Scarlet Vamporium: Vamporium #2 by Poppet[vampire] Page A

strength against them. It's basic physics. I'm not Skyaah's ancestor, I've never heard of her! I'm just a normal girl with three brothers, and we all live with my uncle who makes Hulk Hogan look like a librarian. It's normal to wrestle and fight with your brothers, and they train against my uncle. Just because I look like a model doesn't mean I can't fight like a predator.”
    Shocked by my own diatribe, I flick my hair behind my shoulder, take a deep breath, and straighten my spine to my full height, “But a lady should never resort to fighting, her mouth should be her sword. If my aunt finds out about this I'm never going to be allowed out until I turn a hundred and fifty.”
    Doug looks visibly relieved, shoving Rod's shoulder, “See? Yer overreactin' as usual.”
    Only now do I realize I'm still holding the Skull Splitter in my free hand, and I down all of it, suddenly needing to fool myself that it's somehow going to help.
    “Go get us a refill, I'm takin' her tae the fire tae get some air,” Doug orders Rod.
    To finalize this statement Douglas grabs my hand and yanks me after him into the ghost breath blanketing the night.
    The second we're alone, he stops, putting his arms around me and hugging me tight, “Are ye okay? I'm so sorry. The last thing I expected was fer the girls tae get funny with ye. Roddie defendin' ye didnae help one bit because Heather has the hots fer him.”
    “I'm okay,” I nod, rather enjoying the intimate respite.
    “Ye didnae have tae fight her ye know. Roddie was perfectly capable of warding off Heather, and I was on ma way tae intervene.”
    “Yes, I did,” I mumble into his leather jacket, wishing he'd let go just a bit. Forcing us apart, I look up into his worried gray eyes, “Doug, if Rod had defended me it wouldn't have embarrassed Heather. She'd just think I'm a wimp who has to hide behind my friends. But I'm half her size weight wise, and me doing that would have mortified her because it happened in front of everyone she knows. There's a lesson in that for her. Don't pick fights with people you don't know because you have no clue what they're capable of. And, a lady doesn't fight. The only way to teach her that was in a way she won't soon forget, by humiliating her. Being born female doesn't give you manners or grace, it doesn't make you a lady. We should be raised to be the kind of woman a man wants to have on his arm, not cowering behind a beer mug because he's shocked by her savage behavior.”
    “I did say that yer just like yer auntie,” he says with a wide smug smile.
    It deepens his dimple, and again I'm shellshocked by his incredible face when he's happy. It's the same look he had when he saw the baby deer, making him alluring... irresistible... attractive.
    “You did,” I smile, relishing his attention. His focus is warm and affectionate.
    “Yer auntie's definitely a lady, and I dare say I'm proud tae ha'e yer on ma arm, Ellindt.” To emphasize his point, he offers me his elbow, waiting for me to put my arm through his.
    Instead I rest my hand in the crook of it and lean in against his shoulder, “Thank god that's over. Is everyone here that welcoming?”
    For some reason he finds that statement hilarious, breaking the creepy night with a bellowing laugh.
    *
     
    Douglas:
     
    Settling down on the logs surrounding the fire, I introduce her tae the elected cook fer the evening, “Ellindt, this is Stuart. Stuart, this is Ellindt.”
    She leans over, shaking his hand, “You can call me Ellie.”
    “Good tae meet ye,” he nods, giving me a look of envy.
    Then she smiles at me, tucking the hair back behind her shoulder because it fell forward with her movement, brushing the damp earth with the glossy ends of it. “You can call me Ellie too. I keep feeling like we're being too formal.”
    “Ellie, mmm, I like the sound of that.”
    Wedging her hand between both of mine, I examine her eyes, worriet she's putting on a brave face fer me. I'm goin' tae skin Heather