The girl crouched, hidden in an alcove of the dark church, and waited for the door to open again. She had been in the same position for over an hour. Her legs were cramping, and her knuckles had turned white where she gripped the wall for support. What in the world am I doing? I have completely lost my mind. She had almost convinced herself to give up and go back to bed when the door swung open, and two men came into view. One was older, bald, and looked as though he had once been in the military. She knew the other man, he was smaller than the first, and he was dressed well, but Lexi didn't like Reverend Newlin's cheesy smile. They talked in excited whispers as the larger of the two closed the door behind him and placed a padlock on it. He turned, and handed the key to the Reverend, who pocketed it.

The two men began to walk in her direction towards the back of the church. Lexi held her breath and prayed that she wouldn't be seen. She was in luck, and they didn't even spare a glance in her direction as they walked by. Even after they had left, and everything was quiet, she stayed put. Carefully, she stood up, and winced as the circulation returned to her calves. She took a slow, shaky breath, and softly made her way to the locked door. She looked at the padlock and smiled, it was a cheap old thing anyone could pick up at the local Wal-Mart. She pulled two bobby pins from her golden-brown hair, and within five minutes, the lock popped open in her hand. You really can learn anything on the internet. Huh. Part of her was relieved at how simple it was, the other part worried that if the rumors were true, shouldn't they have something a little more secure?

She eased the door open as slowly as she could, and sighed in relief when it made no noise. Looking down the steps into the dimly lit corridor, she crept onto the top step and closed the door carefully behind her. There was no way to know exactly what lay beyond the stairwell in front of her, but she had come this far, and was determined to finish what she had started. She waited there on the top step for some courage to find her.

He lay on the cot that the humans had so thoughtfully provided him and stared at the ceiling. While he was aware that he had willingly let the humans imprison him, and that things could indeed be much worse for him, the monotony of his confinement was beginning to wear at him. There was nothing in his cell but his cot, some blankets, and a bible. He was grateful, he had seen some of the chambers vampires kept for prisoners, and though he expected the true death any day now, he still appreciated the fact that his last days were not painful.

The vampire heard the lock click open, and the door open ever so slowly. He sat up on his bed and looked through the silver bars to the only entrance to the room. He heard soft quick breaths, and the racing beat of a heart full of adrenaline. He cocked his head, there was only one heartbeat, and that was new. The only visitors he had had were always accompanied by the Reverend, and he had never come alone. He heard the door close, and he waited. Maybe today, the suffering would end.

Beat beat… beat beat… beat beat. Inhale, exhale. No one descended the stairs; there were no footsteps, or rummaging, no keys jingling. Apparently, whoever it was, was just standing at the top of the stairs. Perhaps they were waiting for someone? He waited, listening. Having been alive for over 2000 years, he was essentially a patient creature, but he was tired of being patient, tired of waiting to die. Suddenly he was annoyed, he stood and walked to the bars of his cage, but he did not touch them.

"I know you are there." He said, and wondered if they could hear him. Humans didn't really have the best sense of… well, anything really. "I can hear you breathe."

"I know you are there."

Lexi about jumped out of her skin. The voice was soft, but clear. Shit. Now what? She turned and put her hand on the doorknob as her heart raced uncontrollably.

"I can hear you breathe."

Now that made her stop. She turned around and looked back down the stairs. If I don't do this now, I'll never know. She steeled herself, squared her shoulders, and took a tentative step downward. When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she saw that she was in what she imagined any church basement would look like, except for the chain link fence that created a small enclosure. Lexi couldn't fathom why a church would need to put a fence up in its basement. Is anyone really going to steal baby Jesus from the light up nativity scene? There was a heavy, metal door in the corner that reminded her of the door to the boiler room at her old high school. It had a small, barred window at the top. She was almost positive that was where the voice had come from. If she stood on her tiptoes, she could just see into the room beyond. She could just make out someone standing in what could only be called a cell, and he was looking at her without an expression.

Dread fell like a rock into her gut, and she pushed her suspicion away. She turned the handle and was surprised to find the door unlocked. It was heavy, and she had to lean against it to push it open. She slipped into the room and stared at the man behind the bars. It surprised her how human he looked, if albeit pale. She didn't know what to say, or where to begin. After a while, he spoke first.

"So, did you come down here just to stare at me like an exotic animal exhibit?"

"No, I…" She cleared her throat, and tried to make her hands stop shaking. "Well, yeah. I suppose I did." She blushed. "I'm sorry, I didn't really think of it that way. It's just that, well, I've never seen a vampire in real life before, and I was…" She trailed off as her eyes adjusted and she started to take him in. She realized that it wasn't just how normal he looked that surprised her, it was how young he looked too; he couldn't be any older than she was. He had an exotic look, and she could see the tattoos peeking out of the color of his shirt. His eyes were sharp and beautiful. He was quiet for a long time.

"How did you know I was down here?" He asked finally. She laughed.

"Are you kidding? You're the worst kept secret in this place. You can't take two steps without someone whispering about what the Newlin's have in their basement." She smiled. "Just about everyone claims to have seen the crazed, evil, slobbering monster."

"Well, now you can say you've seen the crazed, evil monster as well." That had made him angry, if she had come down here just to taunt him, or to spout more hateful opinions, he didn't think he would control himself. Wasn't anyone willing to meet halfway?

"You forgot slobbering." He glared at her, and Lexi worried she had upset him. "Now, I was just teasing, trying to ease the tension, as it were. I don't know about you, but I don't usually form an opinion based just on what other people say."

He raised his eyebrows at her. "Well then, do I look like a slobbering monster?" She regarded him for a minute.

"Well, no, you don't look like a slobbering monster, but we've only just met, so I'm reserving judgment." He smiled at that, and she found she was glad. It was weird, here she was chatting it up with a vampire, supposedly the most vile, evil thing on the planet, and she wasn't completely terrified. If she wasn't careful, she would end up just like Brian. Oh shit. Her heart clenched, and the fear returned. She turned and went to the door.

"Oh my God, I have to go… I'm sorry, I shouldn't be here… it's just too dangerous." She slid out the door and pulled it closed. He sat back down, confused. She hurried up the stairs and got to the door just as he called out.

"You know, you don't have to be afraid of me."

She stopped and turned around, the thought had never really occurred to her. She smiled sadly and softly replied "That's the irony, it's not you that I'm afraid of."

He heard the lock click back into place, and wondered about his visitor. She had gone as suddenly as she had appeared, and if it wasn't for the fact that he could still smell her lilac shampoo, he would have thought he had gone mad. It didn't really make any sense, The Fellowship of the Sun preached about nothing but the evils of vampires. How they were the children of Satan, and meant to be feared and reviled, and yet, here one of them was trying to break in just to meet him? She had been fearful, terrified even, at first, and then again when she made her haste exit. But there were a few minutes when she seemed almost relaxed, and she had even laughed the once. It was an honest laugh, he decided he liked it. He regretted not asking her name. 'It's not you that I'm afraid of' she had said. He held onto those words, because they gave him hope. Maybe his death would mean something, and maybe there was hope for human-vampire relations after all.

After a nerve-wracking trip back through the church, through the training field, and into her bunk house, Lexi crept into her bed, and tried to fall asleep. Her brain, however, was on overdrive. She sighed, and settled in for a long night.

She must have fallen asleep at some point, because before she knew it, she was up and back to her same bible camp routine. It was as if she had dreamed the whole encounter, but she knew better. Her legs cramped the entire next day, and she remembered that night way too clearly for it to have been a dream. Besides, even though she had a good imagination, there was no way she would have been able to dream up someone so… well anyway, she was sure it wasn't a dream.

Even though she was amazed that she had not only seen a vampire in real life, but had had a conversation with one, Lexi was angry with herself. Every time her mind would wander to the vampire in the basement, (which too often if you asked her) she would berate herself. What is wrong with me? Here I am, on this dangerous mission to get some answers, and I don't even remember to ask him what I went down there to find out. Great job Lexi, and all because of a pair of amazing eyes.

Two nights after her excursion into the basement, she was lying in her bunk wallowing in self-loathing, when she sat upright and decided she couldn't live with herself if she didn't go back there and make herself ask the questions she wasn't sure she wanted the answer to. This time when she found her alcove, she sat down Indian style and opened her bible. She wasn't really much of a bible reader, but it never hurt to read it once in a while, and if they seen her and asked her, she could say she needed to get away and was doing some serious soul searching.

Thankfully, this time, she only had to wait about twenty minutes or so before Reverend Newlin and his lackey emerged from the basement. This time, they didn't look as happy; they even looked like maybe they were a little confused. That worried her; What if they are coming back? Should I wait, or just get on with it? She would have to be quick, and pray they didn't catch her. When she picked the lock, she noticed it only took her about half as long as the first time. Practice makes perfect.

He heard the lock click open for the second time that evening, and was on his feet in a flash. He heard someone descend the stairs swiftly, and then seen the girls head pop up in the window on the door. It made him smile. The door opened, and she poked her head in and flashed him a small smile in return before she came all the way into the room. He could tell she was nervous and maybe a little sad at the same time.

"I…" She hesitated, and drew in a breath to try to calm herself. "I'm sorry if this is rude, but I don't have a lot of time… can I ask you some questions?" She wondered if he thought she was crazy, she knew if she were him, she would think she was crazy. He seemed to be thinking about it. She glanced at the door, and wished he would hurry.

"I suppose it won't hurt for you to ask, but I can't guarantee I have the answer, or that I will give you an answer if I have one." He gestured to the chair outside his cell, and looked at her expectantly.

Well, at least he's honest about not being completely honest. "How long have you been down here?"

"Almost three weeks." He saw her pale visibly, and wondered what about his answer bothered her.

"Have they… um Reverend Newlin, did he ever... uh…" She paused and tried to think of the best way to put it. "Has he brought you any…thing… to um, eat?" she swallowed at the thought.

He chuckled; of course that was what bothered her. She had probably sat up there wondering what the Newlin's were feeding its 'monster'. "No, he has not."

She was so relieved; she slumped into the chair he had offered while she fought the urge to cry. Then something occurred to her, and she looked up at him amazed. "Wait, you've been here almost three weeks and you haven't eaten anything? At all?"

"The older a vampire is, the less often they need to feed, and I am older than some." He smiled.

"You're not hungry at all? After three weeks?" she looked stunned.

"It is longer than I usually go, but I will be fine." He smiled again. "Why, are you offering?"

She looked up at him, startled. "No, I am not." She paused. "That was really all I needed to know, I should go." She didn't really want to leave, but she also didn't want to get caught. She loved her family far too much for that. She stood up to go.

"What is your name?" He asked.

"Alexandria, but most call me Lexi." She wondered that a vampire would even care to ask.

"It is wonderful to meet you Lexi, my name is Godric."