The night was dark, the air frigid on a blustery eve. She paraded down the sidewalk in a march, her eyes wandering back through alleyways as she reached them. The devilish grin upon her lips was in certainty of her investigation.

Streets were empty of passing vehicles. No one was in sight to watch as she explored the city on her two feet.

Serena was just as cunning as ever as she searched high and low for her possession. She lacked her companion, who strayed away from her just as they entered the city. An interesting, beautiful creature she was as she strolled the night. Her dress hemmed up to her knees, her hair folded over her shoulders. Yet, her thoughts were dangerous and her eyes could spark fear in any approaching man.

She had felt him here, in Northern city. As per her bond with the slave, this was the skill she acquired. However, with their one-sided relationship, Lucious did not possess the same ability that would come from their exchange of blood that happened so long ago. He could not feel her approach, could not sense her arrival to Northern, therefore he was at her mercy.

When she arrived at a small alley, she stopped and looked deep into the shadows. She took recognition in the area. With Lucious's scent left in the air here, along with his partner's, she knew she was on the right track.

“Gotcha,” she murmured to herself.

Looking ahead, she could follow his path to the area where CiCi had perished. Stepping forward, the scent of blood immediately overwhelmed the air. A few more steps and she continued to feel Lucious's presence here and she looked down to the sidewalk where CiCi once lay dead.

There had been a great struggle here before she arrived. Serena could feel the tension still in the air despite the winds blowing away any left over scents.

Eventually, she looked over her shoulder towards the other side of the street. They had ran, she could almost imagine their footprints in the sidewalk as they took off down the path.

Serena turned around, following her keen senses past the place where Mikael had once lived, across the street past the empty apartment where the two had met up with Jersey, until a familiar shadow came walking up to her.

“Chris,” she muttered under her breath, that devious smile turning upside down.

“Well, well beautiful.” His voice came to her as he stepped up into the light. “Happen to be seeking out the same creature as I?”

“You know he's mine, Christopher.” She boasted. “I found him first!”

Chris stood with a grin. “Of course, dear.” He chuckled under his breath. “But you failed at keeping him to yourself, did you not?”

The looked on Serena's face went grim. “That gives you no right to strip him from me!”

“I did not take anything from you, dear.” Chris tipped his head. “I only saved him from losing himself after he left your side. If it had not been for me, he would be dead.”

Serena looked to him in disbelief. “Then why are you seeking him now? Why do you keep holding on to him when he wants neither of us?”

Chris glared at Serena. His smile disappearing, his body tense from her words.

“Can you answer that same question?” he wondered, his voice almost a whisper just barely audible to a human's ears.

“He is my slave! I have the bond with him, not you.” She scowled.

Chris held out his hands. “Couldn't we come to some agreement, princess? A ward possibly? He spends half the week with you, then half the week with me?” He chuckled.

“He's not a step child, Christopher. He's a slave!” Serena frowned.

“Oh, but what if he could be our step child, darling?” Chris stepped forward to wrap his arm around Serena's side. “I happen to be without a home now and your mansion is so much better than where I lay my head for the day.”

Serena wouldn't be fooled by Chris's advances. She stepped back and pushed Chris away from her. Tired from the argument, she prepared to remove herself from his company.

“I will never again be deceived by your foul mouth, Christopher,” she warned.

“Oh, but you are stuck with me... for eternity. You cannot escape that fact.” He stepped forward causing her to step back. “If only you had known before we became a pair. But as I remember... as if it was yesterday, you couldn't refuse me.” He smiled again as he stopped in his tracks.

“A time I would so love to forget,” Serena muttered to herself.

“Yes, yes.. well, so what do you say? A truce between us, we share the prize?” Chris propositioned.

Serena stood quiet for a moment collecting her thoughts.

“I got a better idea,” she finally said, taking a step back. “Let's say, the first one who finds Lucious, keeps him.” Suddenly, she darted down the sidewalk leaving Chris standing in amazement.

-------

Chris knew she had an advantage. That connection that he did not possess. Her senses would help her find him quicker than he could. However, he did not falter to that thought. Instead, he began to step forward, a bizarre little smile outlining his lips.

“Well, we'll see about that,” he whispered to himself as he walked forth in the same direction as she. “Princess.”