After a few moments of swimming, Lock gave up finding Lillith as a lost cause. He started to head back to the surface - with the lake monster still grabbing for him - when he saw her.

Her black hair floated around her like dark clouds. The green waters of the lake gave her pale skin a deathly tint. She looked haunting and deadly...it kind of reminded him of the Undersea Gal.

...Huh. It'd been a while since he saw her around...

No matter. Lock decided to appreciate Lillith's etherael creepiness for a moment, then resurfaced.

Lillith patted the lake monster as she watched Lock swim back to the surface. She gave him just enough time to take a good deep breath -- or a few quick shallow ones -- before she used a burst of vampire speed to launch herself far enough out of the water to tackle him and drag him back under.

The partial moon shone and and left glimmering ripples over the lake's surface as he broke through. Lock barely had time to notice it before something tackled him and pulled him straight down again. Several thrills rippled through him as he saw a blur of white amongst the depths. The creature's tentacles caught both their ankles and pulled them even farther into the depths of the lake.

Lock smirked as his eyes adjusted under the water and took in Lillith's face. The murky, slimy water distorted her features and only made him want her more. The initial fright now gone, he wrapped his arms around her chest and moved to kiss her. He moved one hand to the base of her head both to keep her close, and to feel her hair shifting through his fingers as the currents rushed by. Lock slipped his tail around one of her legs. As they weren't trying to escape, the creature simply held them in place, as though disappointed that they'd stopped the game.

Lillith kissed him back and teasingly ran one hand down along his leg. With her other hand, she reached up to touch his cheek -- conveniently hooking her arm up under his to do so, causing him to release his grip on her waist. She pulled her face away and winked at him before suddenly giving the tentacle around his ankle a few quick tugs that could easily be interpreted as Lock playing at an escape.

She waved as the lake monster gleefully pulled them apart and and dragged her boyfriend downward.

He gave her a soft smile when she pulled away, but at her wink, Lock immediately suspected trouble. He didn't have a chance to think before he was pulled down into the murky depths. This time, he actually did struggle to free himself.

Lock managed after a few moments and swam back towards the surface. Part of him was annoyed. Another part was impressed at her audacity.

If they weren't underwater, Lillith would have snickered. After a moment, she swam down to help him, but he managed to free himself before she got there. She patted the lake monster before joining Lock at the surface. This time, she gave him a proper snog, twirling his tail in her fingers as she did so.

Lock broke the surface and took a breath, before he suspiciously surveyed the water for either Lillith or the lake monster. The surface broke again, and he saw Lillith rise like the undead corpse she was. He gave her a playfully annoyed look before he found her lips against his.

He smiled under her kiss and let her play with his tail. When he broke the kiss, he rested his head against her chest as the two of them held themselves in place.

"Very funny," he said, though the amused note in his voice gave away that it hadn't been anything more than an inconvenience.

Shock occasionally asked what he saw in Lillith. Once in a while, her more playful side showed in front of his siblings - such as whenever she lifted him up to kiss him - but in private, Lillith was almost as troublesome in her own way, and he adored it. It made it even better that she usually saved it just for him. Lock nipped at her neck, then gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before he dove back under the surface. He'd allow the lake monster to give chase again as he headed back for the shore.

Lillith watched him for a moment and a smirk slowly spread across her face. She dove down and made her way to the lake monster, catching its attention before swimming toward Lock. She stayed barely within reach of the tentacles, just enough to keep its interest, then used a burst of vampiric speed to dodge it in such a way that it grabbed her boyfriend's tail instead.

She passed Lock and turned back to blow him a kiss as she flew through the water to the shoreline.

Lock started out with a good pace, just enough to allow the lake monster to play, but far enough to stay out of its reach. He saw Lillith in the corner of his eye, before a slew of bubbles burst in a straight trail beside him. He stopped suddenly as something gripped his tail and pulled him back.

He saw Lillith ahead just close enough to blow him a kiss. He glowered at her, but struggled to free himself from the lake monster's grasp as his girlfriend turned to continue on her way to the shore. More tentacles gripped his arms and legs and pulled him back. It took Lock a moment or two to free himself before he headed back to the surface. As he resurfaced, he saw Lillith's nude form in the distance casually stepping from the lake and onto the shore.

Lock swam as fast as he could to get to join her. The lake monster remained in pursuit. The best he could do was keep his limbs - and especially his tail - out of its reach. With some careful maneuvering, he evaded its grasp. As he reached shallower waters, the lake monster pulled back, knowing its limit before it became beached. Lock found a sandbar and managed to stand with his head above the water. He gave the nearest tentacle a gentle pet to show the lake monster his thanks for the game, then carefully walked to the shore.

"If you were trying to tire me out," he said, "it didn't work."

Lock gave her a playful smirk.

"But if you're going to test my resilience..."

Lillith batted her eyes at him. "I just enjoy seeing you all held down and struggling."

She patted him on the cheek. "Though of course, it's always more fun when you're struggling against me." With that, she swiped a foot behind his legs and leaned in for a kiss that would (hopefully) knock him off-balance and onto his back.

"I did bring handcuffs..."

His smirk widened before he found himself knocked back down. Lock barely caught her kiss before he fell back into the shallowest part of the lake.

Lillith immediately dropped to straddle his waist, reaching to grab his wrists as she did so. The lake was shallow enough here that as long as he didn't roll over or turn his head too far to the side, he wasn't in any particular danger of drowning.

"Why bother with handcuffs?" she purred. "You go down easily enough, I don't need them."

He sunk into the sand. Lock let her grab his wrists, choosing to behave for the moment. He let Lillith get herself situated and relaxed under her. His smirk became a grin as he took in the view, though part of it was a ploy to get Lillith's guard down. Once her confidence was assured that he wasn't going anywhere, Lock lifted his head out of the water. The soft sand and cool waters shifted under him, and he knew he had an advantage.

"Who said they were for me?"

Unlike the stone floor of the crypt, or the firm inside of her coffin, Lillith couldn't hold him against the soft ground as easily. Lock shifted his body enough to slip out from under her. Normally, he was content enough to let Lillith have her way with him at this point, but after the stunts with the lake monster, he was feeling particularly vengeful. Lock pulled his arms close together to bring Lillith's together as well, and used his tail to bind her wrists. In a quick twist, he broke his own wrists free, then grabbed her shoulders to push her down in an attempt to reverse their positions.

His options were always to fight or stay down. Lock gave her a devious smirk. Tonight, the former sounded more fun, and when he wanted to, he could almost match her strength.

Lillith was surprised enough to go down, but her eyes flashed as she immediately began trying to think of a way to get back on top. She pulled her wrists upward to the limit of his tail's reach. She lifted her head up to hiss in his ear: "Bold of you to assume they'd be for anyone else."

Considering how much shorter he was, Lock had to sit higher on her stomach to pin her shoulders. This let her with plenty of room to move her legs, and she took full advantage of it. She swung a knee up to either strike him on the backside or make him dodge. As she did so, the fanged countess snapped a bite in the air just in front of his face to get him further off balance.

Lock pulled his tail taut to counter her, as well as to ensure she didn't hurt him. ...Too much, anyway. He mockingly kissed her cheek when her lips met his ear.

"A guy can dream."

He felt her shift under him, and barely dodged her knee. Lock dug his feet into the sand to try to keep her under him, for what little leverage he could gain. When Lillith snapped her teeth in his face, he pulled away. He tried to readjust his weight to keep Lillith from knocking him off.

Try he might, but there was nothing he could do. He might be able to nearly match her in strength, but he was half her size and she'd gotten him off-balance. She threw him off of herself. Spinning to her feet, she grabbed him around the stomach and tossed him to shore. The vampiress didn't wait for him to right himself before rushing over to try and pin him again.

Lock found himself knocked down, thrown, and pinned down. He moved his legs around her waist and slid his tail between her legs, with precise and calculated movements to make her falter so he could try to get back the advantage. A smirk crossed his lips as he asked:

"What was that about going down easily?"

Lillith faltered for a moment, but quickly regained composure and growled, "That's not going to work this time..."

She pulled his wrists above his head and rested her full weight on him. He was nearly smothered beneath her chest. She kept her knees underneath herself just in case she would need to use them, and reached toward the picnic basket with her free hand. Unfortunately, it was just outside her reach for the time being. No matter. She was pretty sure she had him where she wanted him. She took a moment to enjoy the... attention he was giving her with his tail.

Lock barely managed an, "Isn't it?" before he found himself pressed under her body. He gently nipped at her breasts and slid his tongue over her skin, more than content to enjoy the opportunity. One leg remained hooked over her back as his other foot slid over the the round contours of her backside, caressing her as best he was able to, given the circumstances.

He moved his tail both with more care and vigorously. Lock felt how she moved over him and readjusted when necessary to torment her as much as he could, never allowing her too much satisfaction before he pushed another button.

Lillith hissed a little bit in frustration, then slowly bared her fangs in a grin. She adjusted her grip on Lock's wrists so as not to injure them, then launched herself off of him and past his hands with her vampiric speed. She kept them pinned far enough up that any significant re-positioning would be difficult for him. Her free hand was now well within reach of their belongings.

A quick search of the picnic basket turned up nothing. She gave his arms a slight yank -- just in case he tried anything -- and grabbed her boyfriend's clothing. There they were; back pants pocket. She pulled out the hand cuffs he had so graciously brought with him. Then the countess was back on top of him.

She rolled him onto his stomach and cuffed his wrists behind his back. Leaning forward, she gave his ears a short nip. "Now then, what shall I do with you?"