A nightly schedule had been set for me.  I began my evenings with various lessons in languages, math, science, and the arts.  After came more lessons of pureblood etiquette.  Then I spent the rest of my hours with my father or Ejin.

But lately, my father had been away on business, leaving me alone.

I didn't like it one bit.

Being by myself gave me more time to think.

And having more time to think stirred a restlessness in me.

The door to my room opened and I rose excitedly to the person. Expecting to see Rido, my mood turned morose as I saw Ejin in his playful manner walked to the couch I was sitting on.  His lips kicked up in the corners as I exhaled and I returned to reading another book.

"Why so sad, my dearest little niece?" he asked while he took a seat next to me.  He was here because my daddy couldn't spend another evening with me.

Instead of answering him, I asked a question in a childish way. "Where is daddy?"

The pureblood leaned back, his head resting on one of the velvet pillows. His arms splayed out beside him as he made himself comfortable.  "He has another meeting."

My eyebrows tugged together.  "A meeting?"

"With the council."  He had been attending a lot of those lately and I couldn't help but wonder if he was plotting against the Kuran family using them.

"Don't worry your pretty little head, your father will be back tomorrow."

"I want him here," I answered quietly, sadly.

"But you have me to keep you company."

"I still want daddy."

"I can't blame you.  At your age I wanted either my mom or sister."

I turned my head to him.  Ejin didn't volunteer personal information unless he was with Rido. Witnessing how Juri and Haruka betrayed my parents, it disturbed me to be with other purebloods.  Especially since one, who was supposedly my grandfather, threatened to harm me.

"Were you and mama close?" I questioned out of curiosity.

His brown eyes closed and a long smile stretched across his boyish face. "We were.  Your mama and I were a team.  We liked playing pranks on everyone."

It was my turn to slightly smile.  "That doesn't sound like mama."

"Oh, she changed when she met your father.  She wanted to spend more time with him than me."

"Because you're weird."

Ejin laughed, open and carefree.  He opened his eyes and stared at the beautiful painting of mama.  "You are very much like her, your mama. Perhaps you might be walking in the same footsteps as her."

My attention averted to her image.  There was no way I could be like her, a person filled with love and laughter.

"No one is like mama," I said with wonder.

"You're right," he said after some time.  "No one can replace her."

At least we had one thought in common.  Besides, I didn't want to be in anyone's shadow.  I wanted to be me.

There was a moment of silence before curiosity got the better of me again.  "When can I learn magic?"

It was my slip up for Ejin to treat me like a child.

"Magic?"  His eyes widened, mirth shining in them after his realization.  "Pureblood powers.  You can learn now, but only the small things."

I blinked at him while waiting quietly for him to continue.

"You know your father's gift."

I nodded.  Daddy had the ability to manipulate his blood.

"All pureblood vampires have the same abilities but they have powers they are very good at controlling.  Your father can control his blood, turning it into a whip.  The Kuran family can hold weapons that can kill our kind."

"And you?"

"The Toma family... our gift is complex."

"Com-plex," I struggled to say the word, although I knew the meaning.

"Our power is different.  It is known to be a gift and a curse."

I wasn't following along.  He must have sensed my confusion because he continued.

"I can't explain our gift.  It's best to show it to you."  He turned to me and angled his head so that he was looking down at me.  "Okay, close your eyes."

"Why?"

He sighed.  "I won't hurt you, my darling niece.  You're too cute."

His words didn't convince me to trust him.

"You want to know why the Toma family's power is different, I'm willing to show you."

But trust had little to do what I wanted to learn so I listened to him and did as he instructed.  Except, a simple gesture of closing my eyes took one of my senses.  Being a heavily visual learner, the moment I lost my sight, my other senses went into overload.

"Okay, good, now find a center."

I was about to question him.

"Your breathing, listen to how you breathe in and out."

My heart was racing.  My breathing was harsh.  I didn't realize I was panicking.

"Slow your breathing down.  Deep breaths in and out.  In and out." Slowly he said the words.  "In and out.  In and out."

I found myself following his every word, until I felt like I was lulled into a relaxed state.

"Now feel around the room and point toward the place that is warm."

My face scrunched as I concentrated on finding a warm place.  "I can't."

"Just breathe and you will feel it."  I continued to inhale and exhale air until I felt it, a warmth of the rising sun.

My hand rose from my lap and my finger pointed to a direction. 

"Excellent, now open your eyes," he instructed.

My eyelids fluttered open and my head shifted to where I pointed. I blinked as I looked in the direction I was pointing.  There was nothing but the wall and the painting of mama.  "I...."

"The Toma family can leave a piece of their power behind in objects. In this sense, your mother left a piece of her power in your father's painting."

My eyes widened and air got stuck in my throat.  It dawned on me, all those times daddy talked to mama's painting, him taking it from our old home, his obsession over it, the painting had an essence of mama.  Rido wasn't slipping into madness.

No, it was the other way around.

Even in death, mama was keeping him sane.

I blinked and a tear rolled down my cheek.

"Now you understand why our powers is both a gift and a curse my darling niece.  It is complex and not something that any other pureblood is capable of.  Even your father has trouble leaving a piece of his power in an item."

I nodded my head, a new found respect blossoming for my uncle.

"My darling little niece, it's a better idea of keeping this talk between us. Who knows what your father will do if he finds out that I let out our secret?"

"Secret?" I iterated.  I slightly turned my head to him.

He took a deep breath and then chuckled.  "Us Toma, we like to keep our distance from other purebloods because they can't understand our power."

Owlishly I blinked at him.

Ejin moved closer to me and not once did I flinch.  He was so close that the dark pupils in his eyes were visible. "You can fool the other vampires but not me."

I chose that moment to tilt my face and not break eye contact with him. "What do you mean uncle?" I questioned childishly.

He shook his head while his lips kicked up in a playful manner. "You're a Toma all right.  Your father won't have to worry about you."

I scrunched my eyebrows at him.  It was the only expression I allowed him to see.

The pureblood placed his large hand on the crown of my head and patted my head.  "You are quite resourceful."

My hand rose and I swatted the larger appendage off my hair.  My father was the only one allowed to praise me.

As usual Ejin barked in laughter.  He was using me as a form of entertainment but instead of being annoyed, I filed his reactions for later analyzing.  If I was going to live in the pureblood world, I had to learn the politics. Who else better than to learn it from Ejin?

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A/N: Sorry for the late update. I had a rough few months and am still going through it. I'll try my best to heal but please know I have not forgotten all the support you have given me. Thank you