Merussia Alexandrovna Belaykov was born on November 13^th, 1983. She is the second child of Alexander Vasili and Irina Dunaev Belaykov. Her older brother, Viktor Alexander, was 7 years old when she was born. Not long after Merussia's birth, Irina was once again pregnant, and two years later, in July of 1985, Vanya Alexandrovna came into the world. Her mother had had another child when Merussia was 5, Andrei Alexander, but he died before the year was out.

For the first 15 years of Merussia's life, her family lived in one of the poorest neighborhoods of Moscow. They shared a two room apartment, with her parents sleeping on a roll-out bed in the kitchen/living room and the three children sharing the bedroom. Viktor would have been quite content to have the bedroom to himself until he was ready to move out on his own, and he never quite reconciled himself to the two sisters he was forced to share a bedroom with for the second 9 years of his life. However, as soon as he was an adult and able to get a room of his own, he left the confines of the parental home.

When she was 7, Merussia decided she would be a ballerina. She wanted nothing more than to join the Russian Ballet and tour the world, so everyone could see how beautiful and graceful she was. Her parents had no time nor inclination to indulge in her fantasies, so she never received lessons. However, she often sneaked into Theater where the Ballet practiced at night. She had bullied one of the neighborhood boys into teaching her how to pick locks, and she had spent hours studying their activities from her window, so she knew plenty about skulking. In the long winter months, Merussia practiced the delicate steps of the ballerinas on the small space of floor in her bedroom.

Irina Dunaev worked at shoe factory near their home. Alexander Vasili was a doctor. There was usually food on the table, though it was seldom enough. The family's fortunes changed, however, in the fall of 1998. The changes in Russia previously had helped launch the family upwards, as her father's skills as a doctor would always be in demand, but through Viktor's connections, their mother was able to start a small business of her own. She had always been a fair seamstress, and with Viktor's help, she was able to get a variety of fabric that made her fashions popular.

The family moved into a nicer neighborhood of Moscow, into an apartment with two bedrooms. Merussia and Vanya still had to share the second bedroom, but they no longer had to share a bed. Merussia turned 15 just after the move and began to fancy herself quite grown up. Her parents were easy with their money, and often gave it to the girls to spend as they would. For the first time in her life, Merussia had not only money to spend, but could find things to spend it on. She bought fake jewels and foreign cosmetics, which she only put on after she had left the house. Her mother wouldn't have approved.

By the late spring of 1999, Merussia had made it a habit of sneaking out at night and joining other bored, newly wealthy teenagers in nightly revels. Once school was out for the summer, Merussia spent almost every night out. This was how she was introduced to a club whose owners had peculiar interests. It was called Twilight Dreams and its owners were called a variety of things, but to Merussia and her friends they were the "Lonely Ones."

At Twilight Dreams, the vampires had created a convenient nest for themselves. They had nightly companions from whom they could drink as they pleased, though only the youngest were stupid enough to kill them. The leader of the pack, Ivanovitch to his face and the Defiler to those who feared to face him, enjoyed the seduction more than feasting and basked in the glow of worship from their human followers. He took an immediate liking to Merussia, when she came to the club, and she was easy prey to his smooth compliments and soft caresses. His interest, however dubious, did provide protection against from the other vampires, who dared not anger him.

One night in the winter of 2000, Vanya noticed Merussia sneaking out at night and demanded to be know where she had been. Vanya was fascinated by what Merussia told her and wanted to see the club. At first Merussia refused, afraid that Vanya might get them caught, or embarrass her at Twilight Dreams; however, Vanya threatened to tell Merussia's parents if she weren't allowed to come. The next night, a reluctant Merussia escorted Vanya to Twilight Dreams. Ivanovitch was uninterested in the younger girl, but not so one of the newly risen vampires. Vanya's horrified screams as the vampire fed on her with violence unknown before still haunt Merussia's dreams.

At first Merussia rationalized that Vanya would rise again. She tried to convince herself it was best, it was what all of them wanted: to join the Lonely Ones in eternal unlife. Merussia didn't tell her parents what happened; she let them believe Vanya had run away or been kidnapped. For nights she stood vigil over the unmarked burial mound, waiting for Vanya to rise. Several weeks passed before Merussia admitted her sister wasn't coming back. She returned to Twilight Dreams at night, but it was no longer a place of gaiety and entertainment. The club was now a place of nightmares; Ivanovitch was loathsome to her. But she also knew that she was safest as long as he was happy with her. She had never heard of anyone ever surviving a break with the club, but she'd also never before understood why anyone would.

The reckless young vampire that killed Vanya also drew the attention of the demon hunter Lev. In the summer of 2000, at twilight, he made an assault on the club. His method of attack is virtually unknown, as the entire nest was destroyed. The nightly revelers, including Merussia, arrived as the structure caught fire. Most of them threw themselves into the fire rather than live without their Lonely Ones. Others braved the flames in the hopes of saving one or two. Merussia only watched from the other side of the street, feeling free and thankful, and wishing she had been the one strong enough to kill them. She never found out who her savior was; Lev died in the fire as well.

The following school year was Merussia's final one. She concentrated solely on her studies. She no longer left the house after dark. In addition to the regular subjects assigned by her classes, she started buying any books on the occult that she could find and read them through the long nights when her traitorous body longed to be back in the arms of Ivanovitch at the Twilight Dreams.

She announced to her parents that she had decided to go to school in America. She wanted to study engineering. Her choice was University of California in Sunnydale. Baffled by her sudden decision, her parents nevertheless agreed to help her, but she had to pay for most of it on her own or with scholarships. Her grades had always been decent, and with the sudden end to her night time activities they were plenty high enough to get a scholarship for UCSD.

So she made her way to Sunnydale, where surely no vampires would lair, to begin another life free from her dark past. She left her books of the occult behind and vowed to steer clear of anything remotely resembling a vampire. Her habits of the last year served her well in her first at Sunnydale. She rarely went out and never after dark. It was just as well, however, as she had to study twice as hard to learn enough English to understand her classes.

In the summer of 2002, she returned to Moscow and spent an uneasy vacation in the company of her parents. She often felt as if she were being watched at night and spent most of the time in her parent's home. Merussia had no desire to seek out her old friends, which had either died in the fire or faded away afterwards. She was glad to return in the fall of 2002 and start classes once more.