It didn't matter what others thought of my species, only what I thought. There were good and bad to each species on the planet earth. Good witches, bad witches, good vamps, bad vamps. So on and so forth. Not all warlocks were curmudgeons, not all witches evil hags with warts on their face. Thank goodness for that as I rather enjoyed my smooth skin and youthful elasticity. On the spectrum of good and evil, Erik was most clearly settled in the light. HA! Light, I think, amused inwardly at my perusing of him while reading his book. Vampires couldn't go out in daylight. That minor fact makes me frown slightly as Darwin leaps into my lap. Well, so be it, I would just have to travel in the sunshine by myself in the morning to start finding some leads.

Adele scolds Darwin, who is patient if nothing else, and the moment she turns her back I slip him a piece of the meat. He devours it swiftly and silently while I cut eyes at Erik and he smirks, acting as if he did not catch me in the act. It brightens my face, this light hearted bantering, and I have already forgotten my uneasiness at sitting in a dang bath robe.

"You are a saint," I say sweetly to Adele. If she gave me more meals like the one before me, I would not doubt be back to my past self within a week. Not that I was complaining. To have someone cook for me? That was a treat in and of itself. Do I look unhappy? "No," I answer solemnly. Truthfully too. Erik did not exude any unhappiness but I don't suppose I would even know. I barely KNEW him so how would I know if he was unhappy or happy? The only cues I had to go on were his smirks, smiles, and general witty banter, and he seemed pleasant enough. Happy enough. But happiness was fleeting and depended a lot on current circumstances, I found. I was just thrilled enough to invoke such a positive response from him.

I wait for Adele's response to my pithy statement about him being a woman but he leans forward, eyes darkening, and I find my breath catching with a wild blush spreading across my cheeks. My eyes fly wide at his statement and my stomach drops... a pleasant drop but I feel like a fly caught in a trap. Was he expressing honest interest or just making conversation? I wasn't very... clever with these sort of things. Besides, with Adele on the other side of me, I felt like I was on dangerous ground so I give him a nervous laugh, though my eyes still settle on him questioningly. "I'm not sure I can be convinced unless you can do something manly, like, say, change oil in a car." It was a very random thought but I spout it off quickly to divert the attention before glancing at Adele almost shyly. Because if he was flirting with me like I THINK he was, I wasn't sure how Adele would react to such things. Oh, I knew they weren't romantic, but she was a mother type and mother's were very protective.

His comment about businesses sobers me a bit. "I had one for a time," I say with a wistful cast to my voice, hand rubbing across the head of Darwin, who was stretched out on my lap, lackadaisical. "The one you saw that was boarded up. I made all sorts of potions and herbal remedies to any sort of malady you can think of." One day I would again. When I could.

I was a bit disappointed at his words, a downward slant to my lips my only indication as I thought. His comment of being an introvert makes me offer him a soft smile. "Easy to do considering all the problems that come with meeting others." I ponder his offer for a moment. "If you find someone I would be glad to know. I think, in the morning, I will try to get in contact with some of my friends and see if they can point me in the right direction. I'll have to go out, though, and I know you cannot," I say, not realizing that he had the special gift of sun walking. "It will be quick," I assure. Not that being quick could stop them if they cornered me, but I would damn well try.