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The Present...Denver, CO...August 22

Vin slowly woke up, smiling and then frowning as he felt a weight on his chest and his arms wrapped around someone. *Funny,* he thought, *I don't remember bringing anyone to my bed, not even Chris.*

Deciding that opening his eyes would be of the good, Vin slowly opened his cerulean eyes and saw a head of sandy blonde hair. Raising his eyebrow questioningly, he ran his hands up the back of the person in his arms. *No, not person. The feel and shape make this a man,* and feeling the shifting of the man bring cocks together, he mentally groaned, *Yep, most definitely a man. And by the presence an old, powerful Gangrel.* Sniffing delicately, and smelling only himself and the other man, Vin's thoughts suddenly clarified, *My Mate. My Mate. This is MY Mate, my Ezra.*

Pulling Ezra more possessively and tightly against him, he briefly wondered what Chris thought of this new situation. After all, he hadn't planned on taking a Mate anytime soon, which meant he would have plenty of time to explain the intricacies of the Gangrel clan to his lover and their friends. But now, and a wicked grin crossed his face, now that he had a Mate, that explanation would come much sooner than he had figured. Feeling and hearing Ezra's breathing change, Vin knew that his Mate would be up soon. And then the two of them could explain this to his friends and lover. *And what will Ezra think of my relationship with Chris? Will he accept it or will I have to make him accept it? Although,* Vin thought with a dreamy look in his eyes and smile on his face, *he would look very good in between us. But not yet, he isn't ready for that, not if the fear he exhibited last night is any indication. What was he so afraid of? He knew I wouldn't hurt him, didn't he? I mean what idiot in their right mind would hurt their Mate. That would only cause problems to fester and grow until the Alpha killed his Mate or the other way around. But...?* 

Vin's musings were cut off by Ezra tensing in his arms. Feeling the man try to pull away from him, Vin tightened his grip, until Ezra stopped moving. Looking down, he saw Ezra's forehead resting on his chest, neck arched up so that he didn't have to look up at Vin. Eyeing him curiously and shaking his head, Vin commanded, "Look at me."

Slowly, the beautiful face turned up and he looked into wary and frightened emerald eyes. Pulling Ezra even closer to him and tightening his grip just a tad, Vin quietly asked, "What's wrong?"

Softly sighing, eyes darting away, and worrying his bottom lip with his teeth, Ezra tried to think of how to put what he was thinking and feeling in an understandable explanation. Sensing the growing impatience of the Gangrel that he was Mated to as the silence continued, finally he softly said, "I really don't know. I don't know what's going on, I'm so confused, I feel so...so...so...Aw hell, I don't know what I feel. I don't know how to explain to you or anyone else what it is that I'm thinking and feeling. All I know is that I can sense you like I've never been able to sense anyone before, not even my Sire or my Childer. I can even feel a blood link with you, but I'm only supposed to have a blood link with my Sire and Childer. Why is that? What have you done to me?" An anguished voice whispered out, begging, "Please tell me what you've done to me. Please."

Vin stared at the man on top of him shocked. Feeling the emotions run through him from the man's tone of voice, he was silent for several moments. He had thought that the man knew without a doubt what had been happening, but now he wasn't so sure. His Sire had taught him that all Gangrel Betas knew about the Claiming when their blood finally recognized the Alpha that was meant to take them as Mate. But looking into the confused, overwhelmed and panicked eyes of HIS Mate, Vin began to understand that Ezra really didn't understand much of what was going on at all. *Oh My,* Vin thought, *he really is an Innocent.* And then he thought with a evil smirk, *But, he's MY Innocent.*

With that last thought and with the newness of the link now between them, Vin's blood began to yearn for the feeling of claiming his Mate. He could tell from the squirming that Ezra had started doing trying to get out his arms that Ezra could tell what he was thinking as well. Forcibly putting that thought aside for a better time, Vin gently commanded, "Stop that. If you stay still, I will explain what I know to you, but if you don't, well, let's just say that what we did last night will be nothing compared to what we will do."

Feeling the shiver of both fear and arousal run through Ezra, Vin began his explanation. "I am an Alpha Male. In the Gangrel clan, there is only one Beta Male who would be MY Mate. The blood of both cries out for the Claiming when they meet, which is what we felt yesterday and that is what happened. I Claimed you Ezra. You are now MY Mate. What you are feeling is the blood link growing and expanding between us, it will continue to do so, until both of us can feel every little thing about the other, every thought, feeling, action, and I think you get the picture. We are now Mated and there is nothing you can do about it. Not even Death will separate us."

Ezra shivered at those words, his fear and panic increasing tenfold. Thinking that it was time to run and hide in order to get back under control, Ezra felt the strong arms tighten even more around him and realized that Vin had sensed that particular thought. Trying desperately to get out of the arms that held him, Ezra struggled, and Vin let him, until he felt the growing arousal of Vin against his thigh and completely stilled his movements, his wide shocked eyes meeting the amused passion-filled eyes of the man underneath him. 

Sensing the growing panic of his Mate, Vin began to rub his hands up and down Ezra's back and began a low rumbling, soothing purr, hoping to relax him. Gradually, Ezra relaxed and Vin could sense the growing contentment. Glancing at the clock, he noticed that it was just before dawn. Realizing that both of them could use more sleep, Vin kept up the stroking and soothing purr until he felt Ezra fall asleep and when he was sure that all was well, let himself fall asleep as well.

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Chris Larabee was lounging on the couch in the main room of Penthouse 14, next door to Penthouse 15, where his lover was claiming a mate. Shaking his head in confusion, he glanced over at the clock which showed the time to be just after six am. He hoped that Vin would be up soon so that he could get an explanation of the confusing events from the past few hours. Sensing the awakening presence of one of the Gangrels and all of his friends, Chris trained his eyes on the door that closed off the two bedrooms the three Gangrels had stayed in. Hearing his friends one by one emerge from their side of the penthouse, he watched as the beautiful female emerged from the other side of the penthouse, obviously having just showered as her hair was still dripping wet and her nightshirt clinging to her body, showing off every curve and muscle.

Either not realizing or not caring what she looked like, Talsin crossed the room and entered the kitchenette, rummaging around through the cupboards until she found the flavored coffee and began to make some kind, lightly humming a vaguely familiar tune. Sniffing Chris could tell that she had picked Chocolate Almond. When the coffee was ready fifteen minutes later, she poured herself a cup and then walked into the living area. Looking the five men sitting around the room in various chairs, although she did notice that Buck kept JD close to his side, she finally settled down on the same couch that Chris was laying on, shoving his feet aside so she could huddle up in the corner.

Taking a sip of her coffee while looking out the window at the view, and feeling the weight of five pairs of eyes on her, she sat her coffee down on the table beside her and shifted so that she was sitting with her arms hugging her knees to her, her nightshirt pulled down to cover her legs, and her forehead resting on top of her knees. She then rolled her head so that her wide haunted violet eyes were looking directly into Chris's curious and equally haunted hazel eyes. With a small smile, she quietly said, but loud enough for all of them to hear, "Y'all probably have some questions."

Chris chuckled lowly and replied, "You could say that."

She nodded and answered, "I am not the best Gangrel to explain the Claiming to you." She shook her head and lightly snorted, "I AM the Gangrel Elder, but I am, obviously, not an Alpha Male nor a Beta Male, therefore I do not totally understand the Claiming myself. I can answer any general questions you have, but Methos and Richie would probably be the best ones to ask. Vin and Ezra are too...well...New to the idea of being Mated to totally understand it themselves."

After a few moments of silence Nathan finally asked, "I've never heard of this Claiming before in any other clan. Is it just a Gangrel...thing?"

"Yes," she replied. "The Gangrel clan is the one closest to their wild side, the one closest to the wolf pack that our clans are so like. Like the pack, we have Alpha, Beta, and Alpha-Beta Males, but only an Alpha will Claim a Mate. The Mate that is Claimed is always a Beta Male. The Claiming creates a blood link between the two which they have forever. Not even Death can erase the link. And most Mated pairs do not survive the Death of the other."

Looking straight at Chris, she then said, "The Alpha can take or keep lovers, but his Mate may not. The Mate does have a say, up to a point, in what happens to them, but once their blood has picked the Alpha that they will be Mated to," and here she paused, looking thoughtful before she finished, "the Beta is then literally the property of the Alpha, although MOST Alphas treasure and jealously guard their Mates. The nature of the Claiming and the subsequent Mating is very much a Dominance/Submissive issue. The Alpha is dominant in everything, and simultaneously the Beta is submissive in everything, although that does not mean that they will not argue about things." 

A wry amused smile touched her lips as she added, looking out the window, "Especially my Krishna. He would argue with you over every little point, even if the evidence refuting his claim was right in front of his face. Lucky me, I have Sired Ten Childer in my Life," a sad smile crossed her face as she continued, "but only four are still among us. Methos was the only Alpha, thank the Gods, which is unusual in and of itself, since usually only Alpha Males can Sire Alpha Males. I have only ever Sired male Childer, and the others were all Betas. Victor, my second eldest, is Mated to a very powerful Alpha Male in Ontario, Mac Ramsey. Scott, my youngest, is mated to the second most powerful Alpha in the Gangrel clan in New York state, Logan. My third youngest, Krishna..."

"I have a question," Chris quietly interrupted as intense violet eyes swung back to him. "Why do you keep calling him Krishna when Vin called him Ezra?"

"Ah, the name game," she said smirking. "Krishna was his name when I Sired him. Ezra is the name that he has used for the past few centuries, as Krishna is...um...too easily recognizable as the name of one of my Childer," pain flashed across her face and through her eyes as she added, "and that is something Ezra did not want to be recognized as for the past few centuries."

"So," Josiah finally spoke up when it became obvious that the Gangrel female had become lost in her own memories, and judging by the look on her face and in her eyes, they were mostly painful. Watching as the woman looked over at him, he asked, "You seem awfully young to be an Elder." Shaking his head as he realized how that sounded, he quickly added, "I mean, you look like you were awfully young when you were Sired."

A soft, amused laugh escaped from her as she said, "Oh I was." Hearing the shocked gasps, she quickly continued. "But you have to realize something. I was Sired many, MANY years ago and back then it was an accepted thing that you took a mate a what humans now a days look upon as an obscenely young age. When I was Sired, I had just passed my fifteenth summer, a full adult in the eyes of my tribe. My father gave me to my Sire who in turn made me into Talsin."

All of the men could smell and literally taste the sorrow pouring off of Talsin whenever she mentioned her Sire. JD gently asked, "What happened to your Sire?"

A bittersweet smile crossed over her face and the scent of sorrow and wonder increased as she quietly replied, once again lost in her memories, "I killed him. He was my world for well over three millenia and then one day he just disappeared. I roamed the known world of the time for a few millenia and then I met Methos. I was drawn to him like a moth to a flame. I didn't realize it at the time, but it was because even as a human he was an Alpha Male. He reminded me so much of my Sire that I Sired him and we spent the next two millenia roaming the known world together, discovering and learning new things every day. Then one day, my Sire returned to my life and didn't like the fact that I had a Childe, and an Alpha Male Childe at that, to occupy my time with. He tried to kill my Childe and in order to save him, I killed my Sire. Something all Childer, no matter what the clan, are taught is to never ever raise any sort of weapon or go against their Sire in any way. With his Death, a piece of me died as well. But," she said with smile on her face and in her voice, "it was worth it. I can't imagine any life without Methos."

"And I can't imagine any life without you, my Sire," they all heard the husky accented voice say.

All six Kindred turned their heads and eyes to look over at the black-haired golden-skinned handsome man leaning against the wall, arms folded across his chest, wearing just black sleeping pants. The two Gangrel stared in each others eyes, lost in silent communication until a whisper of movement to the left and behind Methos drew all eyes that way. The other Gangrel, Methos's Mate, made his way out into the room also wearing only sleeping pants, although his were midnight blue, stopping short and turning nervous eyes to Methos when he noticed that all eyes were on him.

Frowning slightly and growling lowly at the five men looking at his Mate, Methos roughly pulled Richie to him and then claimed his mouth in a brutally possessive kiss. Chris was about to say something, but he saw the sharp shake of Talsin's head. They all watched as Richie twined his arms about Methos's neck, arching into the hard body and arms that held him, which tightened about Richie, pulling him impossibly closer.

The other Kindred in the room waited for Methos and Richie to finish their kiss, but after several minutes, Talsin finally cleared her throat and asked amusedly, "Didn't you two get enough last night?"

Passion-filled smoky hazel eyes looked at Talsin and then back at Richie and with a wicked smirk said while pulling Richie behind him back to the bedroom, "Hell no. If you had a Mate that looked like Richie would you ever get enough?"

Richie turning bright red at that remark was the last thing the others saw before Methos, still pulling Richie behind him, rounded the corner to their room and firmly shut and locked the door behind them. Talsin laughed out loud at the boldness of her Eldest in front of these men. She knew that Methos would get a scolding from Richie after he was done staking his claim again but Methos wouldn't listen, just like normal.

Just as JD was about to ask another question, they all heard the knock on the door. A fleeting expression of something crossed Talsin's face before she quietly said, striding towards the door, "I'll get it."

Chris exchanged concerned, wary looks with Buck and the five men started to set up a defense against whatever was out in the hall when Vin and Ezra walked in. All of them could sense the nervousness and agitation coming in waves off of the smaller man and they could tell that Talsin did not like feeling that coming from her Childe. She reached out to place a soothing hand on Ezra's shoulder when a low dangerous growl stopped her. She slowly dropped her hand and narrowed violet eyes snapped up to look into possessive and angry blue ones. Talsin growled just as dangerously right back at Vin, until Ezra quietly said, placing a restraining hand on Vin's arm, "Sire, please stop that."

Immediately Talsin stopped growling and with a rueful grin turned an interesting shade of red before she said, "Sorry. I forgot already. You are no longer my responsibility, are you my Childe? You now are Mated to the fourth most powerful Alpha Male in the Gangrel clan, and now I have no Childe to well lavish my attention on."

"Sire," Ezra said laughingly, "you need a hobby."

Everyone, including Talsin, burst into laughter at that. Looking around the room, Ezra, still laughing, asked, "Where are Richie and Methos?...No wait, let me guess...Bed?"

"Ding, ding, ding. Give the man a million dollars," Talsin sarcastically remarked. "You got it in one. However did you guess?"

"Because that's where Methos seems to spend most of the time whenever Richie is around," quipped Ezra still laughing.

The serious tone of Talsin's voice immediately stopped the laughter as she said, looking both Ezra and Vin over, "And that is where you will be spending most of your time for the next couple of months. I know you remember what it was like right after Methos Claimed Richie. They spent pretty much 24/7 in bed the first two weeks. After that it was closer to three to four days a week in bed. It's been four years and they still spend a fair amount of their time in bed. Methos once mentioned that it takes about a century for most Mated Males to work out everything enough to where the Alpha doesn't have to assert his dominance every other minute."

"A century?" they all heard Ezra gasp out.

With a smirk on her face, Talsin said, "Knowing you my Childe, Vin will have to assert his dominance at all times century or not."

Ezra just glared at his Sire and then with a small smile sighed out, "Probably."

Ezra turned his head to look at Vin and then attempted to step away in order to walk over to the window to look outside at Denver in tail-end of summer. Vin's warning growl stopped him in mid-stride. Turning his face to look at Vin again, two strong arms pulled him roughly against a hard body which used this as an opportunity to lean back against the wall, slightly spreading his legs which Ezra was settled between. Amused and possessive blue eyes met bewildered and shocked green, while the others in the room watched the proceedings with interest. Finally Chris broke the silence, as he said, "So Vin are we ever going to get an explanation?"

Vin flicked his gaze between Ezra and the others. Finally, Vin, having locked gazes once again with Ezra, said, "Later Chris." With that, Vin, gently pulling Ezra behind him began to walk towards the door.

"But...where are we going?" Ezra asked bewildered, making the others in the room shake their head in amusement.

Vin, turned around to face Ezra, plastering the smaller man to his body leaving no doubt as to what he wanted. He saw the shock on Ezra's face and saw the heat in the man's eyes increase. Smelling the change in his scent, Vin growled dangerously and dragged Ezra out the door with him down to their room where he threw open the door and roughly shoved Ezra in. Slamming and locking the door behind him, Vin turned to his Mate stopping when he smelled the fear coming off of the smaller man who was rapidly backing across the room trying to get away from him.

Narrowing his eyes, Vin started stalking Ezra across the room, ignoring for the moment the increase of fear in his scent. When he finally had Ezra backed up to the bed, he gently grabbed him and began to undress him. When he had Ezra nude, he gently laid him down on the mattress, quickly stripping off his own clothes and settling on the bed, pulling Ezra into his arms facing him, running his hands up and down the tense back and a low rumbling purr started in order to help calm down the fear that Vin could still smell and feel.

When he felt the other man relax completely against him, he commanded in a hard voice, "Look at me Ezra." 

After he had Ezra's undivided attention, Vin, his grip tightening on the body that he held, declared, "I don't know what happened in your past to make you so frightened and unsure, but I WILL NEVER HURT YOU. Ok? Ever. And you will tell me what happened soon. We have all the time in the world to get to know each other. And I am sorry. I know that this isn't what you wanted, but you are now MY Mate and whether you like it or not I will protect you and help you...and well other things that Alpha Males do for their Mates. I know that you are afraid, I can sense and smell it. But you have nothing to be afraid of, and I will prove it."

With that out of the way, Vin pulled the man just a hair's breath closer to him and leaning down, gently kissed him. When he felt Ezra begin to respond to his kiss, he gently broke it and said, "Let's get some sleep."

The last thing Ezra heard as he let Vin place him however he liked was the low subsonic purring reverberating in his ear coming from the chest his head was pillowed on.

Part 3