Donal had stayed in Rhy'din for longer than he was accustomed to. Sure, he was told to find a hole and hide in it; but that wasn't the reason why he stayed. There were plenty of places he could have stayed until the heat cooled off at home. Plenty of places to hide. He wouldn't admit it to himself just why he stayed or how the little manager had delved under his skin and lodged herself into his heart. It just happened. If asked, that's what he'd say, with a shrug and a dismissive wave of his hands. "It just happened." But the grin, lopsided and self effacing with a touch of color to the tips of his ears, prevailed. Always had, always would. He found himself, on this particularly rough looking day, ensconced in the thickly quilted bed that he shared with Colby since their first joining. He had the covers pulled up to the bottom of his eyes and was snoring, quite loudly.

For a man who seemed to take her safety too seriously, Donal had been ridiculously easy to get away from that morning. Colby had been up and about for a couple of hours at least, making the most of her precious Monday off to get a certain piece of personal business taken care of. He hadn't even woken up when she'd very carefully plucked a hair off his head, trying hard not to laugh at the snorting grunt he'd let out when it had come loose. Armed with that precious personal piece of him, she'd slipped from the apartment with a nod to the cleaners down in the club, and made her way down to the Docks, to where an old friend still had her workshop running. The little old witch had been only too happy to provide what Colby had asked for, in exchange for a sizeable amount of gold, of course. But it was worth it, to have the peace of mind that Donal's safety would give her. She'd been expecting him to have woken up by the time she got back, but no, he was still there, in the same position he'd been in when she'd left, still snoring painfully loud. She threw a pillow at his head as she passed through the bedroom on her way to the bathroom, determined to wash the grime of the workshop off. "Wake up, lazy!"

When the pillow hit his face, he nearly jumped out of the bed, startled. He snortled and coughed, hands moving instinctively under the pillow for the pistol he kept there. His eyes wide and wild, hair sticking up in all sorts of directions and the pistol held between two hands; he looked the part of a crazed killer. When he realized it was Colby that had woken him, he flopped back down onto the pillows and slid the pistol under the pillow. "Don't do that!" He called out to her and grabbed the pillow she'd thrown at him. He hugged it to his chest, curled onto his side and closed his eyes. "I don't want to shoot you," he mumbled.

"You won't," she laughed back at him, more amused by the state of him than his frenzied waking reach for his gun. "Get up, you've been snoring for hours." The water turned on, she leaned out of the bathroom to snort with laughter at his almost child-like position. "You need to wash, and shave, at the very least. I might not even make you get dressed, if you're real lucky." Back into the bathroom, and various pieces of her clothing began to fly out to hit him on the back and head.

"Comfy.." he whined into the pillow and pulled the blankets up even further to block the baragge of clothes that were smacking him in the back of the head. "D'ya know how long it's been, toots? I haven't had a good night's sleep since.." His brows furrowed as he thought about it. How long had it been? He shrugged his shoulders and closed his eyes, face relaxing. "You come here. You're warmer than this pillow."

"Either you get up, or I'll dump cold water over you from here," Colby threatened him. She was merciless with anyone who tried to pretend they weren't awake; he was not going to be the exception to the rule. There was the tell-tale mute of water switching from falling onto a porcelain tub to a soft body. "Besides, you gotta be awake if you want your present."

He poked his head out from under the blankets and pushed the hair out of his face. "pleh pleh" He spit wayward strands from his mouth, and stared into the bathroom. "You wouldn't. You like your bed dry, just like me. Dry and warm. It's very dry and warm in here. Why not give me my present in bed? I got quite the present for you, right here." He waggled his eye brows, looking quite like a randy ground hog.

Her smile widened at the compliment, a faint blush painting her cheeks as she rolled her eyes once again, glancing away. "You don't need to lie, Donal," she assured him. "I'm not going anywhere." Her fingers traced over his cheek for a moment, the other hand busy rummaging in the pocket of her jeans.

"I'm not lying." his voice was soft as he opened his eyes. "I may be many things, I may do things that aren't exactly saint-worthy, but a liar, I am not." He arched his neck to look over his head to see what she was doing. "Is it present time now?" In that single question he'd turned from a grown adult, dangerous and murderous, into an eight year old child.

Colby almost laughed at the sudden change, nodding down at him as her fingers closed on the little box hidden in her pants. "Yeah, it's present time," she told him, combing her fingers through his hair. "Sit up, I can't put it on you when you're in my lap."

Obediently, he rolled off of the edge of the bed and kneeled before her. He looked up, eyes wide eyed and full of innocence. "Show me!" he exclained,excitedly. Donal could barely sit still. A kid at Christmas, indeed.

Moving to kneel on the bed in front of him, Colby held the box between them and gently prised it open. On a bed of shredded green cloth, lay two wolf tooth pendants, identical in every way apart from the binding. One was bound in brass, the other in copper. Colby drew the copper-bound necklace from the box. "I want you to promise me you will never take this off."

He watched in fascination as the box was opened. It was difficult to resist poking his fingers at the two pendants, but his hands remained at his sides. When she lifted the necklace, Donal bowed his head. "I promise, it will remain around my neck until I'm dead."

More relieved than she could say that he had no questioned her request, Colby lifted the leather thong over his head and pulled the knots until the tooth hung over his heart. Then she took his hand, and pressed the second pendant into his palm. "You need to put it on me," she told him softly. "The one you're wearing is bound with my hair; this one is bound with yours. So long as one of us stays whole and safe, the other will as well."

Donal rose to a stand once the tooth was placed into his palm. He merely nodded and held the thong over her head and then lowered it. The knots were adjusted and he knelt once more, pressing the tooth into her chest above her heart. "Don't ever take it off. Promise me, Colby." His eyes sought out hers, his mouth a in a hopeful frown.

"Never," she whispered in a fervent promise, kneeling up to wrap her arms around him in an intimate hug. Even with this magical protection, she knew she would worry for him when he wasn't here, on RhyDin. She just hoped he knew that; she didn't have the words to say it.

He held her close and buried his nose into her damp hair. He could feel the wolve's teeth pressing into their skins as they remained in that intimate embrace. His thoughts mirrored hers; so long as they both wore the charm, they'd be safe. But, with the nightclub being what it had the potential of being, he would worry about her when he had to leave.

"Oh," she just had to lighten the mood, or she thought she might cry - not something Donal deserved to see, unattractive as her tears were. "And I do solemnly swear not to get pregnant unless you tell me to." She grinned at him, pulling back just enough for him to see the humour in her eyes.

Donal leaned back slowly and cocked his head. An incredulous look was on his face. "What?" the word came out in three syllables as he laughed it. "You're wanting to have my babies? Now I know you're crazy." He stepped away from her, and brought his hand up to grasp the wolf's tooth. "I've never believed much in voodoo and mumbojajumbo like that." His fingers closed around the tooth in a fist. "But if you believe it, then that's good enough for the both of us."

His hands moved to hold hers as they rest on his stomach. He breathed slowly, deep breaths; cleansing breaths. He gently squeezed her hands. "I love you, too, my Colby." He sat staring out of the window. Donal saw the objective clearly. With or without her help, the man who had beaten her was going to die.

She could sense the way he calmed himself, wondering for a moment what had upset him so before realising the truth of it. She winced, pressing a kiss to his shoulder. "I shouldn't have told you, I'm sorry," she whispered against his ear. "Let it go, Donal."

He turned in her arms, twisting his torso so he could look down at her. "Would you do it differently, if the tables were turned?" he lifted a brow, inquiringly. "You don't have to be afraid for me, afraid of him, any longer." His arms went around her shoulders and he pressed her head to his chest. "You're right, he'll never hurt you, ever again."

She held onto him, wishing she could believe he was simply saying the words to reassure her. But she knew Donal Shriver well enough to know that he was planning to hunt down every last man she'd ever slept with until he found the one who'd beaten her and make damn sure he didn't come back and do the same again. "Don't go looking for trouble, okay? You have enough of it back home."

"Then tell me who he is, Colby." he lowered his chin and rest it atop her head. "Trust me enough to make it clean, easy and with no trouble." Kissing the top of her head, he pulled back to look into her eyes. "Tell me, Colby."

"What will you do, if I tell you?" She had to know for certain. As much as she hated this man from her past, she had no wish to sign his death warrant simply by passing his name onto the one she loved. "It was a long time ago, Donal; for all I know, he's already suffering."

"My methods are my own and not to be questioned." He sat up further, straightening his back. "Don't tell me and it'll make it that much harder. But it will be done, Colby." He looked down at her with a deadly serious expression and his tone was like ice. "If I have to hunt down and slaughter every man you've ever been with, then so be it."

Her expression turned stricken. With one thoughtless confession, she'd condemned a man to death, and unless she gave Donal the name he wanted, other men would die, too. And their blood would all be on her hands. "You can't be serious," she gasped, pulling back in shock. "You want me to ... I'm not a killer, Donal!"

"You won't be doing the killing." He put his hands in his lap, not knowing what else to do with them. "And if you don't give me the name.." he shrugged and glanced out of the window. "Won't be your doing." Slowly he turned his gaze onto her. "A man has his pride, Colby. Mine is that nobody treats me and mine with disrespect. Even if you weren't mine then, you are now. And I saw the way you trembled when you thought of him."

"But what if he's changed, what if he has a family to support?" she asked desperately, close to tears in fright at what she had done. "Would you take a husband away from his wife and a father from his children?"

"A leopard doesn't change it's spots, just because it has responsibilites." he was growing impatient. Getting up from the bed, he began to pace, hands moving up and through his hair. "Enough of this, I've made up my mind." He turned to the bed and looked down at her. "You did the right thing, telling me. Colby, if the man did it to you, I guarantee he's doing it to any wife or children he may have. A leopard cannot change it's spots."

Stricken with guilt, she looked away, unwilling to face this side of him. There'd always been a suspicion that it was there, that he was more than just a charmingly irritating wine seller, but he had never slapped her in the face with it. Until now. Hating herself, Colby closed her eyes. "Geoff Gordon," she said quietly. "His name's Geoff Gordon; last I heard, he was working the rough end of the Docks."

"Well, if you run quick enough, nobody will see." He nodded, proud of the quick thinking. "Come with me!" He took her by the hand and led her to the door. "Live wild and free!" he laughed again and pulled the door open.

"Donal!" Gasping with laughter, Colby dug her heels in, tugging on her hand in his grip. "What if Mr Clyde was to come by and catch us? At least if we're dressed, we can lie convincingly to him!"

"Y'think Bugs doesn't know?" He laughed at that and tugged harder. "It's his joint. Of course he knows what's going on." The fact that his friend had set up the club as a guise to play matchmaker for more than a few of his friends was left unspoken. "Come on, Colby! I'm starved!"

"No!" Despite the fact that she was sliding along the floor after him, Colby was still trying to maintain a little dignity. Clutching at straws, she blurted out, "I don't have anywhere to put the keys!"

He stopped and let go of her, abruptly. "In your hand?" Turning, he shook his head and folded his arms over his chest. "Really, there's nobody here. What's the worry?"

As he let go of her, she stumbled backwards, tripping over her own feet and landing on her backside to glare up at him, everything displayed for his perusal. "It's not hygenic," was her next attempt at getting him dressed. "Going into a kitchen like this."

"You're scared." He nodded, arms still folded over his chest. "Scared to be seen naked." He put his hands up under his arm pits and began to wave his elbows. Knees were lifted slowly and his head thrust forward and back. "Bawk, bawk!"

She leveled a withering look at him, pushing herself to her feet and tying the robe more securely around herself. "You're wasting your own time, Mr Shriver," she pointed out, hands on hips. "Give me one good reason why I should risk my job and my home by going down there undressed."

"I'll give you two." he stopped his chicken impersonation and held up his hand, two fingers held up. "One, it's fun. Two, you will be an old woman in your deathbed someday and you'll smile and tell our great grandchildren how we streaked through the club. Young, and lithe, laughing. And our great grandchildren with say, "Wow, Granny was pretty cool."

Her frown turned quizzically teasing at that. "Our great-grandchildren?" she repeated politely. "I thought I was crazy if I wanted your babies?"

"Yes, and you are." He lunged for her, grabbing her around the waist and picking her up. He hurried out of the apartment and shut the door firmly behind him. He set her down then, arms crossed, a grin on his face, and completely blocking the way back into the apartment. "I'm hungry. Let's eat."

She didn't have a chance to fight him off, whipped off her feet and out of the apartment before she had time to do more than blink at the sudden rush of blood to her head. "You low-down sneak!" Her hand slapped against his chest as he stood in the way.

"Does raising your hand to me in anger count?" He grinned, watching her. "No place to go but down, Colby." His eyes drifted over her shoulder to the stairs and back. "Come on then, get a move on. Or do I have to carry you bodily throughout the club, too?"

Her lips twitched into a grin at that threat, and she stepped back, hands once again on her hips as she looked up at him in a silent challenge. She knew he would, if he was hungry enough.

She growled at his back, putting one hand out to prevent the door from swinging back and hitting her in the face. She pushed it open, stalking after him. "You seriously expect me to believe that after all your less-than-subtle references to Bugs Clyde making this place a hooch-hut, your motives for having me pick one of my staff to serve are completely innocent?" she asked in a dangerous voice, bare feet making little sound as she followed him.

"Well, yeah. For the most part." He shrugged and walked around the kitchen. Rubbing his arms briskly as the temperature was much colder in this room. "I mean, if the girl and the boys get along alright, what's the harm in that?" He looked to her with another shrug. "Is it so bad, so inconceivable that one of the girls may enjoy getting a few extra coins and the pleasure of being with one or more of the boys? She'll be assured protection, too. My boys don't forget a kindness."

"It's prostitution!" she exploded at him. "It's degrading to the girls involved, downright dangerous, and detrimental to the club! I can't believe you'd even consider it as a sideline here, it's disgusting!"

"There, there, buttercup. Mind your blood pressure." He had found the refrigerator and had opened it up. Standing before it, he leaned back a bit and brought his hand to his chin to stroke the beard that no longer was there. "So, what's good to eat?"

Colby stared at him, wide-eyed. "Is that what you were going to do with me?" she asked suddenly. "You and Clyde ... you were going to whore me out in that private room of yours, weren't you? And now you've staked your claim, it has to be someone else! I can't believe I was right in the damn first place!"

Donal reached into the refrigerator and pulled out a pear. Closing the door, he turned slowly and took a bite into the hardened fruit. "Wouldn't have done it without your permission." he shrugged, it was getting to be a habit. "If the girl doesn't want to take money for her favors, that's her business. But she'll be passing up a small mint, if she's good."

"And you condone that? You condone putting a young woman in a room with randy drunk louts who may or may not understand the meaning of the word 'no' after their thirteenth pint?" she demanded. Her hand came up, waggling a finger under his nose. "You'd better be making damn sure she's protected, at all costs!"

"When she sees my boys," he grinned and took another crunchy bite. "she'll be plenty willing." He eyed the pear, then offered it out to her. "Bite?" That grin was innocence itself, but the gleam in his eyes spoke of the devil inside.

Molten brown eyes went completely flat at that point. She didn't care for his flirting, not when he was deliberately not answering her. And he dared expect her to pick out a woman from her staff to do this? Disgusted with him, she turned on her heel, heading out of the kitchen.

"Judge not, lest ye be judged." He called out after her and took another bite from the pear. Turning, he opened up the refrigerator again and began to slowly count from ten back towards zero.

A born RhyDinian, Colby didn't understand that what he had just called after her was a quote. Instead, she heard him being facetious and uncaring towards her opinions, mocking her anger, and for a moment she wavered on whether or not to go back and slap him silly for it. Then the sensible part of her brain reminded her how much stronger he was, and she kept walking, out and into the darkened bar, heading for the darkest shadows on the stage.

More than a little surprised that she'd not come back to give him more of the finger wagging postulations of hell fire and brimstone, Donal closed the refrigerator door without retrieving anything from it. He still had the pear in hand, but it was nearly gone. Walking to the door, he pushed it open. "Colby, where are you?" He called into the darkness, Treading carefully in his bare feet, he made his way across the club. "Come out, come out, wherever you are."

Not bothering to tuck his shirt in, or to knot his tie; Donal wanted out, quickly. She didn't understand him, never would. He was convinced of it. With just one shoe on, the other in his hand, he pulled the door to the apartment open. He froze at the top of the stairs, seeing her marching up slowly. He didn't have to look into that face to see that she'd been crying. Setting his jaw, the curses that were pressed back against his teeth were for his own hearing and completely against him. Stepping aside, he waited for her to pass.

Don't go. Just two words, that's all she needed, and yet ... she couldn't bring herself to say them, not again. He'd told her about how he couldn't resist a crying woman, and she wouldn't force him to put himself under pressure, just because of her tears. He wanted to leave, that much was clear. He wanted to get away from her, just like everyone else. She kept her head bowed, stepping past him into the apartment, her hands still pressed firmly to her mouth.

He sighed as he watched her go by. She didn't even look up at him. Donal's shoulders slumped and he glanced down the stairway that led into blackness. He couldn't blame her, not really. He knew what he was, a criminal that hid behind a smile. To force her into that lifestyle was unfair to her. He stole a glance to her back, and he sighed again. Fighting with the urge to reach out and touch her, to reassure her, he forced himself to move down the stairs. He wasn't sure if he'd be back. With her knowing the truth about him, would he be truly welcome? He decided that was a definite no.

Finally, Colby managed to get her mouth to work in time with her vocal chords. "Time," she stuttered out, not looking at him, frightened of what she'd see. She'd disappointed him, and she deserved to be left. Why else would everyone go, if she wasn't repulsive and pointless? "I just needed time. I'm sorry."

He'd just reached the bottom of the stairs when she spoke. Slowly, he turned and looked up at her. He couldn't tell if she were looking down or not. "Then how much time?" He waited, patiently, at the bottom of the stairs, with his heart in his throat. "As much as you need, just tell me."

She knew when he stopped, knew when he turned, though she wasn't looking at him. It seemed the pendants did more than protect. "I don't know," she confessed quietly, fighting the urge to cry further. "But there's no point ... taking that time if you're not ... if you're not coming back. Are you coming back?" She looked up, finally, meeting his eyes where he stood at the bottom of the stairs, her own pleading with him for an answering 'yes'.

"If you want me to." It wasn't a yes, but as close as he could come. "I've told you, I won't force you to do anything you don't want to do." He looked up, plaintively. "Do you want me to?"

"Yes." A broken whisper, but it was there, the quiet plea for him not to go echoing down the stairs towards him. "Please don't leave me all alone again." So much for the secure, confident Colby ... she was so tired of having to be everything but what she was; lonely, frightened, and all but defeated by her life so far. One more hit, and she might just give up fighting. But for now, her eyes locked with his, pleading far more eloquently than words ever could.

Without a word, he began to ascend the stairs. His eyes never left hers. The pain and anguish that was in her face broke his heart and if she shed a tear, he may also. Slowly he took step by step until he stood before her. "Colby." he whispered as he held his arms out to her.

She watched him approach, not quite able to believe it was true, that he was coming back, that he hadn't truly left at all. She flung herself forward, into his arms, and sobbed softly. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to yell, I didn't mean to be difficult, I didn't, I didn't ..."

"Shh.." he held her close and kissed the crown of her head. "Shush, don't you apologize for who you are, Colby." His hand gently caressed her from neck to buttock and back. "It's a lot to take in, I know. I know." He spoke quietly, belying the tremble of his own knees. "I was a fool to expect too much from you. Do you forgive me?"

Creating a rather large wet patch on his chest, she nodded vigorously, afraid to let go in case he changed his mind and walked away, this time never to come back. She'd been lucky this time; next time, there wouldn't be a next time.

"You know, I wouldn't have been gone long." he murmured, shuffling them into the apartment. "I can't stay away from you, Colby. I tried, once, and was miserable for it." he kicked the door shut and continued to hold her to his chest. "I love you, Colby."

"Gods dammit, I told myself I wouldn't cry!" She leaned back finally, wiping her face roughly with the sleeve of her robe as she looked up at him. "I love you so much, Donal, it hurts. But it makes me scared of you. You can break me so easily ..." She sighed, lowering eyes again. "I'm sorry. This whole mess is my fault."

"I'd never break you, or try to change you." He offered his shirttail for her to wipe her face more effectively. "This wasn't your fault, Colby. You should have been warned that there may be some seedy things going on in this club." He glanced away before looking back at her, guilt in his eyes. "But I swear to you, what the boys and the girls do in that room will not go beyond that room. I won't allow it." He had a determined look on his face. "And the boys know better than to do anything more than the girls will allow. You have my word on that, too. I've seen some of the girls that are being hired. They could use a few coins and some self confidence. When you meet the boys, you'll see, Colby. They aren't much different from me." He put his hand to her chin and lifted her face. "Am I so bad?"

Clutching his shirttail in her fingers, she let him lift her face, looking up at him with near child-like trust. To his question, he recieved a swift shake of her head. "No! You're not so bad at all, just ..." she hesitated, frowning uncertainly. "Don't let me see the other side so much. Not yet, anyway." Scrubbing at her face with his shirt, she seemed to have forgotten that she was pretty scantily clad and had been standing in the outside hall for a long while.

"You've got a deal." He nodded and ushered her further into the apartment. "Now, go fix your face and put something pretty on. We've got to get something into our bellies before we turn cannibal and eat each other alive." He smiled then and reached to caress her cheek. "Go on, then."

She sniffed and nodded, scrubbing her face dry as she slipped past to the bathroom. No, she wasn't happy with what she now had to do, and yes, she was going to argue the point until it irritated the hell out of him. But not now.

____________________________________
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2626/4165276762_c2a0d61542.jpg