[quote]“We try and find out who they are and politely ask if there’s anything we can do to help out. I guess. I mean, it’s probably his house, unless he was murdered in the basement or something like that. We’re the intruders here.”[/quote]

Maddie sighed. Of course the house was haunted. Her life had become a terrible joke. What do you get when a vampire and a werewolf live together? Ghosts. It sounded like some terrible television show. The kind that was done decently for the first couple seasons in Britain and then poorly copied in America.

“Well we’ll ask him when he decides to come out of hiding to paint more dicks on our walls. Certainly not having any guests over until that’s taken care of.” Maddie said guests, but she meant respectable people. Not that she had any ‘respectable’ people to invite over anyway. She smiled though and added, “At least you can’t see it from the entryway.” Maddie, as always, seemed incapable of not seeing the bright side of a situation. “Do you want some tea?” It was unlikely she was asking anyone but Fraser, but the question did seem open enough she could have just as easily been asking the ghost if he too would like a cup of tea.

“Aye, tea would be nice. Five sugars?”

He touched his fingers to the wet streak of paint, scratching it off. “We can put a painting over it – a charity shop one, ‘cos I’m skint,” Fraser noted, taking a good, hard look at the painted phallus. “Nothing else we can do.”

Maddie nodded. “Maybe a painting of flowers.” Her smile grew, there was a laugh in her voice. She went down into the kitchen and started the water. Fraser followed her down and took a seat at the table.

“So. Found a place for the next full moon yet?”

Maddie looked over at Fraser a grim look on her face. “No, I tried to see if there was a good spot at the school. You know how old buildings are.” She took a deep breath, steadying her voice. “I didn’t find anything like at the apartment.”

He nodded. “Right. Right, that’s fine. I’ll ask around. Maybe there’ll be a place at the fairground? How many days have you got?”

Without a beat Maddie said, “Five, you’ll have to warn the boys if I’m there.” If any of them dared to bother her at that ‘time of the month’ they’d sorely regret it, if they had a chance to.

Fraser snorted. “If one of them gets chomped it’s fair do’s – Darwin in action,” he said, shrugging. “Plus worst comes to the worst I drive you out into the countryside and you can eat some sheep or something.”

“Something being some poor sheep herder.” Maddie said mostly under her breath, but she knew there was no hiding it from Fraser’s ears.

“Yum.” Maddie shot Fraser a glare, and pulled the kettle just as it started to hiss. The vampire held his hands up in an insincere apology, the grin on his face impossible to hide.

“I’d prefer to not have to resort to that. Ideal situation would be to find a nice hidey-hole small enough that only human me can squeeze in and out of it. If it has to be at the fair ground then it has to be. At least that way there’s some sort of barrier between me and the normal human.” Maddie said as she poured the tea into two mugs, one with four sugars in it, and her’s with just one.

Fraser peered around Maddie, leaning out of his chair. “Another sugar, please!” 

Maddie complied and dropped another sugar into his tea. Fraser smiled sweetly and continued, “But yeah. I’ll get that sorted soon. I need to let all the lads know I’ve moved either way. I’d ask you to come but–” A shrug. “They’re a bit thick and would probably attack you.”

“Well if I’m going to be locking myself up at the fairgrounds I’ll have to meet them eventually. Preferably not when I’m uncontrollable.” Maddie leaned against the counter holding her cup of tea.

“Your funeral. Not literally, though. Believe me, you’ll be wanting to beat your head off the wall after speaking to them for ten minutes.”

“You haven’t met my students.” Maddie half smiled. “I suppose I’ll go back to unpacking now. Maybe we’ll find our other housemate later.” She gave a small shrug.