Shadows at night (Alex and Umbra)

Alex sat down in the armchair he had in his living room. He only had one armchair and a sofa for furniture in the room. After all, he didn't get many visitors and his needs were rather simple. The home was rather nicely furnished everywhere else of course. It was rather expensive for a rental property so it should be in his view. Just made sense to match the style you paid for.

He sighed slightly and was about to turn on the tv when he caught sight of a shadow at the edge of his vision. Knowing that it wasn't anything bad since his many, many, wards were not tripped, he smiled slightly and continued to look ahead,

"Is that you Umbra?"

Umbra had been wanting to save her energy to see Alexander again but he seemed so down when she wasn't around that she couldn't help but want to show him that she was still there at least some of the time anyway. So that was why she had allowed herself to appear to him again.

"Salve Alexander, h-hello." she whispered quietly "Adsum."

(Hello Alexander I am here)

Stepping forwards a little bit she smiled at Alexander and waved to him, looking the same as the last time they had met, very much like a blurry photograph and before she could say anything else she vanished again, into the shadows behind her.

When Umbra began to appear to him again, Alex smiled wider than he had done since she left last time. He had been so lonely without Umbra around. With her meeting up with him, he had realised how depressingly alone he really was,

"Salve Umbra." he greeted her in her own language, "I... it's good to see you again."

He smiled when she stepped forwards and stood up to meet her when she suddenly disappeared into the shadows again. Alex's eyes widened and he looked around rather frantically,

"Umbra?" he asked, getting no response in return his shoulders slumped, "Umbra..."

- Next Time -

Umbra was standing as she so often did at the end of his bed, and she was beginning to look much stronger than she had before, and much more defined as well, she had been keeping away from Alexander because she wanted to be stronger, but it didn't seem to be working...

Moving quietly, she knelt down next to him while he slept and gently moved his hair from in front of his face, she found him to be even more beautiful when he slept, he was so carefree, so unworried about whe rest of the world. Gently she smiled as she looked at him.

"Desidero vos, Alexander." she whispered quietly into his ear wondering if he would wake.

(I miss you Alexander.)

Alex stirred in his sleep when he felt something touch his cheek, moving his hair. He had gone to bed early because, to be honest, he hadn't really wanted to spend the night either hunting, researching hunting, excerising or just waiting for Umbra to show up. Slowly, he opened his eyes and saw a dark figure right next to him.

His eyes widened immediately and he sat straight up, rather alarmed since he hadn't been able to tell who it was when he first opened his eyes. He looked at the figure and saw that it was Umbra,

"Umbra...!" he exclaimed before hugging her tightly, "I've missed you so much Umbra... how have you been? Where have you been? Are you stronger now?"

Umbra smiled happily when Alexander woke up and she returned the hug gently, letting her arms wind around his waist as she wondered about what he was saying he could pick out a few words in his speech and he seemed happy to see her, maybe he had been lonely without her too?

"Oh Alexander! Bonum est videre vos evigilabit, es vos Licuit? Vos maesta videri nuper Cn. Crescere non potuit multo quam necessaria ...Egeo subsidio tuo."

(Oh Alexander! It is good to see you awake, are you alright? You have seemed sad lately. I have not been able to grow much stronger than this, I need...I need your help to understand).

Alex felt strange when Umbra returned the hug. He had only really had any affection from his parents so her gentle hug sent a happy shiver through him. He held her closer to him and closed his eyes happily as he held her,

"I'm so glad that you're here Umbra... I have been so alone." he whispered quietly before listening to her and nodding a little bit, "We need to make you stronger so that..."

He held her hand in his own, rubbing the back of her soft hand with his rough thumb,

"So that you can stay with me longer."

Umbra decided that it would be easier for the both of them to hold each other if they were both lying down, so she got up for a moment and slipped under the covers, it was a novelty for her, she had never been in a bed before and she had never even lay down before, so this was good.

"Dixi Alexander, non tu tantum." she whispered quietly still stroking some hair away from his face, it felt good to her, it felt so very calming "Y...you are neever aloneeee."

Gently she squeezed Alexander's own hand and she smiled softly as him, letting her head rest on the pillow, Umbra looked over Alexander, he looked tired, he needed to sleep she knew, he was getting less sleep than ever.

"Est somno tibi manet."

(You need to sleep, I will stay with you.)

When she got up he was a little bit puzzled as to what she was doing but when she then slipped under the covers his eyes widened slightly. He could see that she was enjoying lying down next to him and he had to admit he loved being laid beside her,

"I..." he paused, he had been about to say he didn't know what she meant when she explained it. He wrapped her up in a tight, close, hug, "Thank you Umbra... thank you so much."

When she was beside him he could tell that she was trying to get him to sleep. He needed it, he knew. He held her tightly to him as his eyes closed slowly,

"Stay with me... Umbra..."

Umbra smiled softly and gave him a soft kiss to the forehead while he drifted off to sleep, it was all too much to take in, she was being held by a man in bed, it was all too much for her she thought considering that she had never thought she would have the ability to be held in the first place.

As she thought more and more about it, she became more and more worried about the issues and before she knew it she was dissolving away, her energies having become too unfocused and her emotions twisted painfully, she didn't want to leave Alexander, he wanted her to stay.

"Me paenitet ... Alexander." she whispered.

Alexander had drifted off with a smile on his face for the first time in such a long time and he knew he wanted to fall asleep like that many more times. With his arms wrapped around someone soft and warm and....

Gone.

His eyes snapped open immediately and he sat up in bed, looking around for her anywhere. Not being able to see her, his eyes widened again and he began to feel a knot of panic in his chest,

"Umbra?" he called out, sliding out of bed to check his bathroom, "Umbra are you here?"

Paying no attention to the fact that he was only in his underwear, he raced from his room, looking for her frantically. She had to be here somewhere. She'd promised she'd stay. He had seen the promise. He'd seen it in her eyes.

But as he finished searching his entire property, he realised that it was a promise she hadn't been able to keep. His shoulders slumped in defeat and he hung his head. Wiping away a few tears, he dejectedly moved to get ready for another day of being alone.

- Next Time -

Umbra had been so upset when she had seen Alexander so hurt the next time she appeared to him she wanted it to be for a long time, so that he would be able to speak to her without her vanishing on him. She didn't want to, she just couldn't stop herself from doing so.

She found that if she kept herself calm enough, she would be able to stay focused and she would last a lot longer than she would have done normally in this new physical body of hers.

Closing her eyes she gently wandered through the home Alexander had in the bright light of day, of course this meant that she was invisible, and she wandered towards him, and she slipped her hand into Alex's and squeezed it, hoping he would know it was her, hoping she could comfort him somewhat.

Alex was supposed to be doing some research on a particularly nasty den of vampires that the other creatures were selling out since they had started to feed on creatures. He sighed a little bit and rubbed at the bridge of his nose again. She was playing on his mind again and distracting him from his job.

And he couldn't find it in himself to get annoyed at her about it. He preferred being distracted by thoughts of her.

As he was making his way to get a cup of coffee he felt something in his hand. He felt fingers gliding across his own, giving his own hand a gentle squeeze. He froze and instantly turned round to try and see her. It had to be Umbra. But... she wasn't there. Her hand was still in his though,

"Umbra?" he asked quietly before trying to feel his way up her arm. He wanted to cup her cheek. He wanted to be able to know where to look to look into her eyes, "Umbra is this you?"

Umbra was glad that Alexander could sense that she was there and that he knew that it was her although she couldn't speak it was something that she hoped she would be able to get through to him, the reason why she had chosen to come and see him as she was now, as opposed to being solid.

As he moved his hand up her arm, Umbra could tell he wanted to press his hand against her cheek, so she gently guided his hand to his cheek and she smiled even though he couldn't see it, she hoped he would be able to tell.

Softly, she stood on her tiptoes and gently closed her eyes, and pressed her invisible lips against his own, very softly and she stood back down again, feeling herself lighten with happiness. What would Alexander do now...did he even want to be kissed?

Alex found it very strange that his hands were shaking the closer he got to her cheek. When she guided his hand to her cheek he smiled and cupped her cheek gently in his hand, rubbing his thumb against her soft skin with a smile.

Feeling her begin to lean forwards, Alex was at a loss as to what Umbra was doing. When she moved closer he felt her phantom lips against his own. He felt their gentle heat against his own and their tender softness against his lips.

For a moment he was speachless. His mouth opened slightly and he smiled wider than before. He pressed himself forwards, kissing her himself before pulling away a little,

"Umbra..." he whispered tenderly, "I loved that... I want you to be with me..."

Umbra could feel something strange happening to her after she had kissed Alexander but she didn't know what it was, she didn't know what she was going to be sujected to now but, it felt very much like she was stretching, like a rubber band, it was odd and she didn't know when the feeling was going to end.

Hearing that he wanted her to be with him, made Umbra beam to herself, so he wanted her despite the fact she wasn't human? Despite the fact he couldn't even see or hear her half the time? Despite the fact they couldn't speak to each other properly, and he hadn't even seen her yet.

She suddenly felt herself snap into focus and she gasped quietly, as Alexander pulled away from the kiss, she blinked, she felt...she felt complete...like she should feel if she was a human...and turning to the mirror in the kitchen, she noticed she was one.

"Oh my God." she spoke, and then clasped her hands to her mouth "English? What...wha..."

Alex had just pulled away from kissing her when something began to happen. Her invisible body seemed to glow slightly before it rapidly began to fill out. As if her body was forming as fast as it could. His eyes widened when she was suddenly... there.

When she turned to the mirror and noticed that she was real again she was just as shocked as he was about this whole thing. Maybe that meant that she had finished forming? That she wouldn't melt away again? His eyes widened even more when she spoke. In English,

"Umbra!" he called out to get her attention, stroking her cheeks and touching her arms to make sure that she was actually real. He laughed happily and hugged her tightly, "You're back! And... and you can speak English?"

Umbra couldn't get her head around all these new feelings, there was this perculiar beating sensation in her chest that she had never felt before, she felt breathless and so she took a deep breath in through her mouth, realising that she would actually have to breathe like a human, the beating was her heart.

She had never been this real before.

When he hugged himself to her Umbra let her shaky hand rest on his cheek and she moved her thumb across his skin, he seemed so happy to see her like this, so happy that she was here. So for whatever reason she was glad this had happened.

"H...hello Alexander." she smiled gently "I... I guess I can, and I guess I am. I don't know how it happened. It's so nice to see you smiling again Alex...I've missed it."

It was, quite frankly, rather staggering to have her just... Here. And not just here like she had been before but HERE. Here like he was. Like a human being when she had never been a human being. It was as surprising as it was so very welcome.

When her shaky hand reached up and cupped his cheek it struck him that this transition couldn't have been easy on her. He smiled though when she stroked his cheek and smiled a little bit at him,

"Why hello yourself there." he teased her gently before smiling wider, "I have no idea why or how this has happened... but I'm so glad that you're here with me. I guess I haven't smiled since you were last here."

He paused and looked at her,

"How you holding up? This is a pretty big shock after all..."