“For the most part, they are going to be quicker than you,” Levi continued, pulling his arm away. “So fighting them is going to be mostly about dodging and then luring them somewhere that will put them at a disadvantage. That disadvantage is going to depend on what they are. Since small cat types, which are officially called felinae, are the most common ones you’re going to come across, we’ll be training on them first. The main thing is that though they are fast and agile, they aren’t that strong. So your goal would be getting them tied up or restrained in some way, so you can get away.”

“So are they felindae or felinae?” Madeline asked, remembering the name to be different when he said it earlier.

“The entire category of cat-type shapeshifters is called felindae. Shapeshifters that would be considered big cats, like lions and tigers, are called pantherinae, and all the rest are considered felinae.”

“Okay, thank you.”

“Next we have the Dead, things like ghosts, poltergeists, and some with full blown consciousness, like spirits. Ghost are probably pretty similar to what you are familiar with, they are only partial beings that need to be disbursed. Poltergeists are energies that get attached to certain people, places, and things. The dead don’t mask anything about themselves. You’ll know a ghost when you see it. The only thing that might be difficult would be telling if it’s a real ghost or a fae trick. Under normal circumstances, there’s no real danger.”

“Then we have the Undead,” Levi grimaced, obviously not one of his favorites. “And number one on that list are the vampires. They are few and far between only because it’s increasingly hazardous for them to blend in. You can consider vampirism as a kind of blood disease spread through a considerable amount of blood mingling, like a transfusion. The older clans even have ridiculously complicated rituals for turning. It’s possible to infect someone without going through the complexity of a full-blown transfusion, but it requires a large amount of blood loss on the part of the victim. That type of infection is also a slow one, as the lesser than adequate amount of vampire blood would have to work at multiplying and replacing the victim’s existing blood. No one is born a vampire because they lose the ability to procreate once their body changes. And before you ask, if a pregnant woman is made a vampire, the baby doesn’t become one too. The mother’s body almost immediately devours the living tissue of the unborn baby for nourishment before it has even the slightest chance to be affected by the blood.”

“Not sure if I needed to know that. That’s really gross,” Madeline wrinkled up her nose in an expression of disgust.

“Hey, I am just setting facts straight,” Levi defended, yet smiled mischievously. “New ones don’t have a good survival rate unless they are coddled by older, more experienced ones. That means the ones you are likely to run into are the older, stronger, and more dangerous ones. Make no mistake, they do feed on human blood. They have to in order to survive. The nonsense about them being able to survive off animal blood is a lie meant to deceive humans. Ones that have been around for a long time tend to have a rotation of donors, but the new ones that don’t, tend to lose it and kill, and are then killed by their own kind to cull the weak. I identify vampires by sense of smell. Those that haven’t recently consumed blood tend to reek to me. I guess a good observation for you would be whether or not they eat or drink real food. Only vampires with strong self-control, so we’re talking older ones again, can make eating look normal. Younger ones either avoid real food like the plague, or they gag when they try to eat even the most bland of foods. And even an elder, more powerful vampire, will vomit it up within an hour. They also are usually quite pale. The more recently they’ve fed, the healthier they look and the warmer their skin will feel, but it will never be warmer than yours. The ones with ‘old blood’ don’t have to feed often, and they maintain their healthy glow much longer. There are other things out there too, like zombies, but they don’t have any sort of staying power, nothing to keep them from decomposing. Those you can just wait out if you ever come across them.”

“Do vampires burst into flames in the sunlight? Like the stories say?” Madeline asked.

“No,” Levi answered. “But the exposure will make them dry up. The only thing that keeps them moist and supple is consuming human blood. Without it, they go through something similar to dehydration. Expose that to some nice dry heat and well… it doesn’t help matters any. And while we’re on the topic, holy water doesn’t work at all. Most holy water isn't holy, and even when it is it doesn’t do any harm. Neither do crosses. Vampires are not demons or devils. They are going to be pretty tricky for you to deal with. For starters, they have this thing they release, sort of like a pheromone, that can either calm or arouse their victims so they don’t struggle. Some like the violence of the process, so they don’t do it, but it’s mostly the young that think like that. As desperate at is sounds, your goal would be not get killed. If it’s an older vampire, an option for survival would be to let them drink and leave you. But if you have to fight, go for sharp weapons with some length so your reach is greater than theirs. Blunt objects are useless. You need to get them bleeding so they are more concerned about that, and then you run.”

“I see,” Madeline understood.

“The Magical are some of the most dangerous of all the non-humans. They include the kind that kidnapped you, the fae. In general, the fae have their own yin and yang thing going on. They strive to balance each other out. They have a court system, and although they don’t have a lot of rules, the ones they do have are upheld pretty ruthlessly. Of course, they have to get caught to be punished, so there are a lot of politics involved - more than any other group of non-humans. Most of the other groups fear them.”

“Why is that?” Madeline asked curiously as she finished up her breakfast.

“For starters, most of the myths you’ve heard about them are true,” Levi continued. “They are tricky, love to tell half truths, and they love mischief. If you can get them to make a promise, they won’t ever break it, but on the other hand, they are experts at making those around them do their bidding. For instance, they are forbidden by their own laws to kidnap other beings, so they get around that by tricking the victims to come with them.”

“But that’s not what happened to me,” Madeline stated rather pointedly.

“I know, that’s what makes your case so interesting, and why, in a way, you have an advantage because kidnapping is harshly punished. Getting back to the point though, the magic they use can distort reality and perception. They can flood human minds with pleasant or dark thoughts that can cause insanity. They can even do it to a lot of non-humans too. They have been here a lot longer than most of the others, so there are things about magic that only they know, and they aren’t going to share that with the rest of us. Not to mention they have their own handy pocket dimension called The Veil. Only fae can go in and out of it, unless you are invited, or you have a resonance charm from a noble family, but even then those charms get you no further than the lobby unless you are fae. I suppose the best way to identify the fae is their charisma, both light and dark have it, and their language. They love to trick and talk in riddles, and most of the time they will not be able to carry on a long conversation without slipping into some of their old-world phrases and round-about answers to questions. With all that’s happened to you, we’ll train on counteracting them second to the felinae. And I use the word counteract on purpose. Fae are nasty to fight. The lesser ones are pretty much all about dodging and hitting, which you need a lot of speed and strength for. They are easy for me to deal with, as you’ve seen, but you don’t have that kind of agility or power. And we won’t go into the greater fae. You just won’t win in a straight up fight with them. Your only weapons are going to be your words and your wits.”

Madeline nodded.

"And lastly, the rarest of the groups are the Supernal," Levi continued. "It’s highly unlikely that you will ever come across any. The powers these beings display caused them to be worshipped by humans at some point, and in some cases they still are. They are found in every culture. Demon, angels, gods, demigods, and they go by many different titles. Unfortunately, I don't have any advice to give you about them, only that they do exist, and don’t piss them off."

“Have you ever come across an actual angel? Or demon for that matter?”

“I came across a demon once, a very long time ago. It massacred a camp of about a fifty nomads in Mongolia. Didn’t eat them or anything just killed them all and left their bodies laying in the dirt.”

“What did you do?” Madeline asked, blue eyes wide.

“I ran,” Levi answered, taking the last few bites of his fruit and granola and letting the information sink in.

“Tonight, we’re going to go on a fieldtrip,” he continued after a brief moment of silence. “I’ll introduce you to a contact of mine.”

She wasn’t going to lie, she was definitely nervous about stepping into this world so soon.

“Where will this fieldtrip take place, exactly?” Madeline asked carefully.

“There’s a nightclub called the Golden Lotus,” Levi began. “The person we’ll be meeting works there, for the time being anyway.”

“The Golden Lotus!? I don’t have anything I could possibly wear!” she raised her voice in panic. Her wardrobe consisted mostly of jeans, t-shirts, sweaters, and tanktops. She had two skirts, and one floral-print sundress, none of which were nightclub material.

Levi mused for a few seconds, tapping his index finger to his lips while he thought. Suddenly his green eyes brightened, and he stood, grabbing Madeline’s wrist and forcing her to follow him into his bedroom. She had never been in his room and was surprised that it was at least twice the size of hers. The floor was a warm and comforting oak hardwood, surrounded by paneled walls reminiscent of shoji screens. In the center of the room was a low king-sized bed which appeared to be a futon resting on a wooden platform, and at the far end of the room next to his closet was a staircase that ascended to a mysterious second floor.

Leading her to his walk-in closet, they stepped past dozens of trendy, neatly hanging shirts and trousers. The closest was huge, so large in fact that it felt like a small men’s boutique instead of a personal closet. Before she could digest it all, he stopped in front of a section of women’s clothing.

“I’m not even going to ask,” Madeline said dismissively. Who was she to judge?

Levi ignored her smart-ass remark and flipped through a number of wooden hangers until he found a suitable dress he knew would fit.

“Try this on,” he ordered.

He handed her a sleeveless black dress that had lace collar running to a low sweetheart neckline of silk right above the breasts. Starting at the hip, it slowly blended down into a deep red, with the hem ending about mid-thigh.

"You expect me to try it on here? Now?" Madeline questioned.

"It's not as if I haven't seen you naked before," Levi responded with a smirk.

Madeline was having none of it and stood with the dress draped across her crossed arms.

"Fine. I'll wait in my room. Let me know when you have it on."

Sighing dramatically, Levi walked out of the large closet and waited.

Madeline slipped out of her jeans and t-shirt, and unzipped the back of the dress. Stepping into the soft silk, she briefly wondered whose idea it was to make clothes that required assistance. She got the back of the dress zipped up as much as possible, then called out to Levi for help with the rest. Flipping her long red hair over her shoulder, she felt him zip her up with expert ease.

"So whose dress is this anyway?" She asked curiously as she assessed herself in the floor length mirror at the end of the closet.

"Doesn't matter. She has so many dresses she won't notice one gone."

The answer didn't leave Madeline feeling very comfortable. She continued to glance at herself in the mirror, noting that the black straps of her bra were well camouflaged by the lace of the dress. The dress itself was a snug fit, but not too tight, and it showed off her curves in a flattering way.

“You’ll wear that,” Levi decided without consulting Madeline any further.

She opened her mouth to protest, but he continued speaking almost immediately, so she wasn’t able to get a word in.

“We have about ten hours until it’s fashionable to arrive, so do what you need to do.”

“So, is there anything I'm specifically supposed to do tonight?” she asked.

“Not make a fool out of yourself?” Levi replied.

“I’m being fucking serious.”

“So am I.”