Leila was cold and hungry. It had been over a week since her last proper meal and almost a month since she last slept in a bed. The bed hadn't even been her own.

As the rain fell in a light but steady stream she kept up her search for someplace dry to sleep for the night. She was starting to get desperate.

She had been on the streets for almost three months. It hadn't gotten any easier. She was able to panhandle enough to eat most days, but sleeping arrangements were often risky at best.

What's worse, the creature that had driven her from her home was still on the loose. She didn't dare go home while it was still out there. Her family didn't understand, but it was for their own protection. Luckily she had been able to avoid the thing while she was in the city.

She tried another door. The place looked to be abandoned, but the door was chained from the inside. She wasn't going to be getting in there. She really needed to find someplace that would be far enough out of the way not to attract the wrong kind of attention, but sturdy enough to be used as long-term shelter. She didn't want a repeat of that morning. While she had been out trying to score some food, someone had stolen her clothes. She didn't have a clue how she was going to afford more.

A few months earlier, if the same thing had happened, it would have pissed her off, but that would have been the extent of it. Things were different on the streets. Clean cloths could mean the difference between getting work for a day or going hungry. It also meant the difference between having dry clothes to sleep in and not.

Leila was cold, wet, and hungry. She was starting to think that she was in the wrong alley, and wasn't going to find a place to sleep there. She headed back towards the main road, keeping an eye open for anything resembling a dumpster. She knew there was a restaurant in the area, she could smell it. As soon as she found a safe looking place to stay for the night she intended to find something to eat, even if it was day old bread.

It was while she was walking down the main road, moving towards the next alley, that she noticed she was being followed. She wasn't sure who it was, but someone was definitely on her trail. That was the last thing she needed. Whether it was some creep looking to jump her, or someone hoping to take advantage once she found a place to sleep, it was the last thing she needed. She was trying to get away from people.

She walked a bit further down the main road than she had intended, hoping to turn back once she had lost her tail. She just didn't want to leave the security of the crowded street until she was certain it was safe.

Rounding a corner in front of an electronic shop, she saw its reflection in the sheet glass window, and she started to run. It wasn't just some creep. The creature, whatever it was, had found her.

She thought of it as a hellhound. It had been following her since she left her parents house, and every now and then it caught up with her. It looked very much like an Irish Wolfhound, and not a small one. Its mouth though, that gaping maw had the largest teeth she had ever seen on an animal, and its eyes glowed a smoldering red.

Now that she knew it was there, she could smell it, her senses working overtime to filter out the smells and sounds of the city and focus on the creature behind her. It smelled of sulfur and decay, like a monster right out of myth. She was not sure what demon she had pissed off, but there the thing was trying to run her down.

She wasn't actually sure how it didn't catch her. She wasn't sure how she was able to outrun it, but she didn't really care to put that much thought into it. She was unarmed, and not trained to fight. There wasn't any way she could beat the thing if it did catch her, so she ran.

She bolted down a side alley and started trying all the doors and gates as she went. She started feeling something build up around her, like some sort of energy. No, that wasn't entirely accurate. It wasn't building up around her. She somehow sensed, or felt, a buildup of energy nearby, as if something were trying to get her attention. She ran towards the sensation, and away from the beast.

She came to the door of an old abandoned storehouse, and swung it open, looking in. First of all, the door had opened. That meant she might actually be saved. She saw instantly that there was a heavy bolt on the other side that could be used to secure the door once she got inside. Without another thought, not seeing any other choice, she ran through the door.

Her senses were suddenly on fire. It was as if she were seeing, hearing, feeling, and smelling everything at once. Everything went white around her. She was sure she was dead. The creature had gotten too her before she had gone through the door, and she was dead.

+++++

Except, she was alive. After several moments, her senses calmed down, and she found herself standing in the foyer of someone's house. Ahead of her, she saw through an archway into a comfortable looking living room, and behind her.

She turned and saw that there was indeed a doorway, but that instead of a door it was filled in with bricks. It was like an eerie scene out of a children's story. She had escaped the beast that had been tracking her, only to find herself trapped, where?

Though she knew that she should be panicking, she wasn't. She must have been in shock. After all, what else could explain her level of calm immediately after having been teleported from a city street to wherever she was. That was the only explanation. Her brain had just not processed enough of what was going on to react yet. Part of her realized, however, that if that were the case, then she likely wouldn't be thinking about it that deeply.

She opened her senses up, taking in her surroundings. The house was comfortably warm. She didn't hear or smell anyone else in the house, but she did smell food. She smelled fresh baking bread. There was also a delicate floral smell in the air.

She moved forward, allowing herself to follow the smell of food through the living room and into a kitchen. The kitchen was large, but simple, with ample counter space for preparing food, two ovens, and a large refrigerator. One of the ovens had a nice warm loaf of bread and seemed to be set at just the right temperature to keep the bread warm.

That alone was strange enough to set off alarm bells in the back of her mind, but she was still trying to decide if she cared. That fact bothered her as well. This place was not normal. She could feel it. Part of her suggested that it was connected somehow with the smell of flowers. It was as if something in the air had disabled her inhibitions.

She was able to think relatively clearly, but she didn't feel anything resembling fear or even anxiety. Even her acknowledgment of those things was entirely without fear. She wasn't certain that she had a solid grasp on her impulse control either. Otherwise, she would likely have still been exploring the living room rather than finding herself in the kitchen looking for a hot mitt to take bread out of the oven.

She was hungry. While she didn't feel fear or inhibition, she did very much feel her empty stomach. Breakfast that morning had consisted of a few chips someone had missed in the bottom of a bag. Lunch had not happened at all.

As she took the bread out of the oven and sat it on the counter, she saw that there was already a saucer sitting there with a stick of butter. No, not butter, margarine. It was not the right color for butter. Whatever was in the air also left her more comfortable with her heightened senses. They usually worried her, and occasionally scared her. She knew that they were not normal by human standards, but at that moment she didn't care. She looked around for a moment and grabbed the bread knife that was conveniently laying on the counter, right where she needed it, and carefully sliced off a few pieces of bread, before slathering them in margarine.

It was the best thing she had tasted in over a week, possibly longer. Even as she enjoyed her light meal, the part of her brain that was always analyzing things was already feeding her information. She turned to the refrigerator even as she was eating the second slice of bread and opened it.

Within, she saw a plethora of vegetables, a carton of what appeared to be almond milk, but again, no eggs, and no dairy. She was actually a little disappointed. She always enjoyed a bite of cheese.

At that thought, she stepped away from the refrigerator and closed the door. It suddenly bothered her that none of this was bothering her. She entirely realized that she should be terrified at this point, but she wasn't.

Here she was, in a strange place with no idea how she got here. Something in the air was playing with her senses, and she was certain no one else was in the house. Yet, here she was, eating freshly baked bread that seemed to be perfectly timed for her arrival in a kitchen that just happened to have whatever she needed right where she needed it. She turned her head to look at the countertop where the loaf of bread was sitting quietly atop a cutting board and was somehow not surprised to see that the bread knife was no longer there. It was resting in a knife block next to the sink, recognizable only by the handle.

So, yes, the refrigerator was interesting, but it shouldn't be.

She forced herself to start exploring the house. The living room, now that she was paying attention was comfortable looking. There were a large soft sofa and a reclining chair. There were a small bookcase, a record player, and a television. She idly wondered what was on.

She continued on through the door opposite the kitchen and found herself in a hallway. One door opened onto a restroom. She thought of it in those terms, because there was no bathtub or shower. There was, however, a toilet, a sink, and a mirrored medicine cabinet. The door across from it opened into a large bath. It was laid out just like a bathhouse, with an area to dry off and change clothes closest to the door, a showering area to get clean, and a large steaming tub that was easily the size of a swimming pool. The air in the room smelled mildly of lavender.

She continued on, and the door at the end of the hall led into a suite of rooms almost as large as some houses she had been in. As she snooped around, she found that there was an office, complete with rows upon rows of bookshelves, a second living room, slightly smaller than the first, another toilet room, and a bedroom with the largest bed she had ever seen.

What she had not found as she explored the house, were any signs of doors or windows beyond the brick wall she had entered through. There where places where a door should have been. There were places where she should have found windows. That alone would make the place seem strange.

Everywhere she went was that soft floral scent. She was unsure which flower the smell belonged to, but she was certain it was also the source of her altered mental state. She didn't think it was malevolent though. After all, she was thinking clearly, too clearly perhaps. The longer she was here though, the more she was starting to notice other things. She was not certain if it was an effect of the unfamiliar drug in the air or a response to her body having proper food in it for the first time in weeks. Maybe it was a side effect of actually feeling safe, even if she realized that she really shouldn't, but she was starting to feel more aroused as time went by.

+++++

She decided to explore the suite more thoroughly. She stepped into the bedroom and looked from side to side. The bed was impressively large. On the right side of the room was a set of large sliding doors. She slid her hand across the door as she walked past, and a tingling sensation ran through her. She slid the door open to reveal a walk-in closet with an impressive array of women's clothing, including a shoe rack. She noted with some curiosity that the shoes were her size. On a hunch, she checked the tags on a few of the dresses. They were her size as well.

Leila was grateful for the effects of the drug in the air as she left the closet. She realized full well that she should be afraid now. It was as if this place was literally created for her. No, maybe that wasn't it. Whenever she interacted with something new, there was that tingling sensation. It was possible that this place was changing to fit her.

She walked across the room to the chest of drawers that rested against the other wall. As she touched the top drawer, the now familiar tingling moved through her. She observed it more intentionally this time, noting that it didn't simply run up her arm. It ran all the way up to the top of her scalp, leaving a trail of goosebumps along the back of her neck.

When she opened the top drawer, it was full of under clothes. Lingerie might have been a better description. There was an assortment of basic panties and bras, but the rest were all lacy and sheer affairs in various colors and textures. Somehow it pleased a forgotten part of her that a few of the panties were crotchless. She idly wondered, given what she had puzzled through so far, if that was related more to whoever created this place or if it was more because of who she herself was.

Since she reached puberty, she had been insatiable. Since the hellhound had started stalking her, however, she had been consistently too scared and fatigued for her body to worry about such things. Though, she found herself reaching a hand into her pants and gently cupping her mound, with its unruly tuft of hair, as she remembered the evening of her nineteenth birthday. It was only a few months ago but seemed so far away. Her best friend, Samantha, had decided to help her shave. She had been smooth as a newborn after they were done. Of course, the next task was for Samantha to test out the results of her efforts. That had been more than enjoyable. It had, however, also been the last time she had gotten laid. A spike of pleasure runs through her body as she gently touches herself, using her free hand to proper herself against the chest of drawers. After a few more moments of reverie, she pulled herself together. She wanted to get a shower before she got too serious, even if it was just with herself.

Leila notices as she pulls herself together that her hand had come to rest on the shaft of a glass dildo. It was the smooth sort with waves, and a purple heart shaped handle. Etched into the handle was a Celtic knot with stylized wings overlaid.

She put it back in its place on top of the chest of drawers, taking note of an amulet that lay beside it. She picked the amulet up, turning it over a few times. One side had the image of a small house embossed upon it, and etched into the back was the same symbol as the head of the dildo.

+++++

The smell in the room changed, and she spun around even before the male voice spoke. "That is yours if you want it. The amulet, I mean," he said indicating the medallion that was still in her hand as she looked at him.

"Who are you?" she found herself demanding, her instincts choosing now to fight past the effects of the place.

"That is for you to decide," the decidedly attractive man said. He was tall, with darkly tanned skin. He was slender and well muscled. She could see that because he wore only a pair of blue jeans, and nothing more. His hair was an unnatural color, a light purple verging on mauve. Looking at him, she could not determine his ethnicity, but he was handsome, and this was probably his house.

She forces herself to pull her body under control. She has no intention to continue to do so, but for the moment she needed to think properly. Something about this man was off, or at least different. She allowed the part of herself that tended to overanalyze everything to take free reign for the moment. He was beautiful. He looked human, but he didn't smell human. That, however, could have been because of the various odors in the air. If it impacted her fear factor, it could have also affected her sense of smell. She was certain of it though. There was no smell in the room of hair dyes or bleaches. There was no smell of cosmetics at all. That meant his hair was natural.

She shook her head and felt her blood begin to burn as she threw off the effects of the drugs in the air. When she looked to him again, he smiled as if he understood what she had done, and approved.

"Who are you?" she repeated, "and where am I?" She realized that she should probably be grateful. Her being here was what had kept her from being eaten by that creature. It had not been her intent to come here though, and she was pretty sure she had been kidnapped.

A grin crossed his face. "Both of those answers are dependent upon you," he said in the most frustratingly sexy voice Leila had heard in years.

"What does that mean?" she said, frustration starting to build in her voice, now that she was capable of such emotions again.

"My name," he continued, "is lost to time. I am not certain even what it once was, and this place was created for once such as you."

She frowned, looking down at the amulet in her hand. "And what is that supposed to mean?"

"You and I are not the same," he said in a mellow voice, as he walked over and sat down on the bed. It was clear that he was not afraid of her.

She was not certain if she was afraid of him or not. She opened her senses, reaching out once more to look more closely at him. He had a pulse. His body seemed to be a normal temperature. Part of her craved to embrace that heat. There was more though, behind all of that was a power. The last time she had felt anything like that was years ago when she had first awakened to the fact that she was different. She didn't know exactly how or why she was different, but she was certain that she was. It was as if she could sense things that other people could not. She was also faster and had more stamina than most. She didn't think it was intentional, but a creature like him had been involved in triggering her bodies awakening.

"What are you?" she interrupted. He was still speaking, but her mind was moving too quickly to care.

"I suppose, you could call me a god, or perhaps a faerie. Neither is accurate really, but human languages are like that. I was born on your world, and of your world."

It was a strange answer, but it didn't surprise her really. "So, you're a..." she paused, and hissed slightly, as a spike of pain went through her head, as her mind shifted. It was like something akin to a memory inserted itself where it wasn't before. Perhaps it would be better to describe it as a lid being ripped off of a closed of storage space within her mind.

Once she recovered, she found herself staring at him intently. After a moment, she shook her head, "No, it can't be. Are you like, Eros, or something?"

He laughed heartily. "Something. I'm not Greek though. I'm not one of the Erotes, but, perhaps, the same sort of being."

She frowned and nodded. "And what use do you have for me?" she asked. She wasn't sure why, but even with the previous effects driven from her body, she felt more defiant in the face of this creature than scared.

"Quite direct, I see." After a long pause, he continued "We can be of mutual benefit to each other. Your kind can be very beneficial for mine."

"Oh?" she said, arching her brow. "And how may that be?"

"It's simple," he said with a bit of a laugh. "Humans produce excess sexual energy around you. That is good for both of us. I keep you safe, and you keep us both fed."

"Fed? Both? What does that mean?" Leila was honestly confused by his choice of words. Part of it made sense of course. He had already admitted to being a sort of sex deity. He was a minor deity perhaps, but by most standards, the label still applied. But what did that have to do with her and her eating habits, Or would that be feeding habits?

Is that what she was? Was she some sort of creature that fed off of sexual energy? Was she like a vampire, or a succubus or something?

After watching her for a few moments the man, or god, spoke "You haven't quite figured out what you are yet, have you? I find that is not unusual these days."

"I think you just told me more than I realized," she said a bit quietly. "Perhaps I have just been lying to myself about what I've known for years."

"We tend to do that to ourselves."

"We?" Leila asked quietly.

With a nod, the stranger continued. "We sleep, and then we awaken. When we awaken, we don't always like to leave the comfortable mortal life we have created for ourselves."

She nodded. It made sense. It made too much sense. It fit with the dreams she had been having since she was young. It fit with everything. Looking down at the amulet in her hand, she realized she should be scared, or angry, or something, but she wasn't. Even with her mind entirely clear, she wasn't. She didn't think this person was going to harm her. Not yet anyway.

"So, not to be ungrateful, but the creature that is stalking me, is he yours?"

He blinked and stared for a moment, then shook his head. "No, it's not mine. The thing wasn't sent to herd you here if that was what you are wondering."

She looked at him uncertainly, but he didn't seem to be lying. If he was a god though, or a faerie, or whatever, would she be able to trust her senses? For now, she decided, she didn't care. She would be on her guard, but this place seemed safe, and he was handsome, and she had eaten real food for the first time in too long.

"Ok. I'll believe you for now," she said with a smirk, then looking down at herself in disgust, "I need a shower, or at least to get out of these clothes."

"I would be more than willing to assist with both," her companion said with a grin.

"I'm sure you would," she said with a smile. "But, first, you need a name. You've been kind of vague about that. What is your mortal name?"

He actually pouted a bit, as if he had hoped she would give him a cool name of some sort. "Ok, very well. If you want to play it that way, you can call me Bora."

She smiled. Bora was a nice name. "So, I was right," she said. You remembered a name, just not the one you wanted to remember.

His only response was a nod, as he stepped toward her taking the amulet from her hand, lifting it over her head. She leaned head forward slightly as he lowered the necklace down over her head. It seemed odd to her, but the action itself, and the way that he carried himself, and even her own response, seemed almost like a coronation. As the disk came to rest on against her chest, a tingling sensation spread throughout her body.

"And with that," he said, "this demesne is truly yours."

She was not sure what to make of that. It was one little piece of the ever-building puzzle. Perhaps it was his way of making light of the bargain that he had offered her. Perhaps his words hinted that there was more to this place than he had implied. For now, though, she was filthy. She needed a bath. Just as importantly, she needed to feed.

+++++

Bora ran his fingers gently down the length of the chain and over the amulet. An odd sensation spread out from the chain and disk, as they dissolved into her skin and vanished. It was still there. She could still feel it, and its magic.

"That will keep it safe," he said.

Leila ran her fingers over the skin at the neck of her shirt, where the amulet had lain moments before. "Shall we go clean ourselves?" she asked.

He nodded, taking hold of her shirt and lifting it over her head. She did not fight it, lifting her arms as he did so. They were alone in this place, after all, so she wasn't concerned about anyone seeing her. At that point, she likely would not have cared either way.

Once her hands were free of her shirt, she unclasped the clip holding her bra in place, revealing as he loosened her belt. To her surprise, as soon as the belt was loosed, her pants fell down around her ankles, and she simply stepped out. She needed to regain her lost weight. Her breasts, she noticed, had not had time to suffer yet.

Bora watched as she bent over to push her panties down around her feet, and then stepped out of them giving him a full view of her body. She had lost considerable weight since leaving home, but not so much as to cause permanent harm.

She stepped past him and lead the way out of the room. As soon as they were through the entrance to the baths, she pressed him against the wall, her hands splaying over his nicely muscled pectorals even before the door had time to close behind them. She let her hands slide up and down his chest and abdomen as she looked him in the eyes.

His eyes were a beautiful green, a contrast to her own brown eyes. His smooth mauve colored hair was just past his shoulder, her own brown hair trailed down her back. He gasped as she leaned forward and licked his left nipple.

As she backed away suddenly, she had a grin on her face. What she said next was so cliche, that she couldn't believe the words were even coming from her mouth. "It's not fair," she said as she slid her hand down his front, and then down the length of his zipper, noticing hos stiff he had become, "that only one of us is undressed."

He just grinned and watched her stupidly as she unbuttoned his pants, and undid his zipper. She slid her thumbs down into his pants along either side of his waist and pushed his pants down around his ankles as she fell to her knees in front of him.

She knelt before him, looking up into his eyes. The feral hunger in her eyes was frightening even to him. She grasped the base of his shaft and opened her mouth, her lips parting just enough to slide them over the tip of his engorged manhood. She took just the tip into her mouth and began to gently lick first the very tip, then the sides, moving her tongue around as if tasting it before leaning her head forward to take in the first few inches.

He let out a gasp and arched his back as she sucked softly, wrapping her tongue around his shaft before pulling her head back again until only the tip remained inside her soft, warm mouth. She bit down gently and pushed her head forward again into his lap. His knees almost buckled under the sensation. As their energies started to merge, he began slowly thrusting his hips in a ragged pattern, until he lets out an audible grunt and releases a warm stream into her mouth.

She pulled away from him swallowing slightly. She stood, with a grin on her face, kissed him on the cheek and then turned away, walking towards the shower area as if nothing had even happened. He watched her, his jaw slack, as she began to shower herself. He was starting to wonder what he had gotten himself into.

Leila felt strong. She felt in control. She was not entirely sure what had happened, but she had very clearly drawn energy from that experience. Bora, on the other hand, seemed to be drained. As she showered, and then lowered herself into the bathing pool, she thought over the events of the day.

She suspected that Bora hadn't technically lied to her about anything. She was not so certain, however, that the way he had led her to interpret the facts was entirely honest. She would figure things out as she went along. For now, she had a place to sleep and food to eat. She just had to confirm her suspicions about the amulet. Now that she was more energized, the thing had begun whispering to her. Perhaps that was the wrong word, it was more like information was seeping out of it.

As she soaked, she felt the water ripple as Bora lowered himself beside her. "Will you be staying tonight?" he asked. "You can come and go as you please now. The amulet will make that possible."

She nodded. She had already determined as much. "Yes," she said. "We should sleep soon," she said looking him over. She had been looking for a place to sleep when she found herself there, and he looked like she had siphoned off most of his reserves. She would have to be more careful next time.

Leila turned to Bora and wrapper her arms around him. "I think that this arrangement should work nicely for a while. At least until I figure out how all of this works."

With a quick kiss on the lips, she stood and stepped out of the pool, taking a few moments to dry off before heading to the kitchen.

+++++

By the time Leila had finished a decent meal, she had decided that the house was safe. A quick walk around had shown her that she could see the exit now, as well as a few hallways that were not visible to her before. She even found windows overlooking a small courtyard in case she wanted to get some air.

As she returned to the suite with the bedroom, she could still sense Bora's presence. He had not left. In fact, he was laying in the bed smiling at her when she entered the bedroom. He lifts the blanket, indicating that there is room for her. Smiling, she climbs into the bed beside him.

Once she was under the blankets, she rolled and looked at him.

"So, you haven't technically lied to me about anything, have you?" she said with a tone that indicated she was simply voicing her thoughts.

Once he nodded, she continued. "There are things you aren't telling me, aren't there?"

Again, he nodded. "Yes."

Leila watched him carefully as he began to shift uncomfortably. "You can't actually lie to me, can you? I mean, you can obviously twist things, but..." she let the statement drop as he simply nodded.

She closed her eyes tightly, trying to put it all together. "I won't try to force you to say anything," she said with her eyes still closed. "It will take me some time, though, to figure out how this is all going to work.

When he spoke, he spoke slowly but with caring in his voice. "I can't tell you more, not yet," he said. "What I told you, it was all true. The rest has to come on its own. You have to learn to be you." He watched her, waiting for a few moments until she opened her eyes to look into his once more. "We can feed each other, and this place will be your safe haven. It will be a place to weather the coming storm."

"How does the key work?" she asked simply.

"In simple terms, will it to come here when you go through a door."

"And to get back, does it go to the same door I came through?" she asked, obviously thinking of the various possibilities.

"If you know a specific door you want to travel to when you leave, it will take you there," he said. Then, after a momentary pause he continued "The better fed you are, the easier the passing is. The more control you will have."

She nodded and closed her eyes again. "I will have to face that creature eventually, won't I?" she asked.

"I believe you will," he said. "I'm not sure who sent it, but I don't think it is going to give up. It can't follow you here though."

"Then I can worry about it tomorrow," she said as she closed her eyes to sleep. She pulled closer to Bora, but nothing more happened that night. She would have to remedy that eventually.

Leila (Working Title)