Kiss of the Vampire Princess

[slayers_desire]

It was a quiet day in Los Angeles. Spike was babysitting Jonathan for April and Clark, taking extra care with his grandson (especially considering the last time the young boy had visited there had been an difficult situation to handle).

The was good reason why things were quiet. Connor no longer stayed with Spike, Wes and Lorne. And while Angel and Buffy had returned from helping Connor reclaim Quo'Toth properly, both the elder vampire and the vampire slayer had not stayed long.

It was nice to spend time with the grandchild too. Spike was still giving Shasta time to mourn over the loss of Jash, and for the Vampire Village to recover from the recent loss. And Jonathan was at the age were he was learning so much, and Spike was taking it among himself to teach the young child about weapons and self-defense.

After a long day, the two of them went down for a nap. Spike held the toddler in his arms securely, confident that no one would dare touch the child or wake the sleeping vampire. He was partly right...

A hooded figure entered quietly, watching over the vampire and sleeping child for a while. Then the figure left a simple white unicorn statuette behind, leaving without incident. And minutes before April and Clark appeared, via PINpoint.

Comments

[kalel_ofkrypton]

Aside from the lab, none of these rooms hold any real surprises. But knowing that there are darker truths lurking is making Clark wary of assuming anything. "Looks like facilities for the upkeep of quite a few people." If she's keeping her human 'donors' as comfortable as the animals, they would need laundry services, certainly.

[slayers_desire]

The last locked door leads to a staircase, leading up further to the hotel. "There is life up there. People."

[kalel_ofkrypton]

That's all Clark needs to know. He leads the way up the staircase, all his senses alert. There's no guarantee that it will only be the human 'donors' up here, although with the way Harmony was acting downstairs, he's sure she isn't exactly security-conscious.

[slayers_desire]

They get to the third floor, before encountering another locked door. This one has more security in place, it is steel and bolted in several placed. It also has a security panel at the one side.

"If we break in, we will trigger an alarm."

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"Not if we go through the wall." One thing he's learned in his years of experience is that security systems are often only linked to the door, and most people don't account for the relative weakness of the walls around that door.

But all the same, subtlety isn't necessarily a bad thing. "Can we slip under the door using your shadow form?"

[slayers_desire]

"That is a good idea..." April can take another person with her in shadow form. She hasn't done this with Clark.

"The shadows might be a little overwhelming at first. Especially for you, since you are more of a sun-person."

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"It's all right. We don't be in them for long."

[slayers_desire]

April goes into shadow form first. Then she extends her powers around Clark. The shadows sort of suck him into the darkness. It will be a strange feeling... no longer having any feeling to his body, as it becomes shadow itself.

She maintains the bond, just in case he needs to communicate while in the shadow form. And then guiding him, for the shadows might pull him in other directions, April gets them under the door.

[kalel_ofkrypton]

He's only been in her shadow form once, when they switched powers for a day, but it does feel different to be taken as a passenger. It's like sensory deprivation, or being outside the atmosphere, only able to 'see' what's going on outside of himself.

[slayers_desire]

They slip under the door easily enough. Unnoticed. Undetected. April returns them both to their regular forms. There is a whole hallway full of doors, typical of any hotel.

"Most of these have people residing in them."

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"Behind a door like that, I bet most of them aren't here willingly." He scans the rooms with x-ray vision, seeing which rooms have people in them, how many, and what condition they're in. If the donors are incapacitated, getting them out will be much harder.

[slayers_desire]

None of the donors are incapacitated. The majority of them are living their lives, as if this is something that is now second-nature to them. They are watching TV. They are making supper. They are sleeping. Or listening to music.

There is a balance between men and female. But they are all single rooms.

[kalel_ofkrypton]

Clark shares what he sees with her. "At least they're being taken care of... I wonder how long they've been imprisoned here?"

[slayers_desire]

"They aren't projecting the sensation of being prisoners..." April closes her eyes, touching the walls. "Many of them are without homes. Lost their families to Zombires. They were given a place to stay. To be safe...."

"Of course they are safe..." Harmony's voice speaks behind them. Where she arrived to give Spike the tour.

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"Safe, yes, but not free," Clark says, turning to face her. He'd hoped that Spike would keep her occupied a little longer, but what's done is done.

[slayers_desire]

"You came up from the wrong side. They all have keycards." Harmony rolls her eyes, insulted by his accusation.

"That door is locked... because downstairs is where I interview the Demons. The vampires. Before they get permission to join the Society."

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"How do you explain the lab?" He's giving her the benefit of the doubt, but that doesn't mean he believes her just yet.

[slayers_desire]

"We make all our donations as pleasurable as possible." Harmony smiled softly. "Or haven't you ever been bitten before?"

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"Yes, but I don't need to be drugged for it."

[slayers_desire]

"Not everyone here gets drugged. It is their choice. Some like a little aphrodisiac with their experience."

"Harmony has been trying to rejuvenate the Vampire population, in a more respectful manner." Spike grumbles a little. He is not buying that everything is on the up-and-up.

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"It's not just an aphrodisiac, it's creating an addiction," Clark says to Harmony. He can tell that Spike isn't buying her story either, and his own Kryptonian intuition is telling him that there's more to it.

[slayers_desire]

"It is their choice to take it. Many of them were addicted to worse stuff before I found them."

April places a hand to her temples, getting a flicking of something.

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"So all you did was replace one addiction with another." Addicts are easy targets for someone like her. Of course they would choose something like this, but it isn't truly helping them.

He can sense that April is getting something, and wants to keep Harmony talking.

[slayers_desire]

April gently touches Clark's arm, as her voices communicate with her. The level of emotion and intensity makes her grip harden slightly. But there is no other outward reaction from her.

"She is making them addicted to her..." Spike straight out said. Not very pleased.

[kalel_ofkrypton]

What are you getting? he asks over the bond.

"It's easy to keep a food source around to be used when you keep them on a leash," Clark says with a nod, not sounding very pleased either. Alicia once tried to capture him with red kryptonite and keep him to be her superpowered boytoy. He was fortunate enough to have a stronger affection for April, keeping him from following her plan before the necklace could be removed. What Harmony is doing to these people is almost the same.