Chapter 1

Pooh Bear lay on the patch of grass, resting.

It had been a tiring day for the golden furred half retriever. There had been the ball chasing earlier, the cat chasing, puppy playing, and that marathon petting session. Now, all the dog wanted was to lay here ... and watch the Blue Mistress.

She was his favorite of the four humans who lived down there with him and his family. The others were often away, as they were now, but she was always with them. More than that, the Blue Mistress never napped. She was always there, to pet him, his wife and puppies, to play with and take care of them. Oh, she also played with and fed the cats, but nobody was perfect. She did keep the cats from eating food meant for dogs, though. That made up for the whole keeping the cats alive part. The Blue Mistress was good.

Right then, she was doing one of the many tasks that confused Pooh Bear. The Blue Mistress was on her hands and knees in the dirt, doing something with the flowers. She may have been putting more in the ground: the cart with lots of flowers in it certainly fit in with that theory. Pooh Bear put his head down on the grassy soil, eyes still on her. There were too many flowers, and not enough grass in his opinion. He remembered what it was like when he and his family were taken up the long steps: endless grass, under a wide open sky of either blue or black. Here, there was just this one patch of grass under the hard sky. Oh, sure, the patch was bigger than one dog, or even all of them, needed for a good rest or roll, and the sky was painted a nice blue, but still he remembered the freedom of the big grassy room.

But, the Blue Mistress was down here. So, here was where he wanted to be.

Ai raised herself up on her knees, looking down at her handiwork. Bill had built her a new flower bed, and a fountain in the center of it, to fill in this part of the garden. She loved tending to the hydroponic food plants, the tomatoes, corn, beans, and the small fruit trees. They all were wonderful, and Ai especially relished the feeling that she was feeding her family the same way that they fed her. But ... the flowers. The flowers were so beautiful! So many colors, so many shapes ... And it wasn't the same if they weren't in dirt. The dirt, the soil, the life poking up from the ground, spoke to Ai in some way she couldn't define. Life, coming into its own...

Ai loved life.

She glanced at the red wagon next to the bed. The wagon had been a toy of Bill's, from when he was little. He had told her that when Mom had been tending her flower beds, his job was to use his wagon to carry flowers to her and cart off weeds and such. Lips twitching up into a smile, Ai gently caressed the rusting metal while her other hand touched her golden locket around her neck. Anything that was Bill's made her happy.

As happy as the blue flowers Julie had found for her. Ai reached in and picked up the next plastic container with its six plants. They were so pretty, five light blue petals surrounding a yellow circle. She tilted and turned them, this way and that way, large black eyes taking in the delicate shapes and colors. Turning, she contemplated the pattern she was creating. Dark blue ringed the white fountain, itself ringed by another circle of purple. She was half way done creating a third circle with these light blue ones. There was no meaning to the pattern, not that she knew of, but something about it pleased her. That was enough.

Ai was not one for deep thought.

There was a tickle on the bottom of her bare left foot. Looking, Ai smiled. It was one of the puppies ... Bilbo, she thought. The other four were still napping with their mother, but this one was up and ready to play. Well, she was busy. Ai looked over at Pooh Bear. The father looked back, waiting to see if his Mistress was going to reprimand his son. She was debating this herself, when ... the weakness came again.

Ai quickly put down the flowers, before she dropped the precious creatures, and brought both hands to her stomach. Something ... was happening.

And she didn't know what.

For the past few days, Ai hadn't been herself. She had felt ... off. Not since that first time, four years ago, when they had first discovered that Ai needed to feed from her lovers, had she felt anything like this. And, yet, this was different. It wasn't a lack of food. Bill and Julie fed her as often as she wanted to, and in any way. It wasn't hunger. Well ... in a way, it WAS, but Ai had no idea what she was hungering for. Her body was telling her something ... what?

She should tell Bill. Ai knew this. Tell Bill, tell Mom ... even tell Doctor. But, what could Doctor do? He had only examined her once so far, so knew far less then Bill or Julie or even Gretchen his wife. She had to...

Ai was suddenly lightheaded ... then it was gone. The discomfort was gone. And, yet ... something was different. Ai's mind cast around for what it was, what she now knew that she didn't know she knew. Something ... something was changing. She was changing. Or would change, if she...

The tinkle of bells interrupted her confused thoughts. Ai looked up at the source of the sound, as did Pooh Bear, and the waking Tippy and her puppies.

Bill was entering the stairwell.

Ai pushed herself to her feet, brushing off her dirty bare knees. The dogs also got to their feet, or maybe it was paws, quickly running to the far end of the large room and out the oval shaped doorway. Ai took her time. It would take a few minutes for Bill to make his way down all those stairs, then reseal the entrance and come into the living quarters. There was no need to hurry. Walking over to a bench, put there so they could sit and look at the flowers (or, as was more likely the case, kiss in a more romantic setting), she picked her dress up off it and slipped it over her head. Ai preferred to garden nude. It made her feel one with the plants. But, despite all Cynthia had said she didn't mind, Ai knew it was best if she had at least this token outfit on while others were here. Ai had learned over the years of watching her friends that what they said, and what they really felt, were sometimes different. Never in hurtful ways, no, but more in attempts not to hurt her. She wished they wouldn't: Ai was four, after all!

Stooping a bit to walk through the doorway, resembling something from a submarine (there was a submarine down at the Buffalo Naval Park, but despite asking they hadn't taken her to see it), Ai walked down the hallway past the bedroom doors. So many bedrooms, complete with beds, and only two were used. Such a waste ... Ai wanted more people down here. More family. Family to keep her company, family she could make happy...

The seven dogs were already lined up by the door, tails wagging, when Ai reached the main living area. She smiled as she walked past the pool tables, ping pong table, and finally the couches and chairs set up around the large TV and video games. The puppy that had been licking her foot came up to her as she stopped on the soft carpet, whining for attention. Ai bent down and lifted the small creature up in her cold hands. This batch of puppies, the second, had been born a few months earlier. Their older siblings had found homes with friends, and sometimes came for visits. Ai missed them, but knew they couldn't keep them all. Plus, she now had new little friends to play with and fuss over. Giving Bilbo a squeeze, she kissed him on the nose then put him back down. Bill would be here soon...

Fuck stairs.

Bill hated them. Hated stairs with a passion that possibly eclipsed the most intense sexual passion he had ever felt. Mind you, they had given him reason: every day, he had to climb up and down four flights of stairs. Four flights twice as long as any he had seen ... well, that wasn't quite true. There were steps next to the escalator leading down to the UB subway station that were probably as long, but obviously they were for when the moving stairs were broken. Hmm, maybe they could turn these into escalators ... yeah, that wouldn't drain their batteries even further!

Where was he? Ah, yes. Fuck stairs.

There was an old Bill Cosby bit about driving a stick shift, and how Cosby hated 1st gear. Hated it so much, that once the car was in 3rd, he wasn't downshifting for anybody. He'd run you over rather than go back down to 1st. That's how this Bill felt about the shelter: once he was down here again at the end of school, he wasn't leaving again for anything. Not until the following morning when the ritual started over...

With a clang, Cynthia closed the oval door at the top of the final staircase, sealing it. Bill and Julie were already at the bottom, always seeming to go faster than their red headed companion. Bill raised his head up to her, getting a good long look at long legs under her full length black dress.

"I see London, I see France!"

Julie gave a mock growl and whacked him in the arm, but Cynthia only chuckled as she started walking down.

"Given what I'm not wearing, that rhyme shows you're not seeing much!"

Bill shook his head, laughing at their friend. She was so ... well, grown up now. They all were. Cynthia was all legs and breasts, tall and confident, long flowing curly red hair framing a face full of life. Of the three, she had blossomed the most. Maybe because she had been pushed into the shadows for so long...

A tug on his arm drew his gaze down to his second love. Julie looked back with playful anger, eyes dancing. Everything about Julie danced, in some way. She had barely grown since middle school, but her compact four foot one inch frame had become if anything more athletic and graceful. Other cheerleaders might have bigger breasts, or a sexier twitch to their walk, but for the total package? No woman was better than his little long haired Julie.

That's not to say their high school years had been without ... drama. There had been temptations for both of them, given into by Julie. If it hadn't of been for Ai, would they still be together? No. Junior year had been ... difficult. But, now, with school almost over, it looked like both were in this for the long haul. Not that Bill could call being with her a "haul".

"Come away from that temptress, you pervert." Julie pulled him towards the shelter controls, fingernails digging into his hand a bit more than needed. Bill responded as years of experience had taught him, pulling her back and up off the ground for a kiss. There was a moment's struggle, some comment on how she had to turn off the lights and such, but they quickly faded as his lips did their work. Her arms and legs wrapped around his six foot two inch frame, hands sliding over lean muscle. She liked what the stairs had done to him.

"God, you two are such breeders." Cynthia shook her head as she descended the stairs. Julie broke the kiss, gazing at the Witch over Bill's shoulder.

"Thank god some of us hot girls still go for guys, or sexiness would be bred out of the species!" With another quick peck on Bill's lips, she released her grip on him and fell back to the floor. Landing feet first, she struck a gymnastic pose. "And she nails the dismount!" Cynthia, book bag still in hand, walked past and gently patted her on the head.

"It was very nice dear."

"Pwwrrt!"

"Your singing has improved, too." Cynthia worked the entrance shutdown controls as the laughing Bill ignored his co-mate and moved to the shelter door. Julie stood and growled.

"Just ignore her, my love. Some people just can't deal with a delicate flower like yourself."

"Oh, I'll flower her!"

Bill spun the door handle. It was good to be home.

The dogs attacked first, naturally. Tippy and Pooh Bear both jumped on Bill as he struggled through the oval door, hampered both by them and his backpack. With practiced ease, he playfully pushed them away, almost dancing with Pooh Bear as the golden dog stayed on its hind legs, finally managing to disengage so he could start to unload his school books. It was then Ai's turn to jump into the fray, pressing her cold form against his chest as his backpack fell onto the desk located next to the entrance for just such occasions. Dogs and puppies made similar assaults on the two girls, who with much giggling and cooing gave proper greeting to their housemates. After a minute, though, almost as if on command, they formed a group in front of Cynthia. Eyes focused above the redhead's right shoulder, they gave a soft whine as Cynthia raised a hand to pet something invisible.