Douglas woke in a strange room, in a very comfortable bed. He was fully clothed, for that he was very grateful.
"Morning sleepy head." Lana smiled from the doorway, Douglas sat up. He slowly observed his surroundings. The room was head to toe in posters varying from Spiderman to Doctor Who, from The Avengers to Justice League, and a very off-putting poster of Loki on the ceiling. Gaming consoles were scattered across the floor, DVD's were stacked in the corners and CD's were piled on the desk. The Harry Potter collection were stacked on the bedside table, Prisoner of Askaban particularly shabby, and the Mortal Instruments were piled on the floor. Douglas would have concluded this was a guys room, if it wasn't for the tights and lingerie hanging slightly out of a draw. He looked at Lana, she stood in a bulky hoodie and leggings, the hooded top read, 'I Am Sher Locked'. Douglas sighed, he had to fall for a geek.
"Morning." He groaned, his head throbbing. "How come your not hungover?"
"Nick, he's awake." She shouted through to Nicholas, who trotted in, eyebrow raised.
"Hello there." Nicholas perched on the edge of the Tardis Duvet and inspected Douglas. Val stepped in and clasped Lana's hand, her hair now a mint blue. "So, erm," He looked around Lana's room and picked up the pair of scissors on the desk. He dragged the blade across his arm. Black puss bubbled at the cut. Lana stepped across and did the same, the same black gunk bubbled.
"Douglas, we aren't human." Lana whispered.
"I am!" Val waved, her mint hair bouncing. Nicholas looked back at her with a sweet look.
"We are Black Bloods. We're like Vampires but we don't drink blood, we feed off the human life source. You're not in danger, of us. Although we have reason to believe that some one is trying to keep you hidden."
"Why?" He managed.
"Lana here, was experiencing her, as we call it, Mating Season. It's when our kind find our soul mate, but contact with humans are very dangerous. If the human isn't your soul mate, it can drive the mortal mad and delirious with longing. However you are perfectly sane and Lana isn't a full Black Blood therefore incapable of finding her soul mate. So there's something suspicious about you Mr Lee." Nicholas explained, bandaging Lana's wrist. "Do you get where I'm coming from?"
"Surprisingly yes." Douglas smiled, surprisingly on track. He picked up the scissors and pricked his finger. A droplet of dark dark red blood swelled.
"Wait!" Val ran across the room, and grabbed the scissors and mocked Douglas' action. Her blood was a bright red, as any normal humans should be. "Your blood is darker, but I remember when you cut your head open after your morning pill. It was normal coloured. Give me his pills." Lana fished the pills out of his coat. "I'll take them to Giovanni, he'll run some tests." Nicholas followed Val as she fled.
"So you okay?" Lana asked.
"Yeah, I always knew there was something wrong with you guys, and me I guess." He laughed.
"Hand." She held up her hand.
"Hand." He held up hers.
"Get dressed, we'll take you to school." She kissed his cheek and stepped from the room. "Oh, we've explained it to your family and you'll be staying her till we realise who you are. I hope you're okay with Valerie seeing us together, she was pretty hostile last night." She winked and closed the door.
Stepping into school was weirdly sinister. Ella stood gawping at her locker as Douglas walked into the hallway with the Noirs. Lana smiled up at him and took his hand, wrapping it around her waist. Ella let a sneaky smile creep onto her face.
Val. Not so much.
She lent against her locker, hands clasped around her books in a pent to stay up. Through her sunglasses, her eyes followed them.
"Lana!" Lana turned around, taking Douglas with her.
"Camille?" Douglas whispered.
"DOUGIE!" Camille once was a bouncy auburn who spent most of her time in a rusted up cafe with comics. He and Douglas had been tight until he'd become friends with Val, who had declared Camille with her then boxy glasses and wonky nose wasn't cool enough. However, now begged to differ, she was tall now a few pounds under to be curvy, her pale auburn hair was now a hot, vivid red and her glasses where gone. She attacked Douglas, wrapping her arms around his neck, the boy behind her with long brown hair hanging in a ponytail stiffened.
"Camille." Lana grinned. Camille stepped back, examined the pair and grabbed their hands.
"Naughty Naughty Lana. Wait, why isn't he stark raving mad?" She asked after bopping Lana on the nose.
"I think I might be." Douglas muttered. Camille grinned.
"Oh, Dougie! This is Judas, he's my mate." She wrapped his tense arm around his shoulder. The man relaxed. Camille grinned, pecking his cheek as a reward for calming.
"Greetings, I am Judas Lucifer Noir. Yes It is a burden, my name is my curse. I was born under a bad sign on a bad day, therefore cursed with a traitors name for all eternity. But I have Camille, my angel." He looked down on her, as if she were a gift sent from heaven. She grinned further, like she knew he was looking at her this way.
"Oh, Lana." Camille took Lana's hand and placed a small blue object in her hand. Lana blushed and shoved in her pocket quickly. "Lana. Nicholas and Giovanni recommended it. It's the only way to know for sure." Her eyes darted to Douglas for a second before returning to Lana.
"It's a little intimate!" Lana snapped, her voice sounding harsh for the first time since she threatened him the other week.
"Lana, you need to get over the irrational fear of intimacy! You're holding hands with the opposite sex and your fine! Use the Cube!" Camille snapped back.
"You can't tell me what to do!" Lana bit back.
"I'm trying to help Lana!" Camille whispered, she had recoiled, regathered her temper and looked back at Lana like she would a little child. "I always have to remember your age." Lana's eyes widened and then she dropped Douglas' hand and hugged herself.
"It's not my fault." Lana was close to tears now. Camille moved to hug her, Lana collapsed into her arms.
"You are special. Just because your brain doesn't run at the same speed as your body development, doesn't make you bad. It's actually nice seeing things through your eyes, it's innocence." Camille kissed the top of Lana's head, like she would a small child again. "Think about it."
Douglas looked to Lana, her eyes had misted over and she appeared like a child. Suddenly she violently shook her head and turned back to him, grinning. She clasped his hand and pulled him from the scorned spot.
Black Bloods, Mating, his mystery pills, he could deal with that. Lana, not so much.
