped to be made leader, of course, but to suddenly be considered it was a type of bonus she had not planned for. The tribe was life. One protected the tribe so it could continue. It was something that had been taught to every one of them who had been raised in this situation, so she simply did what was required.

But that evening around a fire pushing back the darkness under the Dakota sky, a new problem was addressed. During the trek, the matter had been discussed and now it was being considered with reluctance and dread.

The enthralled.

Legend had it that those bitten by Nosferatu was now their eyes and ears. Their slaves. Several of their number had been attacked that was known of and who knew how many others it had happened to. Could they continue fleeing south with the possibility of some of them telling their invisible masters where they were and what they were doing? Perhaps helping lead them from one pit of vampires to another?

The grouped debated long into the night.

A search was made. Checking others to see who had been attacked. It was done with the utmost kindness and care. The marks had vanished by then, so the only ones that could be considered thralls were the five who reported what had happened to them. For a time, people just kept their eyes on them to be sure and life went on. Until an opportunity Amanda could not ignore fell into her hands.

***

"Where did you find this?" She asked.

"I saw Randal handing those out to a few people. Very discreet like." the young man answered. She studied the simple business card. "I palmed one out of his coat pocket while he was working."

"Good. I will not forget this." she smiled as her fingertip slid over the name of her daughter.

***

It was cold blooded murder, plain and simple. The suspected thralls and Randy were judged in a court of opinion. The memory of the attacks too fresh in their minds to have dimmed much at all. The old ways were accounted for and declared for all to hear, and with the majority of the coven confirming Amanda's words, little protest was offered. Did they want their families killed, or worse? Slaves to creatures of darkness? Suddenly finding themselves supplicants as their ancestors were in the past?

Subjugated by one of their own?

Angela was the perfect patsy in this. How interesting to find her alive and settled in a place where vampires still existed. Was she one? Amanda had no clue but the bite mark Randal had within his mouth on his lower lip was a question indeed. Randy had to have found her to get the business cards and she had no doubts the girl still had feelings for him. Had he not been the last one to return that night? Where had he gone besides to get extra fuel? Despite a total lack of evidence against her, it was easy. Amanda demonized Angela as she secured her grip on everything.

As for the six enthralled?

The stake, the sword, and the fire.

Amanda proved she was not weak. She would be a leader to make the painful, but necessary decisions to keep them all alive. Some of the coven members rebelled against this, but too few. The younger members among them sided with Amanda. Still a house divided, but a house where the one side could not hope to challenge Amanda's side of things. The only shred the opposition had left was the one bit of tradition Amanda had no answer for. She was not blessed by their previous leader and did not wear the necklace, but if that was all they had to work with the woman felt secure. They would either leave in time or die off eventually.

Her letter writing campaign began. She showed members of the coven her words before sending them off to Harper Rock and the address on the business card. Either way her daughter took them would be a victory for Amanda. They would either make her crawl under her bed and hide away, thus she would never be a serious challenge to her authority, or would madden her to the point of seeking them out, and since all knew Angela was the vampire who organized the attack on the tribe she would never make it past the guards. Amanda ordered anyone who would mange to kill her to bring her body directly to her. She knew if Nana told the girl to keep the necklace in place that was exactly what she would do. Claim it from the lifeless body and be marked the true leader of the tribe. Win-win.

She was due to write again, Amanda thought. She didn't even know if Angela even read them anymore, especially after the first one she sent with the little forget me nots from Randy inside.

Something bumped against her window. Amanda almost dropped the bottle in her hand at the sudden sound. Slowly the woman rose and began to approach the side of the trailer the sound was coming from. Her other hand pulled a gun from the holster she wore and aimed. If it was her visiting graffiti artist come for a second demonstration she would not hesitate to show her un-appreciation for their artwork. She snatched the curtains open and saw shredded screens before a blood curdling screech of feline fury echoed in the trailer. Amanda staggered back a couple steps as the large black cat forced its way through the ruined screen. Again, the beast shrieked in rage with fangs bared as its eyes focused on the woman. The woman had never seen a cat so large (or angry) before. She raised the gun in reflex as she stared into those emerald eyes that for a second reminded her of someone.

The cat sprang at her. Claws ripping across the back of the woman's hand, causing her to drop the gun. Amanda screamed as she backed away as the cat announced its rage a third time. "Aront thee!" she pointed at the cat, convinced this was not a cat but some demon wrapped in fur sent to plague her. "BEGONE!"

The cat hissed as if in amusement and lashed out again. The door to the trailer shook as the guards were pounding upon it, shouting if Amanda was alright. The cat gave a final hiss before turning and leaping back out into the night. The darkness swallowing it up as if it had been nothing more than a shadow among shadows.


TBC

[Zodiac]

The next day, Mary paused and watched as a couple people worked to scrub the less than flattering graffiti from the sides of Amanda's trailer. It had to be Angela's doing, but how? The people Amanda had keeping her safe were chosen for the job because they were quite good at it. ('*** kissers' she called them) so how could the girl manage to do this and not be seen was a puzzle.

She ignored Amanda's cold look as she walked away. Mary imagined the woman was suspecting an inside job, but too many witnesses saw her elsewhere. After she had finished going over Angela's plan with her, they had parted company and Mary went to a second bar she knew the others often gathered at. It was the easiest way to find a ride home. Her time spent drinking with the others put her outside of camp and accounted for when the artist struck, or at least when the art was discovered.

As far as Amanda's claims of some giant demon cat coming into her trailer, Mary imagined it was probably a squirrel or something else.

'But do squirrels scratch people like that?' she asked herself when she saw the woman's bandaged hand.

As the girl did her normal rounds, she spoke to certain people a bit longer than usual. People her mother said could be trusted to help her. No one except Mary knew exactly what the overall deal was and even then she had no clue what Angela hoped to achieve with this all. Each trusted soul was given a bit of the puzzle and told where and how it was to be set and hidden. 'Presentation' was all Angela would say in answer to her questions. She had already hidden a few parts herself, and with the movements of everyone during the day, no one could hope to keep track of everyone and what they were doing. If all was careful, no one would notice.

'And then what?' she wondered. Perhaps for the tenth time, Mary wondered what Angela did with her days. It was understandable the girl was reluctant to stay here. One nosey person at the wrong moment and she would be discovered, but what did she do? She didn't sleep all day. From what Mary remembered, Angela was a dynamo from sunrise till whenever she decided to sleep again. She wasn't wandering around the town (much) she imagined. Again, too much of a chance of being seen.

Eventually, the working part of the day was over. Mary headed back to the trailer she shared with her mother just as she had every night of her life. She glanced at the red skies to the west and wondered. Angela said to be ready a few hours after sunset.

Is gonna be one hellava show, so get a good seat! Angela had signed.

'That is what worries me,' Mary paused to pet Sirus before entering the trailer.

***

Zodiac's eyes snapped open the moment the sun slipped past the horizon. She sat up in her makeshift porcelain covered metal bed and stretched. She could not wait to be able to sleep in a real bed again without worries. She stepped out of the bathroom and began to do her evening stretching to loosen up. Ginny sat on the bed of the small motel room and meowed her greetings.

"And did you have fun last night, my love?" she smiled. She found the blood on the cat's paws when it finally returned and one sniff told her who it belonged too. "You never met her before last night and even you can't stand her." The cat yawned and stood up to do it's own stretching in reply. Once Zodiac was finished, she became a blurr of motion. Items needed were placed in a smaller bag while the rest went into her larger pack. As Ginny ate, she took a quick shower and began to dress. There would be no hiding this night for her, so the black jeans and such were packed away. Using her laptop cam, she did her face and hair. Each bit of clothing and jewelry sat in place with care as she became the granddaughter of Katrina Machenka for the world to see. This was more than the locals in Canada saw her in as the norm. This night she dressed as royalty. The finest silks and velvet covered her body. Every piece fitting to perfection and with purpose.

And in the vale of her breasts lay the item of her mother's desires. Nana's necklace.

"I can do this," she told herself. This was not like her return trip to Georgia. That had been a plan of murder. This, however, could turn out quite painless and with zero bloodshed if she played her strong suits right. She knew her people. What moved them, what brought out the best and the worst in them, and what they feared the most.

Once she was prepared, the girl did as she had done every night of her stay in the area. A final check of the room and all places she had touched wiped down and clean of prints. Already in the bottom of her purse the ID and credit card she had used to rent the room was shredded, just like the ones from the previous nights. Not a single scrap remained that anyone could link to her. The key was wiped, along with the deadbolt that was undone, and left on the small desk to be found when the matrons came to clean the room in the morning. Zodiac stood still for a bit as she whispered a silent prayer for success, then gathered her bags over her shoulders and picked up her familiar.

"It's showtime, baby girl," her mind spoke as she focused her thoughts on a point just outside the camp itself. In a brief flash, she was gone.


TBC

[Zodiac]

She appeared within a mile of the borders of the camp. Her bags stashed away within the underbrush away from sight. Zodiac had studied the area on her hidden visits and had chose this spot in advance, and knew no one from the camp had chose to come in this direction. Carrying only the few things she required in her oversized purse, she began to walk towards the borders. She had a couple of 'stops' to make before everything began. At her heel, the large black cat padded along in silence. There were patterns to this place and she needed a few items so she moved to where her observations told her she would find them.

Her first 'need' was found easily enough. Stealth was not this one's strong suit at all. Zodiac frowned a bit. There was a time someone like this would not have been allowed to join their ranks. What were they called again? 'Skinheads' came to mind. Mentally, she hissed as the man came into view. The neo-Nazi standing there trying to look intimidating as he watched his area. Members of the tribe who remembered (and lived) the past would be rolling in their graves to know someone like this was now part of them.

Nevertheless, this one would serve her purpose well.

The man was alert, to his credit. At the first deliberate sound the mystic made his attentions turned to where she was coming from. The safety snapped off the gun he carried as he looked about. "Who goes?" he asked the darkness around him.

He lifted his finger slightly off the trigger when the silhouette of the gypsy appeared. "Taking an odd route home, aren't you?" he asked. The man assumed, just as she hoped, that someone dressed like her had to come from the camp he was guarding and now was heading home for the night. The girl continued to advance until she stood in front of the man. "So what do you want?" he sneered a bit. Despite the fact he was (probably) being paid to guard the camp, his own prejudices were leaking out. Zodiac smiled her most disarming smile and looked directly into the man's eyes. The man flinched a bit as he felt something pass between the two of them. It was like her eyes were suddenly inside of his mind and swallowing his thoughts.

"Protect me." her thoughts demanded of him. Ever since she had discovered by accident the living could be susceptible to her mental influences, she had practiced it on the dredges of Harper Rock. She was never cruel with her mental enthrallments, but made sure people would do what she wished of them. Again, she spoke her command deep within his thoughts.

"Of....course." he finally answered. The girl smiled and motioned for the man to follow her. He fell into step behind her as she made her way to the next 'item' she needed. She had chose them carefully and worked her way to the next guard. Mary had said it herself, if she had some muscle to back her up things would be easier.

***

Six of them.

Zodiac had hoped for a few more, but six would be pushing her limits on how many she could keep in line. The four men and two women stood their waiting for her orders now as she pulled the small electronic control pad from her purse and turned it on. Once fully on, it began to receive signals from the small transmitters attached to the items Mary had worked to place in the camp.

"Now to hope Dominique made these things to my specifications." she sighed as she pressed several buttons. The signal from her transmitter reached out to certain items and basically 'said' one thing- turn on.

From under several trailers of the outermost ring, a thin white mist began to emerge. The fog makers, with extra padding to block the sounds of the whirring motors, began to push out the tiny clouds that drifted along the ground. Eventually the clouds met up with other clouds and started to form a thick blanket that hid the ground from view. Others were brought to life and the white mist began to float down from certain trees.

A motion to her 'troops' and the mystic began to walk towards the camp again.

***

"That's odd,"

"What is odd, mother?" Mary asked as she joined her mother by the door. Outside the gathering white mist was creeping along the ground. Nora Aanandin turned to her child and smiled.

"Part of your little project today?"

"I guess so," Angela had not told her what exactly did what, but had the items numbered to go with a map of the camp showing where she wanted each thing placed. Only a handful of things were potentially dangerous and those she knew about but they were no where near the campers and trailers. She had been very specific on their placements.

Outside, Sirus looked at the door expectantly. His tail wagging, causing the mist to fluff about now.

"I suppose we should take a walk then?" Nora took her sweater down from the hook by the door and slipped it on.

Elsewhere in the camp, those who were still awake began to notice. Many agreed that nothing in the weather suggested they should be getting a mist this evening. Amanda approached several members of the local coven who were debating the oddity and laughed.

"Are we such frightened children that we fret and panic over a bit of night mist?" she asked calmly.

"This should not be," one answered. "The weather is all wrong for such a thing."

"The weather surprises all, including your lot." Amanda answered. "How many times has it done so in the past?"

"Many times," another agreed. "But the last time we had a mist we could not explain was..." she fell silent and made motions with her hands. Amanda recognized the ward to protect one from evil she made.

"When?"

"The night the Nosferatu came." one finally replied.

***

"Phase two" the gypsy pushed a few more switches.

***

Several hidden dynamite caps exploded around the place. The explosions lit smaller smoke bombs that began to add colored smoke to the drifting mists. Mary and Nora paused at the sound of it. Others began to shout and scream at the noise and other members of the tribe began to rush to the center meeting place.

"She is herding them," she mumbled.

"Indeed she is," Nora agreed. "I suggest we look as concerned as the rest."

***

"And last but not least,"

Firepods erupted now, adding a glow to the mists and clouds as they burned.

"Now my dears," she looked at her six mesmerized guardians. "Just as I have told you to do." Zodiac watched as the six people advanced and entered the camp proper.

***

"Guards!" Amanda shouted as the explosions began. Others of the tribe were now appearing from the ranks of the trailers with expectant eyes and looks of cold fear on most faces. "Be calm!" she urged them. "Our guards are coming."

"There," one shouted as six figures could be seen in the mist marching to them. The group calmed a bit now. Amanda's personal pair joined her and watched as well with weapons ready.

"What are they doing?" one of the coven asked as the group split into half. The six formed a divided line, flanking the entry path into the camp. They looked directly at the group assembled and waited.

"What is wrong?" Amanda shouted. "Take your places!"

"AMANDA FERENCZY!" the skinhead shouted for all to hear. "YOUR TIME HAS COME!"

"STAND AND AWAIT YOUR JUDGEMENT!" another shouted.

"Judgment from whom?" she shouted back while motioning for her guard to move closer.

"ADEVARATA REGINA!" one of the women shouted.

"The True Queen," Mary translated in her head as they watched.

"I AM REGINA!" Amanda shouted. As if in reply, several small explosions erupted, releasing more smoke that billowed upwards into the night skies. From within the mist, a shape could be seen approaching. Amanda's bravado failed her as the large black cat emerged and began to stalk towards her.

"You SEE?" she almost screamed.

"Now that is one big assed cat" Nora whispered as she tapped Mary's shoulder and pointed where a second figure could be seen emerging from the smoke.

She was Syzgany. Her walk proud. Eyes front and head erect. The gypsy emerged from the man made smoke as if she owned the place. As she advanced, her guards followed. The cat hissed at the coven members before it sat as if waiting for its owner to catch up. The cat then turned and rubbed itself against the legs of the girl as she stopped and looked directly at her mother with cold crystal blue eyes.

Angela Ferenczy had finally come home.


TBC

[Zodiac]

Amanda stood calmly as her daughter appeared. The only thing that truly unnerved her was that black beast of a cat fawning about the girl's ankles. She had control over that thing? For perhaps the hundredth time, the woman wondered what exactly had her mother taught the girl.

She had to give her only child credit. Personally Amanda never thought Angela would have the courage to return, but there she was- big as life. "So it was your pet that paid me a visit the other night?" she asked as she took a step forward. Angela clicked her tongue and the cat replied by jumping up into her arms and then moving to sit on her shoulder. It hissed again as Amanda began to approach, but calmed under the girl's comforting hand.

"My long lost daughter, Angela. A thief, possibly a murderer, abandoned the tribe in its hour of need, renegade and known Nosferatu." she smirked as she reminded those assembled of the girl's 'crimes' against them all. "Anything to say for yourself or are you still playing puppet show with your hands?"

The girl didn't blink. She had become so used to such insults over time they barely registered anymore.

"Surely you had to know if you returned, you would be judged for your actions." Amanda frowned inside. The girl was a block of ice instead of her usual volatile self. She was too calm. The other bits of evidence began to float in now. How much had she paid the six to stand there like her personal honor guard? The strange fog flowing over the camp now. Again, that insane feline. How did she get it to seek out her trailer alone and attack her like that? And the writings? She had to have help in all of this, but who?

"The coven did decide that if you returned, the punishment was death." she reminded her softly. "Taking Nana from us like that cannot be forgotten or forgiven. And the ones you and your friends forced us to dispatch? How can anyone forgive that? How can you live with yourself knowing that seducing Randy lead to his death?"

Now a bit of fire appeared in the girl's eyes, but she refused to move. She knew those lies would come into play and had warned herself before hand. Ginny began to purr, as if sensing the girl needed some calming.

"So, are we surrounded now by your vampire slaves? They ready to pounce on us and drain us dry?" Why couldn't she get a reaction from the girl? It had always been easy to get Angela fired up and off her game before. Amanda's jaw dropped as her daughter shook her head no and then pointed to herself in way of an answer.

"Just you?" Amanda laughed despite the unease she was feeling. "Well, you must be one impressive vampire then." She kept saying the term in reflex, hoping to keep the others on edge. "So why have you returned, child? Knowing you faced certain death if you did so? Speak up!"

A small smile appeared finally on the girl's face as she looked around at the member's assembled till her eyes found Mary. With a wave, she encouraged her friend to come closer and motioned for her to stop when she stood between herself and Amanda.

"Your partner in crime? I should have known." Zodiac looked at her friend and signed.

TRANSLATE ME EXACTLY and then began.

"Since you were too busy whoring instead of trying to learn to understand my words, I am forced to have Mary be involved in this," the woman spoke slowly as Angela kept 'speaking'. "I did not kill Nana, and I stole nothing. What I took, Nana told me to take and so I did. I did not abandon the tribe, but left as she told me to do. Renegade is what you made me to be, and the blood of those others are on your hands, not mine."

"Is very easy to blame things on a dead woman." Amanda countered. "The only way I would accept that is if she appeared among us and said it, and then I would be wary it was one of your tricks Nana taught you to do for the fools who came to you both!"

Ginny leapt from the girl's shoulder and faced the woman. Her back arched and she bristled as a ear splitting yowl of rage left the cat's mouth. Angela snapped her fingers and the black fury held its ground, but continued to gaze almost in hatred at Amanda.

"You still do not believe," Mary translated. "After all you have seen in the past."

"All I saw in the past was fools making fools of others for their money!"

"Fools?" Angela's smile grew a bit. "Or was it simply Nana figured you didn't have what it took to become a witch? Why waste her time and teachings on someone who was too thick headed to understand. It must be a family trait then. The parent finding the child defective and useless." Now she had found a nerve and began to grind on it. "Is that why you treated me as you did? Cause Nana treated you the same?"

" Vrăjitoarea blestemat!" Amanda shouted, but her daughter refused to back off.

"And how much did I learn simply because I put the time and effort into it? You could not even be bothered to learn 26 letters so you could understand me!"

"I am not the one on trial here. You are! Thief, murderess, Nosferatu!" Amanda quickly tried to regain control of the argument. Already some of them were looking in confusion as to what was happening now.

"I said I am not a thief or a murderess," she signed as Mary translated then suddenly the girl screamed.

"Oh ****!" Mary took several steps backwards as Angela waved her hands and caused herself to rise up at least a foot about the ground. She began to drift closer to Amanda while still holding that smile upon her face.

"But the rest is debatable." Mary stammered out the last of Angela's sign language.


TBC

[Zodiac]

Her smile grew as she levitated above the fog. The looks on the faces around her were priceless, as the commercial was found of saying. Amanda took a step backwards as her daughter drifted closer to her. Zodiac could see it in her eyes. Somehow, the analogy of the person who cried wolf came to mind. Easy to say someone was something, but when proof appeared you may indeed be right-ah, suddenly it was a different story. She gestured to Mary for her attentions and began to sign again.

"So tell me, mother, is this a power of a vampire or something Nana taught me to do? If you do not know, then ask your coven members who are cowering behind you now."

The woman glanced over her shoulder at the women in question, who were fretting among themselves like frightened children. "Well?" she demanded.

"In the past," one finally replied. "We have heard of kindred with such gifts, but they were rare and powerful,"

"Did Nana know this art?"

"Nana never showed us all that she knew." the one answered, sounding more like a lame excuse. "Your daughter spent more time with her and her teachings than all of us combined."

Amanda glared at her daughter who simply kept smiling. A major seed of doubt had just sprung into life in her mother's mind now. Once more, her hands moved in patterns that Mary translated.

"And if I am nosferatu, could I bear the light? The light of the heart of the goddess herself?" Mary spoke while Zodiac made a grand showing as if she was focusing herself to cast a spell. She held out her hands and a blinding sphere of light began to form in her palms. Her audience shielded their eyes as she summoned mystic illumination and floated there holding it. Eventually she pulled her hands apart, causing the sphere to disperse and fade away.

"Apparently, you cannot. Perhaps I am not the vampire here. Or would you prefer something closer to what you are destined for?" she signed before again acting as if she was casting a spell and extending her hands in Amanda's direction as they ignited and burned with a heat and flame that almost craved the flesh just out of her reach.

"Or would the animals tolerate my presence?" Zodiac bent over and stroked the cat that began to purr and pace about her hand gracefully.

"The fact you have that little demon under your control does not help much," Amanda replied. "It came into my home and tried to attack me. On your orders!"

"No one controls her. She does as she will and as she sees fit. Perhaps she sees something in you that enrages her." the girl offered. Zodiac glanced around and saw the guards standing behind her mother were growing anxious now. Inwardly she sighed. Anxious meant they were not being swayed by her arguments and the longer this went on the more dangerous they could become. The last thing she wanted was any bystanders to be injured. "Calm your people, mother." it sounded more like a command the way Mary said it.

"Yes, that is right. Finally a truth out of you! My people! You walk in here with some of Nana's magick tricks and expect to take over the tribe? Our tribe? Where were you when the problems that have plagued us were happening? Where were you the night the Nosferatu came to us? Hiding in the shadows and causing it all was where! You murdered my mother, brought curses down upon us and now you think I will just step out of the way because you are making hand gestures your partner in crime is translating for us all? Aront thee, ARONT THEE!" Amanda screamed as she stepped backwards and waved to her waiting guards to take point.

"Remember what I told you when I sent those reminders of what you did to Randal to you? I keep my promises, Angela. I name you guilty, and before the sun rises, you will be the Devil's newest bed warmer." Amanda snapped her fingers. "Guards? Shoot this demonic slut and her thrall," she gestured at Mary. "And five hundred dollars to the one of you who brings me that thrice damned cat's head."


TBC

[Zodiac]

'Protect her,' Zodiac aimed a message at two of her adopted guards, and watched as they took a stance between Amanda and Mary with weapons ready. She quickly began to evaluate the situation when the sound of a gunshot rang out. Zodiac twisted in mid air as a bullet hit her directly in the shoulder. 'NO!' she ordered her guards as she saw the smoking gun held in her mother's hands.

"You are still too predictable, 'Regina'." The sarcasm thick in Amanda's voice. "You always worried about your idiot friends before yourself. I know that hurts, so why don't you stop this nonsense now and give me back what you stole."

"You are insane!" The voice made Amanda turn to see Nora Aanandin had approached her. "You just shot your own child and expect all who have witnessed this to simply follow and obey you?"

"Have a care, old frog. You know what she is as well as I do." Amanda replied without taking her eyes off of Angela.

"She is your child. Your very blood. Your mother's blood and disciple."

"Oh yes, she is. It was always all about her, wasn't it?" Amanda began to scream. "When Dimitri left me, it was all Angela! Secret meetings with the lot of you and suddenly she is a prodigy under Nana, but what about me? He left me! Why?"

"No one knows why he left," Nora answered. "And no one can say you drove him to it, else they are a liar. I was there when Angela was born, when the pair of you handfasted. You were a good wife and mother."

"I tried, but he left." Her voice shook a bit. "And as all of you fell all over themselves over Angela, who gave a second thought for me?"

"I did."

Both women and Mary turned in shock at the sudden voice inside of the minds. Zodiac pulled open her blouse to show the wound she had received and placed her hand against it. A faint glow appeared for a moment and she extended her blood slick hand to show the bullet resting in her palm. Her shoulder, still bloody, but the wound was now gone.

"Witch speak." Amanda gasped.

"And self healing." Nora added with a touch of admiration in her voice. "You truly are a prodigy, Angela."

"You see? Even now, it's all about her!" Amanda turned the gun to aim at Nora but never finished. Ginny exploded up from the mist and wrapped herself around Amanda's gun hand. Her claws and fangs working hand and wrist without mercy till the gun fell to the ground. Amanda screamed and fell backwards to the ground, finally coming eye to eye with what she felt was her personal demon tormentor. The cat hissed in contempt, but then sat on its haunches and looked at the woman as if a feline's interpretation of pity were being shown.

"Ginny. No more. Please." Zodiac drifted closer and settled down next to her mother. The sleeve of her now ruined blouse was ripped away and she used it to bandage the wound carefully. Crystal blue eyes looked into her mother's dark eyes as she began to 'speak'. "I don't know why he left either or why Nana taught me what she did. All I know is I felt happy and loved until the day he left and suddenly I was to blame for everything wrong in your life. I missed him too. I missed both of you, even though you was there. I didn't do anything to make him leave that I know of." she begged.

"He left us both, not just you. You know what pain is? Pain is knowing exactly what you want to say and nothing comes out. You are taking it all in and no way to express yourself. To let you know I was hurting too. That I still loved you."

Softly, she ran her hand through Amanda's hair. "But no matter how I tried, you kept pushing me away and blaming me for everything till I could not deal with it anymore. Even when I needed you the most, you blamed me for what happened to me."

"Trying to beguile me, Angel?" Amanda looked up into her daughter's gaze now. "Or guilt me somehow?"

"No! I'm trying to talk to you for once with actual sounds. That's all." the girl pleaded. Hoping for once they could actually talk properly. Was it even possible? Every scenario she had imagined told her this would end badly, but the seed of hope bloomed within her now. "Mother. Please. We can go sit in the trailer and talk. I'll make you tea and we can chat."

Amanda looked at the ground for a few moments before shaking her head. Nora took a few steps to bring her closer now. "Amanda, what is the harm in talking to your daughter?"

"It's too late for any of that," the woman sighed. "Every time I looked into those blue eyes her father gave her, I saw him. Every time the questions would come back to my mind. Why? What did I do so wrong? You and Nana both know I adored him. Never treated him wrong."

"I know," Nora agreed. "Dimitri's leaving shocked everyone."

"But Nana knew why. He spoke to her at length the day before he left and she never said anything." the tone of her voice slowly rising back to that screaming pitch Zodiac had hated all her life now. "Suddenly he was gone and Angela was my Nana's special pet. I did what I had to in order to survive! When her friends," she pointed at her daughter accusingly. "Came to us in Canada, I did what I had to do to keep us all safe! I made us stronger, safer, and ready. The tribe was all I had left and even then, someone always brought up Angela!"

"It wasn't my fault. He left me too." the mystic defended herself. "All I knew was one day daddy was gone and you started hating me."

"Did you love him?" her mother asked.

"From what I can recall, when I was with you both I felt safe, happy and loved."

"So did I," Amanda sighed. "Why did you come back, Angela?"

"To try and fix what is wrong here,"

"To usurp my place, you mean."

"Nooo!" All of this was suddenly wrong and nowhere near what Zodiac envisioned the situation would be like.

"You really want to fix things here, Angela? Give me Nana's necklace and tell all here you renounce your claim."

"I can't do that. Nana said..."

"Nana said, Nana said, NANA SAID! I am SO sick of hearing 'Nana said' as an answer to things!" Amanda screamed as her hand lashed out. Zodiac's mouth opened in a silent scream of pain as the dagger in her mother's hand bit deep into her belly.

"Then die," she gave the knife a sudden twist. "That will help fix a lot of things here as well."


TBC

[Zodiac]

It should not have surprised her, but hope blinded her to the possibility. Amanda twisted the knife again, sending a fresh jolt of pain through her body. Nora and the others were shouting now. Some crying out in outrage at Amanda's actions while others cheered her on. Before the mystic could act, a gunshot rang out and one of Amanda's keepers fell to the ground as Zodiac's enthralled guards reacted to the matter at hand. The members of the tribe began to scatter as the gun play began in earnest. She saw Mary run and pull her mother to the ground to avoid being hit while the (so called) coven ran for safety. Suddenly in the middle of the chaos- mother and daughter was alone.

Amanda was reaching out with the hand Ginny had mauled to grab what Zodiac was calling 'that thrice damned necklace' from her. A flick of the mystic's wrist slapped the hand away while she grabbed the wrist of the hand that held the knife and began to squeeze. In a town of super powerful vampires, Zodiac was among the weakest physically but against a human her strength was beyond the majority of the living. Her mother began to struggle to escape her grip now. Using her other hand to try and pry away her child's fingers. Zodiac ignored it and continued to apply pressure until she felt something snap inside of her mother's wrist. Amanda howled in pain and let go of the knife as Zodiac finally let go of her. Her mother rolled back as she cursed in Romany as her daughter rose up into the air again. She looked down at the woman as her normal crystal blue eyes began to change. Now taking on a glowing feral cast to them as her anger ran wild. Zodiac spread her arms and willed herself to mutate into her feral battle form. Amanda looked up in time to see her daughter transform into what most would consider a demonic image floating just above the ground. Red flaming eyes looking at her with hatred fueling the fires within.

"I gave you chance. I begged you for a chance despite what common sense told me, and this was your answer." the claws on one hand gestured to the knife still in her side.

"You ARE Nosferatu!" Amanda gasped in triumph despite her pain.

"Yes, and I blame YOU!" Zodiac's now larger hand reached out and grabbed her mother by the throat. She pulled the woman upwards with surprising ease till she looked her directly in the eye. "Every night I curse you both! I curse you for being what you are, and because of that I curse Nana for putting my feet on a road that let to this! She knew what you would do with real power! She knew what your so called witches would do with her knowledge, so she had me take it away where you would never have any of it and I would be safe from you, and because of you this happened to me!" She shook her human mother like a doll to keep her focused. Her hand not tight enough to choke her but enough to make escape impossible. Amanda tried to speak, but was cut off by the telepathic shouting in her mind.

"I would have stayed here forever. I would have bound with Randy. I would have had children-your grandchildren. I would have had life, and you robbed me of it all! Why? You treated me like a mistake because father left us? How should I treat you for stealing my entire life from me?" Her mouth opened wide as two sets a fangs emerged in her jaws.

"Angela.." her mother stammered.

"Because of you, Angela is dead! Randy is dead!" the girl raged as she leaned closer now.

"What are you...?"

"Silence! When Adevarata Regina speaks, you listen and obey! What am I going to do, mother? Is that your question, my loyal and loving one?" Zodiac watched as Amanda nodded. "Simple answer. Now you are my mother and next- you are my slave!"

Amanda screamed as the fangs bit deeply into her throat. Zodiac had already lost blood and her body was crying for more so she began to feed. She watched her mother's face as she tried to fight and escape her grip, but a lifetime of anger fueled her actions now. She kept swallowing deeply from the crimson river escaping from Amanda, feeling herself growing strong again. She had considered enthralling her mother, then outright killing her, or even cursing her as she had been. How fitting to become exactly what you were so afraid of. Alone, without guidance and surrounded by those who knew exactly how to destroy you.

"Angela?"

Zodiac looked away from Amanda and saw Mary and Nora looking at her from their places on the ground. Her mouth opened and her hands relaxed, causing her mother to drop onto the ground. She was not dead and nothing of the mystic's essence had been forced into her. She would live, possibly. It did not matter to the girl anymore. What mattered suddenly was the look on her friend's face as she saw her like this. Her jaws moved, sending thin streams of blood to drip downwards as she stood up and looked back. This was all wrong! This wasn't supposed to happen. Not this way.

The mystic took a step towards the pair and watched as they drew back. Zodiac stopped and began to weep. "Protect them!" her thoughts reached out to her surviving bodyguards as she impressed the faces of Nora and Mary into their minds. "Obey them!"

"Angela," now Nora spoke and she struggled to get back to her feet. Ginny, of all creatures, was pacing around the older woman. Meowing and rubbing against her as if she found the woman worthy of her attentions. The vampiress said nothing but reached into her dress pocket and pulled out a folded note and tossed it in Nora's direction. Zodiac retreated a few steps from the pair and crouched down. A silent mental command brought the cat back to her and she lifted it into her arms. A final look at the pair before a burst of light suddenly envelops her form and leaves nothing behind when the light finally fades.

"Oh my God!" Mary sat on her knees in total shock.

"I am sure several of them had a hand in what we just saw," Nora replied. Amanda groaned a bit but was unable to move. The older woman got to her feet with Mary's help. "Amanda can wait for the moment. We need to bring this situation back under control before half the tribe is killed."

"What can we do?"

Nora pointed to the bell that hung from a low lying branch. "Grab the hammer and beat the daylights out of that thing. That will get everyone's attention. I hope."

"And then what?"

"Then it will depend if anyone is willing to listen to me. Just do it!"


TBC

[Zodiac]

(Dusk the following evening)

The old pick up truck pulled into the visitors parking area of the hotel and stopped. The doors opened as two women climbed out and got their bearings.

"Are you sure this is the one?" Nora asked as she pulled her sweater around her tighter.

"This is the one on the note you were given," Mary answered.

"I like this one. They have free coffee sometimes." her mother replied as the two of them made their way to the lobby and walked in. The night clerk looked up and gave the practiced welcome speech to the women as they approached the counter.

"Excuse us, but we are looking for a Miss Aria Faraday." Mary asked.

"Yes," the man replied. "Miss Faraday checked out a few moments ago, but is waiting by the poolside now. She said she was expecting guests so that must be you two." he smiled the perfect smile and instructed them where to go so they might find her.

"Thank you. Do you have coffee made?" Nora asked hopefully.

"Not yet, but I can get some going in a moment." the clerk offered.

"Good. thank you. I will be back."

***

Zodiac sat stretched out on one of the lounge chairs that surrounded the pool. The building itself shielding her from the last rays of sunlight vanishing in the west. The outdoor lights were already on and she watched a family and their children having fun in the water. Her eyes hidden by the sunglasses she wore. Ginny sat curled up at the foot of the lounger dozing in indifference. As the door opened, she turned her head and smiled as the pair approached.

"Classy," Mary finally spoke.

"This dump? Classy? Places like this are cookie cutter products. You been in one, you have seen them all." she kept her mindspeak soft and gentle.

"Never been in one before except to use the bathroom or swipe some bagels." the girl answered as the mystic stood up to greet them. Zodiac looked at Nora and sighed.

"I suppose we should talk?"

"If it pleases Regina." the older woman replied. Nora nodded to her daughter, causing the girl to step out of earshot.

"Don't call me that."

"Katrina named you as such when she gave you her necklace, child. She passed leadership to you before she died and I have no reason to think you lied about any of this."

Zodiac cocked her head now. "How can you be so calm after...... last night?" The thunk of a can of soda being dispensed made her eyes look to see Mary getting herself a drink from the machine. She could smell it as the girl opened the can. Root Beer.

"I have lived longer than you, Angela, though I suspect you will live longer than any of us now if you are careful. I have seen many things in my life and your Nana and I accomplished much together in our time. With all we have seen and managed, the idea of vampires still being in this world was hardly a major surprise." the woman's hand reached out and caressed the girl's cheek gently. "I am just sad it happened to you is all."

"So was I. I have tried to make the best of it. Keep being me, but its so hard some nights."

"I can only imagine. For what it is worth to you, I still see 'you' in there."

Zodiac nodded as she stood up straight and placed her fingertips to her Nana's necklace. Soft words in Romany echoed in Nora and Mary's thoughts as she asked the older woman would she accept leadership. Nora replied and bend down as the girl slipped the necklace from her neck and placed it on Nora.

"Adevarata Regina." Zodiac inclined her head in respect.

"Adevarata Regina." Nora answered and she bowed in reply.

"Just try to make it what it all was before is all I ask."

"Already in progress. Now that we can move freely among ourselves again, things will change rapidly. The members of the coven who backed Amanda have been banished and apparently I have new disciples to begin to groom and teach."

"And my mother?"

Nora grew silent for a moment. She watched the family finally getting out of the pool and getting their things in order to return to their room. "You left us with a hard choice, Angela. Many in the camp demand the same treatment for her as she gave to those who were bitten in Canada, but others say what happened simply proved she was right and we need to be on guard even more."

"Where is she now?"

"Recovering. She is under guard in her trailer for the moment until a proper meeting and decision can be made about her. Oddly enough, my personal feelings say we should simply banish her."

Zodiac's eyebrow lifted in surprise at the admission.

"The night your 'friends' came and found us? You did not see her. She acted while the rest were falling all over ourselves trying to figure out what was happening. She saved lives that night and did not let up till we were all safely away from there. Your mother cared for us all and acted selflessly in that much. After that, her inner compass became twisted, but she did care. That much of her should be respected to a degree."

"That is Regina's decision to make, not mine. If Mary had not spoken when she did...,"

"Then you would have turned her possibly and made yourself a problem a hundred times worse than before." Nora said. "You are right. Whatever happens to Amanda is not your concern now, but she will not bother you again. Now," Nora looked around. "I think that nice young man has had time to get my coffee on. I think the two of you have some talking to do, but first," Nora smiled and embraced the girl again and reached into her bag and pulled out a large manila envelope and handed it to Zodiac.

"And what is this?"

"I had Mary make that for me. My own spells and journal transcribed to computer format so they could be printed out. She has the information saved so can run me another copy easy." Nora watched as the mystic flipped through the pages. "Mary knows some things, but never embraced it like you have. I was not flattering you last night. You are possibly Katrina's biggest success and her fitting successor. I know you will use what is in there properly."

Zodiac felt her throat tighten as the implications of this unexpected gift soaked in to her brain. "I am honored, Adevarata Regina. I will keep these with honor and respect."

"Don't call me that," Nora winked, then turned to go back inside the lobby, leaving the two women alone.


To Be Concluded

[Zodiac]

Conclusion. 1 of 2.

Mary watched her mother leave and then turned her attention to Angela, who was putting the envelope into one of the bags that sat next to the lounger she had been sitting in. Timidly she began to approach the girl who now looked at her with expecting eyes.

"It's still me in here," she smiled warmly.

"I know, I know. It's just..." Mary fumbled for the right words.

"Yeah, I understand."

"You made a hellava entrance last night."

"An entrance worthy and dedicated to all the snake oil salesmen, con artists, back stabbers, dirty dealers, and all forms of shady members of the Ferenczy bloodline past, present and future." Zodiac struck a pose then laughed.

"What's it like? Being....you know."

"You don't want to know."

"Can it be undone?" Mary's curiosity was going full tilt now.

"If it can be, it is lost knowledge to the others that I know of. I'm still looking." she sniffed the air in reflex. "Ah, root beer."

"You want some?" Mary held out the can, but her friend waved it off.

"Wish I could, but if I drink that it gets really.... embarrassingly messy. Trust me."

"You can't eat or drink? That has to suck."

"Sucking is about all I can do, as in the subject of blood." A soft mental laugh followed her words.

"How is your wound doing?"

"Oh, this?" Zodiac pulled up her shirt to reveal not a trace of the knife damage remained. She made a mental note to herself to thank Madison again when she got back to Canada for allowing her to borrow her relic, otherwise she would still be in a process of healing.

"Son of a *****!" the girl whistled in appreciation. "There is some perks to being what you are now, it seems."

"And a lot of negatives too. In my view, the cons outweigh the pros, but there are others who would say otherwise I am sure."

"I am still trying to wrap my head around all of this."

"You know, by all rights, I should kill you both for what you saw last night."

The girl looked at the mystic as if waiting for the punch line to a joke, but slowly began to grow quiet when one was not offered. "Secrecy is a big thing with us," Zodiac began. "There really aren't a lot of us and if you think the world gives **** to us gypsies imagine what they would do to vampires if they knew any of them existed?" she lied in part. If anyone actually knew the numbers that were growing in the north now, there would be a disaster of panic brewing. "The few of us there are mind our own business, keep our heads down, and just try to live what's left of our lives."

Mary nodded. "Once things finally calmed down, mother and I discussed it all. 'Look at what you saw' she said. How hard you tried to hide the fact that you were now... different despite the fact you had every right to rage and literally destroy us all if you wanted to. She says those are not the actions of a monster at all. I imagine secrecy is vital to your survival. People were finding the remains of your toys all day, so the majority feels you were nothing more than a vengeful child trying to spook Amanda by hook or crook. You know we would never betray you and in time last night will be a legend told around campfires. The night Queen Nosferatu came and broke the hold of the usurper Regent. The children and the newcomers will think it's a tale of fancy and nothing more."

"That works, I guess. Besides, who ever believes anything a gypsy has to say, right?" Both of them laughed now. "I have so missed you,"

"I have missed you as well, my Sora sânge. I was crying in relief when Randy told me you were alive and well. Did he know about this?"

Zodiac nodded and the pair grew quiet again. "So what now?" Mary broke the silence.

"Go back 'home'. I started making a life for myself before my 'accident' and I saw no reason to stop. I own and run 3 legit businesses now besides my other projects. Got a nice place, my own bath!" she laughed. "And I have a good heart next to mine there as well."

"Oh really? What's their name?"

"Temperance."

"That's an odd name for a boy.....oh." Mary looked surprised, causing Zodiac to laugh again.

"There was only one Randy. Adevăratul suflet vine o dată, şi niciodată din nou. As Nana said 'Your true soul comes once, and never again'. I beat the odds, I think. Found another one when I was least expecting it. You'd like her."

"Is she like you?"

"Yes, we are both girls." she smirked.

"Fine! Be that way."

"The less you know of things, the better."

"So, this is goodbye forever now?"

"Doesn't have to be. Once your mom is set up and everything is running smoothly you could come visit me. We could hang out like always for a few days."

"You are suggesting I come and stay in a town with vampires?" Mary's jaw dropped in shock. "Why don't you just bite me now and get it over with."

"It's not like that." Zodiac insisted. "It's plenty safe in the daytime, and at night you'd have me as your personal bodyguard. Anyone with fangs takes an interest in you I can say 'Back of, bitches-she's mine!' and that would be the end of it. It be fun!"

"I'll think about it." She smiled. "The biggest trip of all of this is 'hearing' you speak finally."

"We never had issues before,"

"Remember when Nana taught us all how to understand you? That song she made up for us to sing before we had our lessons?"

"Oh yeah. Tea and Fingers."

"Then sing with me the way the rest of us did." Mary insisted. After several mis-starts that were broken up with laughter, the pair finally got it together as their hands and words moved in synch.

Now it's time for tea and fingers,
Listen close and let it linger,
With our fingers we make our plans,
When tea cups do not fill our hands,
Practice how the letters go,
Share your cookies rightly so,
Honey and lemons, A to Z,
In silence we have a talking spree,
Look at us all quiet singers,
As we sit for tea and fingers.

"I always wondered what you would sound like."

"So what do you think? Nice, loud, cool, sexy, obnoxious?"

"More like a cow with post nasal drip." Mary laughed as a look of shock crossed Zodiac's face, then bolted as the girl rushed her. She managed to avoid her for a few moments before she was grabbed into a embrace.

"I should toss you in the pool for that crack!"

"Oh go ahead and try!" Mary screeched as Zodiac lifted her up off the ground with zero effort. "Nooooooo! Oh my goddess, you are strong now."

"Me? I'm a fly weight compared to some like me." She sat her back down, but did not let go of the embrace.

"I don't want you to go,"

"Neither do I, but if I stay it's just going to add to the mess you and your mom have to clean up. 'Regina' needs to stand alone and have normal, mortal advisors. Not have everyone thinking she has a vampire enforcer watching her back. Nana ruled with love, respect, and a proper touch of fear. My mother used fear alone. Yours don't need to make the same mistakes Amanda did."

"I know. Damn it!"

"What the hell is your problem? In one swoop I made you a princess of sorts. Not a shabby promotion."

"Ha, ha, ha. I want to be a princess as much as you wanted to be Regina. But maybe that is why Nana passed it to you. She knew you would not fall in love with the job, but do it as best you could in your own way."

"And likewise, the new queen has a kick *** advisor beside her now."

"Angela, I have to ask this and I do for a reason. Is there others like..."

"Others like me around here? The whole time I spend here, I never got an impression another vampire was around here. Of course, they could be keeping a very low profile, but nothing rang my inner alarm that I was not alone. What I know of is in the north, not here." It was truth. The paranoid side of the gypsy could not stop herself from looking about for clues on the subject once she had arrived, but she sensed nothing.

"That's today, but,...." Zodiac silenced Mary by placing a finger to her lips.

"Tomorrow comes no matter what. If it happens one day, one year, it happens. Not all of us are good, but not all of us are evil. All anyone can do is keep watch and be prepared while having an open mind. The same as we did when new travelers approached us wanting to be part of our tribe. Deeds, not words. Judge nothing by what they are but by who they are. It's what Nana would have done."

"Fair enough." The look on her face told Zodiac that Mary was close to crying now, which mirrored her own feelings. Both girls just hugged each other tightly for a few moments now. "Why are you so cold now?" she asked the mystic as she held her close.

"Part of the curse," she whispered. "I just have a different fire inside now."

Zodiac broke the embrace and walked to where her bags sat waiting for her. The backpack, the considerably lighter shoulder pack and her oversized purse all dropping into place with ease. She picked up her parasol and clicked her tongue to attract Ginny's attentions. "Get yourself a life, Mary. Fall in love with a guy, have babies. Something. About time you spread those wings of yours."

"Mother says that as well. I just didn't see the sense in trying to have a life like that where I was. Under Amanda's thumb."

"No worries now then." Zodiac made one of her business cards appear and wrote a number on the back of it. "My personal cell. Text me if you need anything." Mary took the card and slipped it into her pocket. "The things I set in motion last night will play themselves out. Nothing left to do now but ride off into the sunset."

"Be safe, sister."

"You as well, sister." Zodiac picked up her cat and winked as she focused her energies and made the first jump in teleporting herself back to her own.


Epilog to follow