"I am not," she demanded petulantly, still feeling hungry.
He crossed his arms over his chest and gave her a sharp look. "Uh huh. You look about three seconds from stomping around here, throwing a fit because you can't have one more piece of candy. Admit it."
"James, did you want me to bite your damn ass," She demanded, feeling angry but also knowing he was right. She just wasn't in the mood to admit it yet.
"I think we covered that BDSM and pain infliction doesn't do it for me," he said with a smirk.
Lily exhaled through her nose and glared at him. "James, do not poke the angry, hungry hybrid or you'll find yourself with a lot less blood flowing through your veins," she warned him.
James sent her a wink but walked up to her. "It's yours if you need it," he told her before giving her a kiss on the cheek.
She swatted at him. "Oh don't get sappy or you'll make me throw up," she complained.
He laughed and grinned at her. "Yes, I love you too. Now do you want to come with me - no, that's not an innuendo so no nympho comments" he started, sending her a smirk which earned him a head shake and glare. "I thought we could do some more tracking? You said you know this Veronica's scent and you worked with the vamps masquerading as Aequivalere so maybe we can identify more of them."
That was actually a good idea and she'd love to do something other than sitting around all day feeling anxious and hungry. "I suppose that's a good idea," she said offhandedly, still not ready to admit he could do or say anything right.
"Alright sweetheart, then let's go," he told her with a wink.
"Call me sweetheart and I'll rip out your tongue," Lily threatened.
"Oh, I love it when you talk dirty," he said in a low husky tone as she neared him.
"And people wonder why I'm violent," she said with a sigh, opening the door. Lily jerked back violently, falling to the floor. She covered her head with her arms as she screamed in agony. The smell of her own burning flesh filled her nose.
"Lily, are you alright? What happened," she heard James ask her, sounding panicked.
Trying to ignore the pain and her own panic, she took a few deep breaths and pushed the balance towards her beast. Her skin tingled with the closeness of the possible shift and her face healing. "Yeah, peachy," she replied her voice gruff. "It didn't happen to snow while I was asleep did it?"
"Yeah, why?" James asked, helping her stand.
"You know that whole thing about the ant with the sun shining on it through the magnifying glass," she said. When he nodded she continued, "I'm the ant and the snow is the magnifying glass. With the reflection of the snow, it doubles the effect the sun has on vampires." She growled in frustration, running both her hands through her hair. "This sucks!"
The door opened and Lily jumped to the side with a hiss. "Is James okay?" Wendy asked, peeking into the room.
Yeah I'm-wait," James demanded, glaring at the teen. "That was obviously a woman's scream. Why are you asking me if I'm okay?"
Wendy grinned evilly at him. "I know that silly," she teased him. "I just figured you pissed her off and she was trying to kill you or something."
"Come in or get out! I want that door closed," Lily said, now standing against the farthest wall from the door.
"Wow, someone's got their grumpy pants on," Wendy said with a smirk and walked into the room with Tristen following behind her.
Lily growled again, she didn't want Tristen to see her like this. She ran a hand through her hair and sat on the bed when the door was closed. "So," Wendy said with her hands in her coat pockets. "Why'd you try to kill James this time?"
"What makes you think it's any of your business," Lily snapped at her before she could stop herself.
Wendy smiled at her sweetly, showing her more duck like qualities. Everything seemed to roll off her. She'd seen Lily at one of her lowest points in her life but never seemed to be afraid of her. Maybe she's just stupid, Lily thought then chastised herself. This wasn't her or at least not the her that she wanted to be. She gasped as Wendy jumped onto the bed, landing next to her and almost sending Lily flying. "It's my business because I say so," she said with another grin.
"Maybe we can help," Tristen offered, sitting in a chair. "As long as you know, it's not a hands-on project," she added, holding up her hands as a demonstration.
Lily felt a pang of guilt but she didn't think Tristen meant to make her feel guilty. "You can't but thanks," she told her. "I'm... I'm just hungry and it's putting me in a really bad mood."
"So why did you scream like a little girl? Couldn't see your reflection to brush your teeth or something?" Wendy asked.
Lily made a dry laugh and shook her head. "Funny, real funny," she told her.
"Yeah, my dad says that all the time," Wendy replied grinning wickedly.
"If you must know, Nosy," she started then leaned towards Wendy. "I screamed because my face was burning off!"
"But your face is fine now," Tristen asked her, a hint of curiosity on her face.
Lily leaned away from Wendy and explained to her half-sister how her little beast worked. "Wow that sounds pretty handy actually," Tristen said sounding wistful.
"Yeah but the downside is nasty. How am I going to go out with you to track now?" Lily complained.
"I don't think you can," James told her, looking apologetic.
Lily didn't want apologetic. She wanted to leave the room and she didn't want to be hungry anymore.
"Why would you want to? It's like the North Pole out there," Wendy complained.
"Because I want to catch the bad guys," Lily shot back, giving her a deadpanned glare.
"Why can you wear a ski mask or something so you don't get burned," Tristen offered.
"That's a good idea," Lily said, sitting up straight on the bed. "I knew I liked you for some reason."